Six in 10 mothers who stopped breastfeeding did so sooner than they wanted

Key takeaways

• Of 1,177 mothers who stopped breastfeeding during a CDC-led study, 60% stopped sooner than they wanted, and latch trouble was the reason most strongly tied to stopping early¹.
• From day 5 through the first month, a baby who is getting enough milk usually has at least six wet diapers and three yellow, seedy stools a day, according to Texas WIC guidance².
• Mastitis advice changed in 2022: ice, feeding your baby as usual and pain relief replaced heat, deep massage and extra pumping³⁴.
• In 2004 the FDA warned against domperidone, a drug sold abroad and used off-label to raise milk supply, and NIH’s LactMed database says no valid trials support milk thistle for that use⁵⁶⁷.
• Pumping and dumping doesn’t clear alcohol from breast milk any faster, the CDC says, and waiting at least 2 hours after a single drink before nursing is the safest approach⁸.

From 2005 to 2007, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) followed new mothers through their babies’ first year¹. Before giving birth, the mothers had planned, on average, to breastfeed for about eight months¹.

The researchers then looked at 1,177 mothers who started breastfeeding and stopped during the study. Six in 10 had fallen short of their own goal. The 706 who stopped earlier than they wanted had breastfed for 3.8 months on average, compared with 7.8 months for those who reached their goal¹.

More than half of those who fell short worried they didn’t have enough milk. About a quarter had trouble with latch, the way a baby attaches to the breast. One in five had sore, cracked or bleeding nipples¹.

Many of these problems have fixable causes. Professional support can ease many such barriers, the authors wrote, though help at work and at home matters too¹. A key mastitis protocol was rewritten in 2022, and in 2024 the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) urged pediatricians to try other help before tongue-tie surgery⁴⁹.

This guide is for the person doing the feeding, and it respects every feeding choice.

Most parents start breastfeeding, but fewer get as far as they hoped

Among U.S. babies born in 2023, the latest year in the CDC’s National Immunization Survey, 86.1% were ever breastfed¹⁰. By 6 months, 62.8% were still getting some breast milk, and by 12 months, 40.8% were¹⁰. Only 29.8% got breast milk alone, with no formula or other food, all the way to 6 months¹⁰.

CDC has retired its long-running Breastfeeding Report Card. A 2025 Early Childhood Nutrition Report, covering 16 nutrition measures for every state, replaced it¹⁰.

Here is how often each reason came up in the CDC study among mothers who fell short of their goal, versus those who met it¹:

• Worry about not having enough milk: 57.8% vs. 29.9%
• Latch or sucking trouble: 26.8% vs. 7.6%
• Sore, cracked or bleeding nipples: 20.3% vs. 10.0%
• Being sick or needing a medicine: 16.7% vs. 8.7%

Supply worries were common even among mothers who met their goals, nearly 3 in 10. After the researchers adjusted for other factors, latch trouble had the strongest link to stopping early¹.

The study has limits. Most mothers were white, employed and well educated, and they reported their own reasons¹. Leaving out mothers still nursing at their last survey may have pushed the 60% up; the authors’ alternative estimates ran from 37% to 61%¹.

Supply runs on demand, and many “low supply” signs are normal

Most mothers make enough milk, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s WIC breastfeeding program¹¹. Each time milk is removed, by a baby, a pump or hand expression, the body gets a signal to make more¹¹.

WIC says several things that feel like warning signs are usually normal: breasts that feel softer as supply adjusts, feeds as short as 5 minutes a side, cluster feeding in the evening or during growth spurts, and pumping less milk than a baby takes¹¹.

Real dips have common causes. WIC lists limiting feeds, giving formula in place of breastfeeds, starting solids before 4 to 6 months, some birth control pills and other medicines, too little sleep, alcohol, smoking and previous breast surgery¹¹. Texas WIC adds two big ones: nursing or pumping fewer than eight times in 24 hours, and a shallow latch that leaves the breast poorly drained².

How to tell your baby is getting enough

Diapers and weight say more than how your breasts feel. Texas WIC’s day-by-day guide starts at one or more wet diapers on day 1 and rises to four by day 4². From day 5 through the first month, look for at least six wet diapers and at least three yellow, seedy stools a day².

Most babies feed 8 to 12 times in 24 hours²¹². A baby should be back to birth weight by 2 weeks and then gain about two-thirds of an ounce to an ounce a day, Texas WIC says².

A nurse at UofL Health’s Center for Women & Infants lists these signs that supply may be low¹²:

• Fewer wet or dirty diapers than expected
• A baby who seems extremely tired or sluggish
• Stools that haven’t turned bright yellow by day 5
• A baby who isn’t gaining weight

If you notice any, call your baby’s doctor right away, she advises. And get a lactation consultant’s view before deciding there isn’t enough milk¹².

Mastitis advice was rewritten in 2022, and gentler is now better

Heat, firm massage and draining the breast are familiar remedies for a hot, painful breast. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM), a doctors’ group, advises against all three in Protocol #36, published in 2022³⁴.

The protocol treats mastitis as a spectrum, from engorgement and narrowed milk ducts to infection and an abscess, a pocket of pus³⁴. Inflammation is the common thread, often tied to making more milk than the baby needs³. The protocol says there is no evidence that milk left in the breast causes mastitis, and that frequent emptying can feed oversupply⁴.

What the 2022 approach suggests³⁴:

• Feed your baby on their usual schedule, without trying to drain the breast or pump extra.
• Use ice or cold packs.
• Ask your clinician about over-the-counter pain relievers; the protocol lists ibuprofen and acetaminophen.
• Wear a supportive bra, and use only light, gentle strokes on the skin.

What it discourages³⁴: deep massage, heat, vibrating devices, salt soaks, castor oil and other rubs, nipple shields and extra pumping.

You can keep breastfeeding. Mastitis isn’t contagious, and babies can keep feeding from the affected side, even while the parent takes antibiotics⁴.

Get care promptly if³⁴:

• Symptoms get worse, last more than 24 hours, or come with a fever or feeling worse overall.
• Fever, chills or a racing heart last more than a few hours, a sign antibiotics may be needed.
• You feel a soft, fluid-filled lump, or a fever returns or won’t clear on antibiotics. An abscess develops in 3% to 11% of people with mastitis and needs drainage.
• Mastitis keeps returning in the same spot, which calls for imaging.
• Redness comes with skin that looks like an orange peel or pulls inward. These can be signs of inflammatory breast cancer and need urgent referral.

Milk boosters: what LactMed and the FDA say

Products that claim to raise milk supply are called galactagogues. LactMed, the National Institutes of Health’s free database on medicines and breastfeeding, makes the same point in each review: first find out what is holding supply back and work on what can be changed⁶⁷.

Fenugreek, the best-known herbal booster, is covered in our article on herbs in pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Domperidone. This drug is sold in other countries but isn’t approved for any use in the United States. No country has approved it for raising milk supply⁵⁶. In 2004, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned breastfeeding women not to use it. It cited reports of irregular heart rhythms, cardiac arrest and sudden death tied to an intravenous form that several countries had withdrawn⁵.

LactMed’s August 2026 review finds a modest effect: pooled studies show gains of about 88 to 94 milliliters a day, or about 3 ounces by our math⁶. The largest analysis found a benefit only for mothers of babies born early, and LactMed says many mothers who feed often with good technique are unlikely to gain much⁶.

LactMed says higher doses may raise the risk of dangerous heart rhythms and sudden death, and it can’t vouch for the quality of compounded or online products⁶. It also notes reports of anxiety, sleep trouble and other withdrawal symptoms after the drug is stopped, so any change is a conversation to have with a clinician⁶.

Milk thistle. LactMed’s March 2026 review says no scientifically valid trials support it for milk supply⁷. In a 2024 double-blind trial in mothers of babies born at 32 weeks or earlier, those taking a silymarin product, made from milk thistle‘s active compounds, made about 506 mL a day at 3 weeks, compared with 523 mL on a placebo⁷. An earlier randomized trial also found no difference⁷. A blend with added ingredients did raise output in one trial, but LactMed says that doesn’t show milk thistle itself works⁷.

LactMed adds that people allergic to daisies and their relatives should avoid it, and that supplement labels often don’t match what’s inside⁷.

Medicines, alcohol and caffeine: check, don’t guess

Illness and medicine questions cut breastfeeding short for many mothers in the CDC study¹. LactMed covers drugs, herbs and supplements⁶⁷.

MotherToBaby, a service of the Organization of Teratology Information Specialists, gives free, personal answers about exposures in pregnancy and breastfeeding¹³. Call 866-626-6847 or text 855-999-3525¹³. Ask before you stop breastfeeding or skip a medicine your clinician prescribed.

Alcohol. The CDC says not drinking is the safest choice, but up to one standard drink a day, such as 12 ounces of 5% beer or 5 ounces of 12% wine, is not known to harm a baby⁸. A 12-ounce craft beer at 9% counts as about 1.8 drinks⁸.

Alcohol in milk tracks alcohol in your blood and peaks 30 to 60 minutes after a drink⁸. It can usually be detected for 2 to 3 hours after one drink, 4 to 5 hours after two and 6 to 8 hours after three⁸. The CDC says the safest approach is to wait at least 2 hours after a single drink before nursing⁸.

Pumping and dumping won’t speed that up, though milk you expressed before drinking is fine to use⁸. Heavy drinking over time can lower supply, and caring for a baby while intoxicated isn’t safe⁸.

Caffeine. The CDC says about 300 mg a day or less, roughly 2 to 3 cups of coffee, usually doesn’t harm a breastfed baby¹⁴. Babies of mothers who drank about 10 cups a day or more have been reported to be irritable, jittery and poor sleepers¹⁴. Premature babies and young newborns clear caffeine more slowly, so their parents may want less¹⁴.

Pain, latch and tongue-tie: start with hands-on help

A shallow latch can hurt and can also leave milk behind². A good latch reduces both pain and nipple damage, UofL Health notes¹².

Federal home-visiting programs can link families with board-certified lactation consultants (IBCLCs) and certified lactation counselors, the Health Resources and Services Administration says¹⁵. WIC clinics offer peer counselors and lactation experts²¹¹.

Sometimes the question becomes tongue-tie, a tight band of tissue under the tongue. A quick procedure called a frenotomy cuts it.

In August 2024, the AAP published a clinical report on tongue-tie and breastfeeding, led by Jennifer Thomas, MD⁹. In three studies from the U.S., Canada and England, 1.7% to 10.7% of newborns were diagnosed⁹. In one study, diagnoses rose nearly tenfold from 1997 to 2012, then doubled again by 2016⁹.

Two reviews found that frenotomy brings a short-term drop in nipple pain, but its effect on the baby’s feeding was inconsistent⁹. Use of lasers for the procedure has climbed sharply, though the AAP found nothing showing a laser works better than other tools⁹.

The AAP advises trying nonsurgical feeding help first, saving frenotomy for significant problems that persist, and checking afterward that feeding improved⁹. It doesn’t recommend after-procedure stretching exercises. It also says craniosacral therapy, myofascial release and physical therapy for tongue-tie are not well studied and often paid out of pocket⁹. The procedure itself is safe⁹.

The breastfeeding problem solver

This table is our own summary of the sources in each row. Bring it to your baby’s doctor or a lactation specialist.

Problem	Likely causes	First steps	Get help when	Source
“I don’t think I have enough milk”	Normal changes such as cluster feeds; too few feeds; shallow latch; some medicines; past breast surgery	Count diapers; aim for 8 to 12 feeds a day; get a latch check	Fewer diapers, a very tired baby, stools not yellow by day 5 or no weight gain: call the baby’s doctor	21112
Nipple pain or damage	Shallow latch	See a lactation consultant or WIC counselor early	Pain or nipple damage that doesn’t ease	212
A hot, red, painful area	Inflammation, often with oversupply	Feed as usual, ice, a supportive bra; skip heat and deep massage	Worse or lasting past 24 hours; fever or chills for more than a few hours; a soft lump	34
Thinking about a milk booster	Supply concerns that haven’t been assessed	Work on feeding frequency and latch first; look the product up in LactMed	Before taking anything; domperidone isn’t FDA-approved	567
Planning a drink	Alcohol passes into milk	Milk pumped beforehand is fine to use; after one drink, wait at least 2 hours, longer after more	Never care for a baby while intoxicated	8
Possible tongue-tie	A tight tongue band, or other feeding problems	Start with your pediatrician; try nonsurgical help	Significant feeding trouble that persists after help	9
A new prescription or illness	Worry about the baby’s exposure	Check LactMed, or call or text MotherToBaby	Before stopping breastfeeding or skipping a medicine	613
Feeling low, anxious or overwhelmed	Many possible causes, including postpartum mood conditions	Call or text the maternal mental health hotline	Thoughts of suicide or harming yourself: call or text 988	1315

Your body, your baby, your choice

Many people who love natural living see breastfeeding as the body working as designed, and supply does run on a feedback loop that responds to your baby¹¹.

That is why the most natural fixes are often mechanical. A better latch and more frequent feeds work with that loop, while a bottled booster can skip the step LactMed calls essential: finding out why supply is low⁶⁷.

Formula, donor milk, combination feeding and deciding to stop are all legitimate choices, and our team’s article “Breast milk and formula, without the guilt” covers them. What matters is that you choose, rather than letting pain or bad advice choose for you.

If feeding struggles leave you low, anxious or overwhelmed, the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is free and confidential¹⁵. Call or text 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262), any time, every day¹⁵. If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988¹³.

What the evidence says

Claim	What the research shows	Rating
Milk supply responds to how often milk is removed	Consistent federal and state WIC guidance; LactMed says drug boosters add little when feeding is going well2611	Strong evidence
The gentler 2022 mastitis approach beats heat and deep massage	Expert protocol from a doctors’ group, built on how inflammation works34	Promising but early
Domperidone raises milk supply	Modest gains in pooled studies; the largest analysis found a benefit only for mothers of preterm babies6	Promising but early
Domperidone is a safe choice in the U.S.	Not FDA-approved; heart rhythm warnings; product quality uncertain56	Evidence says no, or unsafe
Milk thistle boosts supply	Two trials of milk thistle extracts in mothers of preterm babies found no gain; LactMed says no valid trials support it7	Not enough evidence
Frenotomy eases nipple pain	Short-term drop in pain in two reviews9	Promising but early
Pumping and dumping clears alcohol faster	Milk alcohol falls only as blood alcohol falls8	Evidence says no, or unsafe

Questions readers ask

The bottom line

Many people who stop breastfeeding before they meant to are pushed by problems, not preferences, and many of those problems have findable causes. Diaper counts and weight checks answer the supply question better than how full your breasts feel, and hands-on latch help is the first fix for pain.

The newer advice is gentler: ice and normal feeding for mastitis, nonsurgical help before tongue-tie surgery, and time rather than pumping after a drink. Whatever you decide about feeding, you deserve support, not judgment.

Related reading

• Breast milk and formula, without the guilt
• What a baby needs to eat in the first year
• A few herbs are known pregnancy risks, and most were never tested
• Eleven of 12 Best-Selling Prenatals Missed a Label Amount. Check Yours
• Period apps guess from the calendar, and wearables spot ovulation only after the fact

Sources

1. Odom EC, Li R, Scanlon KS, Perrine CG, Grummer-Strawn L. “Reasons for Earlier Than Desired Cessation of Breastfeeding.” Pediatrics, 2013;131(3):e726–e732 (CDC Stacks copy). stacks.cdc.gov
2. Texas Health and Human Services Commission (Texas WIC). “All About Low Milk Supply.” BreastmilkCounts.com, 2026. breastmilkcounts.com
3. Minnesota Department of Health WIC Program. “Mastitis: Updated Guidance.” Topic of the Month, April 1, 2023. health.mn.gov
4. Collins E. “Current Mastitis Management” (presentation summarizing Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine Clinical Protocol #36, Mitchell KB et al., Breastfeeding Medicine, 2022). Emory University School of Medicine, April 18, 2025.
5. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “FDA Talk Paper: FDA Warns Against Women Using Unapproved Drug, Domperidone, to Increase Milk Production.” FDA, June 7, 2004.
6. National Library of Medicine. “Domperidone.” Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed), NCBI Bookshelf, revised August 15, 2026. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
7. National Library of Medicine. “Milk Thistle.” Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed), NCBI Bookshelf, revised March 15, 2026. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Alcohol.” Breastfeeding Special Circumstances, last updated April 13, 2026. cdc.gov
9. American Academy of Pediatrics. “American Academy of Pediatrics Clinical Report Encourages Pediatricians to Consider Nonsurgical Options to Breastfeeding Concerns Amid Rise in Tongue-Tie Diagnoses.” AAP news release, July 29, 2024. aap.org
10. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Rates of Any and Exclusive Breastfeeding by State among Children Born in 2023,” National Immunization Survey-Child, and “NIS-Child Data Results,” last updated July 31, 2026; with “Breastfeeding Report Card: At a glance,” updated April 17, 2026. cdc.gov and cdc.gov and cdc.gov
11. U.S. Department of Agriculture, WIC Breastfeeding Support. “Low Milk Supply.” USDA Food and Nutrition Service. wicbreastfeeding.fns.usda.gov
12. Sorrell J. “Am I Making Enough Milk for My Baby?” UofL Health, published August 25, 2021; updated April 2026. uoflhealth.org
13. MotherToBaby (Organization of Teratology Information Specialists). “Mental Health.” MotherToBaby. mothertobaby.org
14. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Maternal Diet and Breastfeeding.” Breastfeeding Special Circumstances, last updated August 25, 2026. cdc.gov
15. Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau. “MCHB Supports Breastfeeding.” HRSA, last reviewed March 2026. mchb.hrsa.gov