When does breast milk stop producing?

after how long does breast milk stop producing after giving birth? and if it does stop producing at a later time, will the breast milk produce again if the child sucks on the breast?

it won't reproduce again once its gone... until you have another child. but I'm not sure how long it takes for you to stop producing once you start!

It will keep producing if you keep breastfeeding as long as 5years maybe more. I'm sure you won't need to breastfeed that long but that's how long I have heard of one mother breastfeeding. Too long I think.

it will keep on producing as long as the child is still breastfeeding. you can still keep on breastfeeding once the child stops if you breastfeed other children. after a few weeks of not breastfeeding, your body will realize that is should stop producing, so it does.

once you stop breast feeding it will gradually go away . be careful not to stop too suddenly as you may end up with mastitis. you can get symptoms of a cold with mastitis and a burning feeling in the booby. I think there are drugs you can get from your g/p that get the milk to dry up faster .

In the old days nomadic people without any access to birth control used to keep on breast feeding until the child was old enough to walk a good long way on their own - say 5 years old. The milk keeps on coming, and the reason they did this was that, in their under-nourished state, breast feeding was a pretty good form of birth control - they weren't likely to have another baby until their older child was able to walk in their travelling tribe. IT DOESN'T WORK AS BIRTH CONTROL IN OUR WELL-FED LIVES so don't try it!!!

So yes, breast milk keeps on going more or less as long as you need it to. I think that about a year is great - I managed just under a year for both my sons, but, like bigmuma says, you need to gradually do it less and less, both for your own health and for the child to get used to stopping.

If you do stop, and go onto bottles alone, then I think the milk dries up pretty quickly and won't come again. Maybe a week? Maybe a bit more, as oaklandathletics says. It must be to do with hormones, sending the message that the milk isn't needed any more.

okay cool, thanks for all your answers.

I want to say that I have been PROUNDLY breastfeeding my daughter and she wil be two in july. ihave to stop now because of her playful nature and truely regret it. doctors stopped giving meds to dry up cause it was linked to heart attacks, too risky, to each it own I say. but I have use an ace bandage and wrapped it tightly for three days and my supply was fineto!
good luck, we are all different so try it all, I dont advise using drugs,but to each its own.
Karmas momma

I'm really keen to know when I will stop producing milk as I stopped breast feeding when my daughter was about 5 months old. She is now almost 2 1/2 and I still have milk! the doctors wont give me any medication as my boobs dont hurt and the drug is too risky... any ideas!!

I'm hoping someone here could help. My daughter is now 14 months old; I stopped breast feeding when she was 4 months. I also have two boys ages 40 months and 26 months. I still have milk coming and it hurts too. I think the milk had stopped for a good 2-3 months but its back and its painful. I will keep an eye next time to see if it could be around period time? Any help would be appreciated. With 3 kids I haven't been able to talk to the doctor yet.

That is the problem. I haven't been breast feeding for months but the milk won't stop. It stopped for a while (month or little more) but its back and it hurts

I have just been to see a doctor as my breast milk hasnt stopped after giving up breastfeeding 10 months ago. I am having blood tests done to check my prolactin levels and have been given info on galactorrhoea? lets hope we get an answer from this.will advise.

I had my daughter one year ago and only pumped breast milk for a short while, but the milk I produced came by the bucket full. I am still producing milk and have found that it is causing my menstral cycle to become irregular. This is a problem.. for obvious reasons. This has also put a strain on our sex life. I find that since I still produce milk, I am not cooperative when it comes to certain areas of my body. My husband does not understand why I still have milk, and does not understand how sensitive it makes me, emotionally and physically.

I breastfed my daughter until she was almost 2... to this day, if I squeeze my breasts, they still can produce milk. My daughter JUST TURNED 6! FOUR YEARS!!!