"Breastfeeding is a mother's heart, made visible and nourishing with love."

Why do women get inverted or flat nipples?

• Congenital: some women are born with flat or inverted nipples. Approximately 10% to 20% of females are born with one or more inverted nipples, and they may be completely asymptomatic until breastfeeding(Park HS, 1999).
• Hormonal changes: during pregnancy can cause the nipples to become more inverted or flat.
• Aging; as women age, skin and tissues of the breast may become weak and lose leading to flat or inverted nipples. 
• Trauma: an injury or trauma to the breast can cause the nipples to become inverted or flat
• Breast surgeries: such as reduction or augmentation can cause the nipples to become inverted or flat 

How to manage the problem of inverted or flat nipples?

Make sure your baby has developed a good attachment. This is the one of the most important factors responsible for effective breastfeeding.                                                                                                Click here to read our content on “breastfeeding positions.”

If your baby isn’t nursing properly you can always try to hand express your milk or pump it, this helps to stimulate breasts to make milk. As a mother, you should try to express your milk as often as 8-12 times in 24 hours. Don’t use bottles or dummies as they can cause nipple confusion. 

Try softening your breasts because this can help the baby latch on better, when the breasts are hard and milk is engorged the baby finds it very hard 

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