Breast Augmentation and Breastfeeding

Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota, and Clearwater, Florida Breast Surgery

Breastfeeding is an important part of motherhood for many women. After an extended period where breastfeeding was seen as at best inconvenient and at worst unclean and improper, it is experiencing a resurgence, which is good for babies, good for mothers, and good for all of us. Breast augmentation does increase the risk that you may be unable to breastfeed, but most women with breast implants are able to successfully breastfeed. And breast implants pose no risk to breastfeeding infants.

This page contains some of the basic information about breastfeeding after breast augmentation, but if you would rather ask your questions in person, we invite you to schedule a consultation with board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Antonio J. Gayoso at his Tampa area office.

Will I Be Able to Breastfeed after Breast Augmentation?

Most likely. Not all women are able to breastfeed naturally, and breast augmentation may increase the risk that you will not be able to breastfeed. However, most women with breast implants are able to successfully breastfeed as long as they want to.

Some studies have shown that the periareolar breast augmentation incision may be associated with an increased risk of breastfeeding difficulties, but most show that the risk is about the same for all three common incisions.

Is Breastfeeding Safe after Breast Augmentation?

Yes. There have been a number of concerns voiced about possible dangers to breastfeeding infants, but clinical studies have shown no evidence that these dangers are real. In general, there is no association between breast implants and developmental defects in breastfeeding infants. Studies also show that breastfeeding infants whose mothers have breast implants gain weight at roughly the same healthy rate as those whose mothers do not have breast implants.

When researchers looked at the level of silicon (a component of silicone) in the breast milk of mothers with breast implants, they found that it was about the same for women with silicone breast implants and saline breast implants, and both of them were about 1/12 of the level found in cow’s milk and 1/80 of the amount found in commercial infant formulas.

Some expressed concern that platinum used to polymerize the silicone shell of the implant could pass to the infant during breastfeeding. Platinum is found in breast milk of women with breast implants, but it is likely in its neutral state and therefore harmless.

Will Breastfeeding Impact My Breast Augmentation Results?

Most likely not. Your body does most of the preparation for breastfeeding during the late stages of pregnancy, and if your breast augmentation results were likely to be affected, that would happen before you begin breastfeeding. From the standpoint of your results, there is no reason not to breastfeed if you are able and willing.

If you have additional questions about breastfeeding and breast augmentation that are not answered here, please contact our Tampa area office today to schedule a consultation with board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Antonio J. Gayoso.  We also proudly serve the areas of St Petersberg, Tampa, Clearwater, Florida