8 Breastfeeding and Pumping Myths That Need to Go (And the Truth Behind Each One)
If you’ve spent any time in breastfeeding spaces online, you’ll know that misinformation travels fast. A throwaway comment from a well-meaning relative, a post shared in a mums’ group, a midwife who last updated her knowledge a decade ago - and suddenly you’re convinced your body is failing when it absolutely isn’t (and rushing to buy the latest fizzy drink that everyone swears boosts your milk supply….) So let’s burn some myths down, shall we?
Myth 1: Soft boobs mean low supply.
They don’t. Full stop.
In the early weeks, your breasts may feel rock-hard and engorged as your body works out how much milk to make. But as your supply regulates - and it will if you nurse or pump on demand - that fullness softens. This is not a red flag. It’s your body becoming more efficient at making milk. Soft breasts are, in many cases, a sign that your supply has beautifully settled into a rhythm with your baby’s needs.
Myth 2: If your breasts feel soft, your baby isn’t getting enough fat.
Actually, the opposite can be true.
When your breasts are softer, the milk inside is less diluted by more watery foremilk - which means your baby may actually getting the richest, fattiest hindmilk possible. That's not to say that firmer breast mean watery milk. The science tells us that the consistency of your milk fluctuates significantly over a 24 hour period depending on your unique baby’s needs each day (how amazing is that!?). Your body isn’t a machine with fixed settings. It adapts. Constantly. That's part of what makes it truly incredible.
Myth 3: Low pump output means low supply.
This one sends so many mothers spiralling - and it doesn’t have to.
Here’s what I need you to hear: a pump is a tool (a wonderful one!), which empowers your breastfeeding journey. If you’re pumping small amounts, it may simply mean that the pump isn’t the right fit, the flange/breast shield size is off, or you’re not yet relaxed enough for your milk to flow fully. Elvie Pump and Elvie Stride 2 come with a range of different breast shields and nipple cushions for these reasons - so they fit 99% of nipples. It's also important to remember that in those very early days your newborn’s stomach is the size of a marble. Every single drop - packed with a million white blood cells - counts more than you know.
Myth 4: Something is wrong with your ‘slacker boob.’
Nothing is wrong with you. Nothing.
Almost every breastfeeding mother has one breast that produces more than the other, and it’s usually the left. The difference is simply more noticeable in some women than others. It has nothing to do with damage, illness, or failure. It’s just anatomy doing its wonderfully asymmetrical thing. The reasons for this are varied - just as we have a dominant hand, perhaps the body has a dominant side. A quiet preference written into us before we were even born. Or maybe your baby favoured on breast over the other in those first foggy nights. Turned toward instinctively, latched to first in hunger or in comfort one breast may simply have been asked to do more. And so it did.
Myth 5: What you eat goes directly into your milk.
If this were true, I’d have produced a lot of Jaffa Cake milk during my son’s first few months of life, and I’m not sure how I feel about that…
Your milk is made from the components of your blood, not the contents of your stomach. Which means that if there are nutritional gaps in your diet, your incredible body will draw from its own reserves to fill them. This is one of the reasons I feel so passionately about supporting pregnant and nursing mothers with their nutrition. Your body will protect your milk supply, often at cost to itself. Please remember that you deserve to be nourished too, mama.
Myth 6: Smaller breasts produce less milk.
No. And also, no.
Breast size is determined by fatty tissue. Milk production is determined by glandular tissue. The two are not the same thing and one tells us absolutely nothing about the other. I say this with love from someone who knows many a mother with a generous cup size who struggled with supply and equally, many a smaller-chested mothers who fed for years with no supply issues. Size is irrelevant. Biology is not that simple (and neither are you).
Myth 7: Cranking up the suction on your pump will give you more milk.
Please don’t do this. I say that with all the love in the world.
Pump suction that is too strong doesn’t extract more milk - it causes pain and pain inhibits your let-down reflex. What actually matters is a correctly fitting flange and a comfortable, consistent suction level you can relax into. Think of it like a good latch: the goal is effective, not aggressive. A pump that fits and feels right will always outperform one turned up to maximum in discomfort. This is why Elvie Pump uses SmartRhythm pumping modes to optimise your milk output and maximize your comfort.
Myth 8: Your baby would sleep better if you stopped breastfeeding.
There is zero conclusive scientific evidence to support this claim. Zero.
And yet it is one of the most common things mothers are told - by other mothers at play groups, by family members, by strangers on the internet - as though weaning is the answer to every sleep challenge. Breastfed babies wake for many reasons: developmental leaps, hunger, connection, temperature, illness.
If any of these myths have been used against you - to doubt yourself, to wean before you were ready, to feel like your body was broken when it wasn’t - I’m sorry. You deserved better information and better support. The truth is, your body is doing something extraordinary. It has been, from the beginning.
If you know a mother who needs the reassurance shared in this post, send it to her. She deserves to know.
Ready to find your fit? Explore Elvie Pump here and Elvie Stride 2 here.