Can Men Breast Feed?

"Why do I have breasts?" I asked my grandfather one day.

He answered, "Because I have breasts too."

He used to make me angry with this kind of elliptical answer to my never ending questions but later I realized his point. It was genetics, yes, but still why? It is usually not known that men have mammary glands. In fact this is why men can get breast cancer too. However, the mammary tissue in men's breasts are so little that lactation is almost not possible.

Almost.

In some cases men can produce milk too, without the need to feed a cow or a goat at home. In fact, I remember a news clip about a man in Sri Lanka who breast fed his infant baby after his wife died giving birth.


"It is usually not known that men have
mammary glands."

First of all, pregnancy is not required for making milk. Many women who adopt children can also breast feed. Also, in some cultures when a mother's milk is not enough for the baby, another woman can breast feed the new born. The rule is simple, if the baby sucks there is always milk ready. When a baby suckles at the breast, hormones are produced which cause milk production to increase. The more suckling, the more milk is made.

Since men have mammary gland tissue in their breasts it is possible for men to produce milk if there is enough suckling. It is also possible to stimulate male breasts by massaging or by using breast pumps to produce milk. Both male and female babies may lactate for a brief period immediately after birth because the baby gets a share of the hormones that were preparing the mother to lactate just prior to giving birth.


Male Lactation

In recent years male lactation has become more common due to the use of medications that stimulate a man's mammary glands. Men who suffer from prostate cancer are treated with female hormones which slow down the production of cancerous prostate tissue. The same hormones also stimulate the mammary glands to produce milk. Stress is another factor which stimulates abnormal lactation in men.

This phenomenon was first studied in survivors of the Nazi concentration camps after World War II. American soldiers returning home from the Korean and Vietnam Wars also experienced male lactation. There are passages in the Bible referring to nursing fathers which tell us that a breast feeding father image was not uncommon in ancient times.


In fact, some scientists believe that the breasts of the male were formerly better developed, and served, like those of the female, the purpose of nourishing the offspring. This may be clearly explicable on the assumption that at one time the number of offspring at a single birth was considerable, and that in this way the preservation of the species was favored.

"Some scientists believe that the breasts of the male were formerly better developed, and served the purpose of nourishing the offspring."

A couple of months ago I found a small kitten in one of the abandoned gardens on the island where I live. The truth is, he found me. I heard an insistent meow coming from somewhere I could not locate at first. Suddenly something jumped on my shoulder from behind and immediately started sucking my shirt. Well, of course he is still with me in my apartment, still sucking my elbow while I write this. And I have the same happy face like the man in the picture of that news article from Sri Lanka.

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Most Helpful Guy

  • If a man sleeps with his wife (in close contact I mean, not specifically sexual) her hormones can pass over and yes the man can lactate. In theory yes we can breast feed, but it's not our role... Womens bodies specifically have these hormones and in the right doses, they also have other things... But mainly it would be odd for a male to breastfeed a child in society.

Most Helpful Girl

  • this reminds of the "Family Guy" episode when Peter attempts to breast feed little Stewey. It was after Peter went to this female camp and got in touch with his feminine side. The episode is so hilarious

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What Girls & Guys Said

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  • Men, at least those who do not take hormone therapy, have nipples which essentially serve no purpose other than perhaps sexually because when still an embryo, everyone first gets an x chromosome. This causes nipples to form on both males & females, with the function of lactation coming to females as they get their second x chromosome.

    males cannot lactate regardless of the presence of nipples because their first x chromosome is paired with a why chromosome later in pregnancy.

  • Wow, I think my IQ has significantly decreased between the article and the comments...

  • Men can produce milk but it's a very rare occurrence and even when it does happen I don't think they could actually produce enough milk to adequately breast feed a baby. The reason why men even have breasts is because all babies start off as female. It's not until about 60 days into development that testosterone kicks in and the fetus takes on male characteristics.

  • Well it would look weird if you didn't have any.

  • OK, smart guy! Then why do we have tail bones still?

    Unless I can hang on to a tree with my tail, I don't want it!

  • Good Article.

  • my question is, what kind of a response were you expecting from your grandpa? If one of my friends randomly approached me with that question I'd respond to them something similiar to your grandpa, lol.

    "Because that's the anatomy of a male"? ... A lot of things in our bodies just cannot be explained. A good example is your Appendix. It serves no purpose, it's an absolutely useless organ and nobody can explain why. Not all questions have answers, get used to it.

  • Ben Stiller says a male can. :)

  • lol I've always thought my bf's pecs could be breasts..

  • Because it would look weird for breasts to not be there.

  • Thanks for that enlightening epiphany! I am now more man than I used to be.

  • I may be wrong but yes males can lactate. However, the substance they lactate does not have all of the enzymes, antibodies, and nutrients that a woman's does. There are different kinds of lactation. When you're pregnant you make colostrum and then transition milk and ultimately the final milk. I learned a lot about this while I was pregnant and breastfeeding. So men can lactate but they cannot breastfeed as women do.

  • The real question is, can men breast feed me? Yum.

    • Try with ur man