In praise of the baby-led breastfeeding position
By Cordelia Uys, Breastfeeding Counsellor
Siobhan and baby Noa
My friend Lara Curry, sitting in the middle here on a bench on Hampstead Heath, is holding her older baby in a baby-led position.
In the baby-led position (also known as the laid back position or Biological Nurturing) the baby uses all their neonatal reflexes to make their way to the breast, and latch themselves. They push with their feet, move their hands around, bob their head and root around looking for the breast. The baby has control over latching, and gravity works in their favour, allowing them to get a deeper latch as they suckle.
Here’s a short video of a baby breastfeeding in the baby-led position:
This video is the copyright of Suzanne Colson ©Biological Nurturing.
In more tradition positions such as the cross cradle hold or the rugby hold (positions which I call mother-led because the mother has control over latching), gravity works against the baby. Their hands often get in the way, and when the baby bobs his or her head around, it can feel like they are trying to pull away from the breast.
The baby-led position works in 360 degrees. For example, mothers who have had a caesarean birth can put their baby over their shoulder so he or she is coming from above.
When they use the baby-led position, mothers report:
- Less nipple pain and trauma
- Fewer latching struggles
- Fewer milk production worries
Girish M, et al. J Perinatol 2013
Milinco M, et al. Int Breastfeed J 2020