How safe is breastfeeding as a form of birth control?
Breastfeeding is only an effective method of birth control if certain conditions are met and, like all contraception, it is not foolproof. Breastfeeding delays the return of your periods. However, the first time you ovulate after giving birth will be before your first period, and you have a 10 per cent risk of falling pregnant if you rely solely on your period returning as a warning that you are fertile. Scientists have defined what’s known as the lactational amenorrhoea method or LAM (relying on the absence of periods while you are breastfeeding as a form of contraception) as 98 to 99 per cent effective. However, this is only true if: You are breastfeeding your baby on demand, night and day, without using any supplements. This usually means a minimum of ten short or six long breastfeeds every 24 hours with no interval longer than six hours and no use of a dummy. Your baby is less than six months old. However, once this changes, for example, when you introduce solids — and as long you
