A milk bleb (also known as a milk blister) is a little white spot near the top of your nipple that forms when a plugged duct in your breast causes a milk-flow issue. While these blebs can go away on their own, they can also cause discomfort and interfere with your nursing or pumping efforts. With some at-home treatment, such as applying warm compresses and wearing loose clothing, you can help your nipple bleb clear up so you can get back to breastfeeding pain-free. If your milk bleb isn’t getting better, or you start to develop symptoms of mastitis, reach out to your healthcare provider.
IN THIS ARTICLE
- What is a milk bleb?
- What causes milk blebs?
- What does a milk bleb look like?
- What’s the best treatment for a milk bleb?
- How to prevent milk blebs
What is a milk bleb?
A milk bleb, also called a nipple bleb or a milk blister, is a tiny white dot that can appear on your nipple or areola if you’re breastfeeding or pumping. Milk blebs form when a duct gets clogged in your breast, resulting in a thickening of breast milk and a slower flow near your nipple’s opening.
A milk blister may also develop when a bit of your skin grows over the opening of a milk duct, causing milk to back up in the breast. While milk blebs aren’t always painful and may even fade away with little to no at-home treatment after a few weeks, some women feel discomfort while breastfeeding with a milk bleb. And milk blisters can sometimes lead to mastitis, an inflammation and infection of the breast that occurs in about 20 percent of breastfeeding women.
What causes milk blebs?
Milk blebs form when there’s a clogged milk duct in your breast. These blockages may occur when feedings are missed or delayed – perhaps because your baby is sleeping for longer stretches, you’re back to work after maternity leave and you’re breastfeeding or pumping less, or your baby is teething, which can make it uncomfortable for them to nurse effectively. Without proper drainage, an oversupply of breast milk can clog your ducts and create milk blebs.
You might also see a milk blister appear if you’re dealing with engorgement, which is caused by a weak latch, using nipple shields, or abrupt weaning. Constraining your breasts (and in turn, your milk ducts) – like wearing a too-tight sports bra or sleeping on your stomach – may also cause a milk bleb to form. Lastly, an infection or trauma to the nipple can also be behind a milk-filled blister that appears there.
What does a milk bleb look like?
You’ll know you have a milk bleb if you spy a whitish or yellow-tinged spot on your areola or at the tip of your nipple – it looks like a tiny raised white dot. There may also be some redness or inflammation around this milk blister, which some women say causes pain while they’re breastfeeding.
Don’t confuse a milk bleb with a larger, less painful blister that’s caused by excessive rubbing. These larger, inflamed nipple blisters usually stem from using nipple shields or an ill-fitting flange while pumping. Once the cups on your pump are better sized, this friction blister should heal quickly.
What’s the best treatment for a milk bleb?
While milk blebs can be annoying and even painful, many ease away on their own. But if yours is lingering, there are things you can do at home to help get some relief:
- Try warm or cold compresses. Holding a warm washcloth over the milk bleb for a few minutes before you begin a nursing session can aid the letdown reflex (the process that makes milk flow). Or try soaking your breast in warm saltwater and rubbing it with a cloth to dislodge the milk bleb.
Cold compresses can also be helpful, as they help to decrease the inflammation of the breast tissue. - Consider a cotton ball soaked in olive oil. Try wearing a cotton ball covered in olive oil in your bra. It can help soften the skin so you can gently massage and loosen up the bleb (eventually removing it carefully).
- Massage the area. As you nurse, gently massage any hard or lumpy areas of your breast with a downward motion toward the nipple area to encourage a loosening of the plugged duct. You might also compress the area behind the clog to express whatever’s blocking the duct (it could be a thick bit of breast milk).
- Get creative with feeds. You can try experimenting with different feeding positions. One way that’s recommended for relief is kneeling on all fours and dangling your breast in front of your baby as they lie on their backs on the floor. These types of feeds allow your breast to dangle over your baby as the milk is released via suction and gravity.
- Check your latch. If your baby’s latch isn’t sealed or feels uncomfortable, the breast may not drain well, leading to plugged ducts and blebs. A lactation consultant can help with latching.
- Stick to the schedule. It may seem counterintuitive to keep up a process that’s caused a milk bleb, but by following your feeding routine your baby may open up and ease the clogged blister.
If you’ve tried the above but you’re still experiencing pain, call your healthcare provider, especially if you start to develop symptoms of mastitis, including breast pain, swelling, fever or chills. Your provider may recommend an over-the-counter pain reliever to ease the ache. Don’t try to pierce the blister yourself, because that could result in an infection.
How to prevent milk blebs
Keep the following in mind to try to prevent a milk bleb from forming:
- Mix up your breastfeeding positions. A solid latch as well as a variety of positions during each feeding can help your ducts empty more efficiently. Try putting your new baby in a different breastfeeding position each time you sit down to nurse.
- Add in the pump. Not sure your babe did a great job at the breast? Try to schedule a pumping session or two afterwards to fully drain the milk from your breasts.
- Eat well and hydrate. A well-fed, hydrated mom has a better chance of building her milk supply. To that end, stick to a healthy breastfeeding diet, and keep wholesome snacks and a water bottle at your nursing station. Get plenty of rest so your energy (and milk levels) don’t lag. If you’re getting blebs, you may need to remove saturated fat from your diet.
- Wean with care. Whether your baby starts to nurse less because they’re sleeping through the night or they’re simply ready to give up the breast, approach weaning slowly. Pump or hand-express your milk a bit to ease any discomfort as your body gets used to the new schedule.
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