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Breastfeeding should take a toll on bones. A brain hormone may protect them

New findings in mice could one day lead to treatments for osteoporosis

A photograph of a mother in a green shirt breastfeeding her infant. She is sitting in a white armchair next to a small, potted plant in front of a white wall and curtained window.

The bones of nursing moms stay strong despite lactation draining them of calcium. A new study in mice hints at why.

Michele Pevide/E+/Getty Images

By Claire Yuan

Birthing and caring for a newborn can be hard on a mother’s bones. Estrogen, which helps regulate bone growth, drops precipitously after birth, and lactation saps the skeleton of calcium. Yet nursing moms somehow maintain strong, dense bones.