Breastfeeding/Lactation Consultant

Just curious, why does nursing help put a baby/toddler to sleep? I always nurse my 16-month-old to sleep. It works wonderfully.

I don't know how non-nursing mothers do it. My LO won't stop go-go-going unless I nurse her. She'd be totally running around, but if she's ready for a nap, I nurse her and she falls asleep in a few minutes.

This is from a REALLY old post, but it is interesting info that seems to answer your question.

"CCK (cholecystokinin) is the hormone responsible for gall bladder contraction and is also one of the hormones released during breastfeeding - it induces sleepiness!

"When the researchers measured CCK levels in babies’ blood, they found a peak at the end of a nursing, then a DROP almost back to baseline about 10-15 minutes after the end of the nursing, and finally a rise to even higher levels 30 and 60 minutes after the end of the feed. Their interpretation of these findings was that the first peak was a sucking-induced CCK peak, and the steady rise later was a food-induced CCK rise. So the baby nurses, gets sleepy from sucking, lets go and naps a bit, then wakes again to nurse some more until the food he is digesting induces the second and longer-lasting CCK rise.

"This interpretation is also great for parents, because it explains why their baby nurses, falls asleep, and then wakes up just after they lay her down."

http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=iv-ppbreastfeed&msg=63966.5&ctx=0