Studies have shown that nipple stimulation can help induce labor in a hospital setting. It may shorten the time to delivery and reduce postpartum bleeding. However, researchers haven’t studied the effects of breast pump use at home to bring on labor. Never try to induce labor alone or without talking to your doctor first. The hospital studies showed nipple stimulation may benefit women with low-risk pregnancies. Doctors still need to study whether breast pumping is safe to induce labor in women with high-risk pregnancies. Nipple stimulation is included in the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) 2009 clinical management guidelines. They deemed it a “natural and inexpensive nonmedical method for inducing labor” for low-risk pregnancies. One small randomized controlled trial suggested that nipple stimulation naturally induces labor. The American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology published the study. Seventeen pregnant people in the trial got intrapartum nipple stimulation. Most got pitocin after (a standard induction method). The control group got pitocin alone. People who got nipple stimulation delivered more than 4 hours sooner than those who received only pitocin. It took between 21 and 80 minutes of pumping for most of the women in the study to start “adequate” labor contractions. That’s at least 3 contractions in 10 minutes, enough to get labor started. Researchers did the studies in medical settings under strict supervision, not at home. Though these studies suggest it may be effective, nipple stimulation isn’t typically used by doctors in hospital settings. Talk to your doctor if you’re interested in breast pumping as a natural method for inducing labor at home. Studies haven’t shown whether breast pumping at home is safe and effective at inducing labor.