It varies from person to person, to me I felt padded nursing bras are enough to overcome milk leakage instead of using nursing pads. I bought 3-4 boxes but ended up using only 10 pads in the initial 2-3 days. If you are at home, then just padded nursing bras should be sufficient. For some mothers the milk leakage is too minimal as the baby feeds every 2 hours or mother pumps every 3 hours. The body itself tunes itself to produce just what is needed.
Nursing pad doesn’t cause mastitis or blocked ducts. Not emptying your breasts regularly are the causes of mastitis and blocked ducts. Nursing pad is to prevent leaking and staining your bra and shirt. But if you do not want to wear one at home, then it’s ok to not use it at home. However, if u are going out, it’s better to wear, to avoid any embarrassing staining
It is recommended to wear breast pad to avoid leakage. Atleast if it is wet you will know it is time to change and also pump. It wont block your duct however recommended to change every 4 to 5 hrs, depend on your preferences.
if you have very good supply and will be out longer than your usual pump time then i suggest wearing them because will leak