Breast Feeding

Breast Feeding

Published on: March 12, 2010

BENEFITS OF BREASTFEEDING
For the Baby
•  Breastfed babies have fewer ear infections.
•  Breastfeeding lowers the risk of asthma, eczema, and food allergies.
•  Breastfeeding provides protection against meningitis, diarrhea, urinary tract infections and lung infections like pneumonia
•  Breastfeeding decreases the risk of Diabetes, Type 1
•  Breastfeeding enhances brain development and increases IQ.
•  Breastfed babies are at lower risk of developing some childhood cancers like Hodgkin’s lymphoma
•  Breastfeeding reduces the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
•  Breastfeeding promotes psychological and emotional reassurance leading to happier, less fussy babies

For the mother and the whole family
•  Mothers become more relaxed and confident. The maternal hormones that are released during breastfeeding also produce a peaceful and nurturing sensation.
•  Pregnancy weight is lost faster
•  More savings—no need to buy milk formula, water, bottles, nipples, sterilizers
•  More convenient– no need to go to the grocery to buy, milk and other feeding paraphernalia
•  Easier for travel—no need to carry a big bag full of feeding
equipment

DEVELOPING THE RIGHT ATTITUDE FOR BREASTFEEDING

Tips for Pregnant Moms
Read, read, read. Learn as much as you can from breastfeeding books, magazines, and websites (www.lalecheleague.org).

Solicit support
•  Talk about breastfeeding with your obstetrician, birthing instructor, or pediatrician. They provide not only medical
information but also encouragement.
•  Talk to women who are breastfeeding successfully and ask their advice.
•  Make sure your husband is supportive of breastfeeding.  Have him read all he can too.
•  Attend breastfeeding classes.

Plan ahead
•  Arrange for family and friends to help around the house during the first few weeks after birth.
•  If you plan to return to work while you are still breastfeeding, find a good breastpump. Negotiate with your employer a breastmilk pumping schedule and an appropriate place to pump (lactation room).

GETTING STARTED
Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms
Breastfeed as soon as possible after birth. Don't expect too much or try to practice everything you've read or learned. Some babies will just nuzzle and lick the breast, while others will latch on immediately.  But the earlier you do this, the easier it will be for you to initiate breastfeeding.

Practice proper positioning and latching-on. Getting your baby to latch on  well is key to successful breastfeeding. Before you leave the hospital, you should be able to tell whether your baby is latching on properly, and whether he is getting colostrums (first milk) from the breast. Seek help from your doctor or any nursery staff if you have questions or concerns. 

Room in. This means that the baby is brought to the mother’s room so that they can be together 24-hours a day.   This allows you to wake up naturally when your baby wakes for a feeding, and to respond to your newborn's early signs of hunger, such as alertness, making sucking motions or rooting (moving her head around in search of your breasts). Please see the last page for more about rooming in.

Avoid artificial nipples: Artificial nipples (pacifiers or bottles) should not be given to your newborn, at least until breastfeeding is well established (about 4 to 6 weeks). Supplements of water, sugar water, or formula are rarely needed if your baby is taking the breast properly and getting the milk that is available. Remember that milk production is a supply and demand situation. If your baby is being given a supplement, he is not stimulating your milk supply, and your milk supply will decrease.

Feed on demand: Your newborn should breastfeed 8 to 12 times in 24 hours.  This means, every 2 - 3 hours. The amount of milk you produce is directly related to the amount of stimulation your breasts receive. Breastfeeding time should not be limited, and both breasts should be used at each feeding, alternating starting sides

Get enough rest: This may be easier to say than to do, but taking care of yourself is important for breastfeeding to succeed. Make sure that you have help at home, especially during the first few weeks. Hopefully, your spouse will be able to take some time off from work. Your only job should be to get to know your baby and get breastfeeding well established. Request someone else take care of all of the other household duties.  For the first two weeks, try to sleep when the baby sleeps.

Drink plenty of fluids
Nursing mothers need plenty of fluids. If you remember to drink something every time you nurse your baby, you will stay hydrated. Your urine should be pale in color. Avoid caffeine and alcohol, because these substances encourage fluid loss.
Eat a balanced diet
You need to eat a nutritious diet while breastfeeding, just as you did while pregnant. Take care not to miss meals.

Relax during feedings
Breastfeeding is enhanced if you are comfortable and relaxed during feedings.  Play soft music.  Have a glass of water within your reach. Sit on a comfortable chair and use pillows to prop up your arms during the feeding.

Airdry nipples after each breastfeeding session by wearing a loose-fitting shirt without a bra. When bathing, gently wash your breasts with warm water and avoid using soap, which can dry and irritate your nipples.

Positioning
Having the baby positioned properly at the breast is important in avoiding sore nipples and ensuring that baby is receiving adequate nutrition. Be sure to:

• Find a comfortable position, sitting up or lying down. Baby's tummy should be facing your tummy.
• Support your breast with your hand, thumb on top and fingers underneath.
• Stimulate baby to arouse interest, tickling baby's lips with your finger or nipple. With baby's mouth wide open, quickly bring baby to your breast. Be patient and keep trying--this is a learned skill for both of you.
• At every feeding, be sure to get the nipple and a good portion of the areola well back into the baby's mouth.

Engorgement
Engorgement is defined as swollen, hard, painful breasts usually resulting from infrequent emptying of the breasts.  Therefore, during the first weeks, it is important for you to breastfeed every 2-3 hours round the clock.  If you need to relieve the pressure on your breasts, you may take the following steps:

• Take a warm shower, or apply a warm compress on your breasts
• before breastfeeding
• Express a small amount of milk before breastfeeding either manually or by using a breast pump.

Sore Nipples
Sore nipples usually result from improper positioning. If sore, review positioning and also follow these steps:

• Baby should feed first on the less sore side.
• Short, frequent feedings are better than long, infrequent feedings.
• Change feeding position to allow baby's jaws to exert pressure on less sore areas.
• Remember to remove baby from the breast by breaking the suction with your finger.
• After each feeding, wipe baby's saliva from the nipple, express a few drops of breast milk on the nipple area to promote healing, and airdry breasts for 15 to 20 minutes.

Signs of Correct Nursing
• Your baby’s mouth is open wide with lips curled out.
• His chin and nose are resting against the breast.
• He has taken as much of the areola as possible into his mouth.
• He is sucking rhythmically, deeply, & silently in short bursts separated by pauses.
• You can hear him swallowing regularly.
• Your nipple is comfortable after the first few suckles.

Rooming-In
Rooming-in means that the newborn is brought to the mother’s room so that mother and baby can stay together 24-hours a day even while in the hospital. Because of it’s many proven benefits, this practice is highly encouraged at The Medical City.

• Rooming-in enables the mother to respond to her baby, prompting early bonding.
• Rooming-in makes the initiation of breastfeeding easier and more successful. 
• Parents are given the chance to care for their baby under the guidance of their doctors, nurses, and midwives. This makes them more relaxed and confident when they bring their baby home.

There are some parents who refuse rooming-in. The intentions behind them are often good but the reasons themselves are unsound:

• To allow the mother to rest. Roomed-in babies cry less than those who are separated for their mothers. After breastfeeding, both the mother and the baby can rest well together.
• To prevent infection. There is no evidence that putting babies in nurseries reduces infection. On the contrary, it may increase cross-infection between babies, which can be carried by nursery staff.
• To observe the baby. Doctors, nurses, and midwives observe babies with their mothers just as well as in the nursery. Besides, parents observe their babies very closely, and they often notice if something is wrong early on.

Republic Act No. 7600  
Republic Act No. 7600, approved on June 2, 1992, is also known as "The Rooming-In and Breastfeeding Act of 1992". It is a law in the Philippines providing incentives to all government and private health institutions with rooming-in and breastfeeding practices.

Source:  The Medical City Breastfeeding Task Force

 

BREASTFEEDING: THE FIRST HOUR

 

Early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding for six months can SAVE more than ONE million babies!

 

• The potential for saving ONE million babies starts with ONE simple action: allowing the baby to initiate breastfeeding in the first hour of life.

• Immediate skin-to-skin contact of the mother and baby and continuing with exclusive breastfeeding for six months could reduce infant and under-five mortality, by reducing the overwhelmingly high neonatal mortality rate.

• Health ministries should include the initiation of breastfeeding in the first hour as a key indicator for preventive health and support the newly revised and revitalized Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI)

• Support from health workers, policy makers, families and communities could help mothers and babies breastfeed successfully and save ONE million lives.

 

Benefits of Breastfeeding

Did you know?

 

Every new born, when placed on the mother’s abdomen soon after birth has the ability to find its mother’s breast all on its own and to decide when to take the first breastfeed. This is called the ‘Breast Crawl’.

 

UNICEF, WHO and WABA along with the scientific community strongly recommend initiating breastfeeding within half an hour of birth. Evidence shows that breastfeeding in the first hour can prevent 22% of all deaths among babies below one month in developing countries.

 

Breastfeeding is Nature’s best medicine. It provides more benefits than any drug modern medicine can offer.

 

EXCLUSIVE

Breastfeeding protects against illness and death. It protects against:

 

• Diarrhea

• Ear Infections

• Serious Infections like Meningitis and Pneumonia

• Sudden Infant Death

• Allergies

• Obesity

• Diabetes

• Some childhood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma

 

Breastfeeding promotes:

• Higher IQ

• Better school performance even up to the teenage years

• Better vision, especially in premature infants

• Breastfeeding can provide pain relief for babies

 

For Mothers, breastfeeding can decrease blood loss immediately after delivery protect against breast cancer hasten return to pre-pregnancy weight

 

Breastfeeding helps families save on:

• P40,000-60,000 a year the cost of formula feeding

• Medical Expenses

• Cost of care for chronic diseases like diabetes

 

Myths and Misconceptions

“I don’t have any milk.”

Every woman’s body is prepared to breastfeed by the time she gives birth. In the first 1-2 days, the breasts produce a small amount of very rich milk called “colostrum”. This milk is filled with infection-fighting antibodies. Because the baby’s stomach is just the size of a marble, even a small amount of colostrums is enough to meet the baby’s needs for as long as the mother breastfeeds regularly.

 

“I don’t want to start breastfeeding right away. I’m tired and I need my rest.”

Beginning to breastfeed as soon as possible is a great way to help a mother’s body recover. Breastfeeding right after birth helps the uterus contract and decreases the amount o blood loss. Breastfeeding also releases hormones in the mother’s body that help decrease pain and stress.

 

“Breastfeeding 24 hours a day is too tiring. I’d rather give bottles during the night.”

The best way to maintain milk supply is to breastfeed around the clock. Waking up every 2-3 hours can be very tiring at first, but as you and your baby become experts at breastfeeding, this becomes much easier. It’s less exhausting to bring your baby to the breast than it is to get up from the bed and make a bottle of formula every time your baby cries.

 

“My breasts are engorged and my nipples are sore. It hurts to breastfeed.”

Early initiation and frequent breastfeeding help prevent engorgement. Sore nipples are usually due to poor positioning of the baby on the breast. Proper latching on will alleviate the pain. Medications like paracetamol can be safely taken by mothers to relieve pain.

 

The Breast Crawl

UNICEF, WHO and WABA along with the scientific community strongly recommend initiating breastfeeding within half an hour of birth. Evidence shows that early initiation can prevent 22% of all deaths among babies below one month in developing countries.

Soon after delivery and after has cried and started breathing well.

1. The baby should be thoroughly dried with a soft cotton cloth.
2. The baby is shown to the mother and kept close to her and held briefly in cheek-to-cheek contact.
3. The baby is then placed prone in between the mother’s bare breasts. The baby and the mother’s chest are both naked, so that the baby has full skin-to-skin contact with the mother. A cloth can be placed on top of the mother and baby so that they keep warm while continuing with skin to skin contact. Care should be taken to prevent the baby from falling.
4. This position ensures early instinctive stimulation and gives warmth, love, security and food. It also initiates the bonding process between the baby and the mother. The baby is very alert and responsive in the first 30-60 minutes after delivery and hence is at the best instinctive level.
5. Kicks from the baby will give tender firm jerks to the womb stimulating it to contract. This will help to expel the placenta and reduce bleeding.
6. Once the baby realizes that food is in close proximity, she starts salivating.
7. Breast odour is a strong stimulus which drives the baby toward the nipple. The baby’s sense of smell is well developed. The odour of a substance secreted by the nipple is similar to the smell of the substance in the amniotic fluid which surrounds the baby in the womb.
8. Nipple massage by the baby makes it protract. This helps attachment. Nipple massage also releases a hormone called oxytocin in the mother. This helps to contract the uterus, reduce bleeding and prevent maternal aneamia.
9. The baby starts to make mouthing movements. The baby’s hands should have amniotic fluid on them, as it guides the baby to the nipple.
10. The baby’s shoulder, hip and neck muscles are sufficiently developed to help her move.
11. Even with the limited vision, the baby can see her mother’s face. Whenever possible, raise her head on a pillow to facilitate mother-baby visual contact.
12. The baby then reaches the nipple, raises her head and gets nicely attached onto the nipple with her mouth wide open to take a mouthful of breast. The first skin-to-skin contact must continue until the baby finishes her first breastfeed.

 

The baby is kept warm by being in skin-to-skin contact with the mother. This initial experience is a strong stimulus for neurodevelopment. In addition, the baby’s risk of infection is reduced because safe germs (bacteria) from the mother start to colonise her skin and intestines, and prevent harmful germs from growing.

 

References:

www.breastcrawl.org

www.waba.org.my

 

Note:   This information is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advise, diagnosis or treatment.   If you or someone you know have any of the symptoms mentioned above, it is advisable to seek professional help.

 

For more information, please call:

 

LACTATION CENTER

Tel. no. (632) 988-1000 / (632) 988-7000 ext. 6720

 

CENTER FOR PATIENT PARTNERSHIP

Tel. nos. (632) 988-1000 / 988-7000 ext. 64444