Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding

I chose breastfeeding because I myself breastfed my son for the first 10 months of his life (along with expressed breast milk to be bottle fed). There are healthy advantages for newborns/infants that are breastfed and I want to educate more women on breastfeeding pros and cons that I had no idea about…

The first thing you should know is that there are different levels of breastfeeding.  You can be as involved as you want or not… I personally experienced all levels listed below as time went on and weaning occurred. 

Taken from the Le Leche League International Website:

“Exclusive breastfeeding: No other liquid or solid from any other source enters the infant ’s mouth.

Almost exclusive: Allows occasional tastes of other liquids, traditional foods, vitamins, medicines, etc.
Full breastfeeding: Includes exclusive and almost exclusive.
Full breast milk feeding (or fully breast milk fed): The infant receives expressed breast milk in addition to breastfeeding.
Partial: Mixed feeding, designated at high, medium, or low. Methods for classification suggested include percentage of calories from breastfeeding, percentage of feeds that are breastfeeds, etc. Any feeding of expressed breast milk would fall under this category.
Token: Minimal, occasional breastfeeds (for comfort or with less than 10 percent of the nutrition thereby provided.) “ (La Leche League,  2013)

Pro’s:

“Breastfeeding is cheaper than formula feeding

Breastfeeding helps you to recuperate more rapidly after pregnancy and has health advantages for the mother

Breastfeeding is healthier than formula feeding; it contains all necessary nutrients for a baby and protects against several infections and diseases

Con’s

When breastfeeding you need to watch what you eat and be careful with dieting

When breastfeeding it is impossible to know whether your baby had sufficient milk “ (Van Acker, Bakker, 2012).

Breast feeding in America most women breastfeed for the nutritional benefits to the infants’ immune system and also to slim down quickly after child birth. 
In Asia, Africa, and other underdeveloped countries, women breastfeed out of necessity.  They do not have easy access to powdered or liquid man-made formula or bottles

UNICEF’s Stance on Breastfeeding:

“Optimal breastfeeding of infants under two years of age has the greatest potential impact on child survival of all preventive interventions, with the potential to prevent 1.4 million deaths in children under five in the developing world (Lancet 2008).  The results of a study conducted in Ghana show that breastfeeding babies within the first hour of birth can prevent 22 per cent of neonatal deaths” (UNICEF, 2013).

“From the moment a mother gives birth in Ghana, She’s taught to breastfeed her newborn” (Breast is Best, 2011).  More than 10 years ago in Ghana, when a child was born, it was given water.  Many children were dying of diarrhea and pneumonia as a result.  By developing national breastfeeding policies, teaching jingles and songs about breastfeeding, infant mortality rates are rising. Now five years later, babies in the country are exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life and they are overall healthier and happier!

So how can breastfeeding impact my future work? I do not see my career as a platform to preach to parents about breastfeeding, but I know when I started, I had a lot of questions with no one to really ask except medical professionals, and no close friends that were doing it to confide in.  Being an early childhood professional allows me to be able to help breast feeding mothers by creating support groups and or play groups where women can talk about their experiences and gain support locally.  It also an opportunity to educate women on the benefits of breastfeeding for their child and to answer questions as they arise. 

Sources:

Breast is Best. [ABC News Video]. (2011, Oct 06). Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/MillionMomsChallenge/video/breastfeeding-ghana-14683520

La Leche League International (2013). Breastfeeding. Retrieved from http://www.llli.org/resources.html.

Van Acker, F. Bakker, E. (2012). A Functional Assessment of the impact of Advantages and Disadvantages on Breastfeeding Attitude. The International Journal of Methodology and Experimental Psychology Issues, v33 n3 p533-545.

UNICEF. (2013). Breastfeeding. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/nutrition/index_24824.html