Breastfeeding Kinetics

A Problem-Solving Approach to Breastfeeding Difficulties

Verity Livingstone

Behavioral and Metabolic Aspects of Breastfeeding World Rev Nutr Diet. Basel, Karger, 1995, vol. 78. pp 28-54

Breatsfeeding has been recognized as the optimum way to nourish and nurture young children. It has proved to be the most cost-effective, health-promoting, and disease-preventing activity mothers can do because it is pivotal to infant growth, development, immunization and child spacing.

…

Over the last two decades, there has been an increase in the number of young mothers wishing to breastfeed, but despite teh widespread promotion of breastfeeding and the encouraging increase in its initiation rate, the number of mothers who exclusively breastfeed is < 30% in most industralized countries. As the prevalence of breastfeeding increases, so does the incidence of breastfeeding difficulties. The rate of abandoned breastfeeding has remained high and the avarage duration of breastfeeding is still only a few weeks. Most infants are started on breast milk suvstitutes in hospital, shortly after birth.

…

Society and the health care system are in part to blame for this short duration of breastfeeding. Most breastfeeding failures are directly related to obstacles placed in the way of mother and baby. Childbirth without intervention is less common, mothers and babies are often separated soon after birth, 24-hour rooming or bedding in is not universally available, prelacteal and complimentary foods are offered without compunction and the public display of breastfeeding is abhorrent to many people. Children are not reared in an environment where breastfeeding is the norm and cultural beliefs may not condone breastfeeding toddlers. Many people naively believe in the virtues and equality of formulas and minimize or disregard the unique active biological properties of human milk.

A teljes írás letölthető a Vancouver Breastfeeding Centre oldaláról