Breastfeeding

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Breastfeeding and human milk are the normative standards for infant feeding and nutrition for the first six months of life according to the Canadian Paediatric Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics.[1][2] Human milk should be the sole source of nutrition for the first six months, however the Canadian Paediatric Society (2013) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (2022) recommended supplementation with Vitamin D.[1][2] Complementary foods are introduced at about six months of age, but breastfeeding should continue.[1][2]

The WHO and UNICEF recommend recommend that children initiate breastfeeding within the first hour of birth and be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life — meaning no other foods or liquids are provided, including water. Infants should be breastfed on demand — that is as often as the child wants, day and night. No bottles, teats or pacifiers should be used. From the age of 6 months, children should begin eating safe and adequate complementary foods while continuing to breastfeed for up to 2 years and beyond.[3]

The American Academy of Pediatrics reported that more than 80 percent of American mothers breastfeed, which makes breastfeeding the cultural norm in the United States.[2]

Benefits of breastfeeding

The advahtages of breastfeeding have long been known. James Calvert Spence (1938) reported the benefits to the health and welfare of the infant.[4]

The Canadian Paediatric Society reported that breastfeeding is associated with "improved cognitive development."[1]

The American Academy of Pediatrics reported that, as compared with formula feeding, breastfeeding reduces sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), infant and neonatal mortality, lower respiratory tract infection, severe or persistent diarrhea, otitis media, asthma, eczema, Crohn's disease, colitis, childhood and adult obesity, diabetes, and leukemia.[2]

In infancy, simple sugars in breast milk, like antibacterial oligosaccharides, are acquired from the mother's milk and excreted in urine. University studies have shown that these substances cling to the mucosal lining of the inner foreskin and protect against urinary tract infections,[5] as well as infection in other parts of the body.[6] Babies excrete in their urine about 300-500 milligrams of oligosaccharides each day. These compounds prevent virulent strains of Escherichia coli from adhering to the mucosa lining of the entire urinary tract, including the foreskin and glans. For these reasons breast-milk is highly efficacious at preventing UTI.[7] Rigorous studies have repeatedly demonstrated that breast feeding protects against urinary tract infections.[8] [9] [10]

Contraindications to breastfeeding

There are certain conditions that contraindicate breastfeeding. The American Academy of Pediatrics provides a discussion of contraindications.[2]

Video

Why is breastfeeding important?

Circumcision impairs commencement of breastfeeding

Neonatal circumcision is a medically unnecessary, non-therapeutic, intensely painful surgery that is carried out just at the time when breastfeeding is being commenced. Circumcision causes extreme pain, trauma, and shock, and disturbs feeding behavior.[11] The newborn infant boy is left in a debilitated state in which he may be unable to initiate breastfeeding,[12][13] which frequently results in the substution of formula feeding to the detriment of a boy's health.[14]

Parents are reminded that circumcision has no proven health benefit, produces significant trauma,[15] and is not recommended by any medical society in the world, while breastfeeding has numerous health benefits and is recommended world-wide.

See also

External links

References

  1. ↑ a b c d REFjournal Critch JM. Nutrition for healthy term infants, birth to six months: An overview. Paediatr Child Health. April 2013; 18(4): 206-7. PMID. PMC. DOI. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f REFjournal Meek JY, Meek L. Policy Statement: Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk. Pediatrics. July 2022; 150(1): e2022057988. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  3. ↑ REFweb Breastfeeding, WHO. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  4. ↑ REFjournal Spence JC. The modern decline of breastfeeding PDF. Br Med J. 8 October 1938; 2(4057): 729-33. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  5. ↑ Hanson LA, Karlsson B, Jalil F, et al. Antiviral and antibacterial factors in human milk. In: Hanson LA, ed. Biology of Human Milk. New York Raven Press; 1988. pp. 141-57
  6. ↑ Coppa GV, Gabrielli O, Giorgi P, Catassi C, Montanari MP, Veraldo PE, Nichols BL. Preliminary study of breast feeding and bacterial adhesion to uroepithelial cells. Lancet 1990 Mar 10;335(8689):569-71.
  7. ↑ Gothefors L, Olling S, Winberg J. Breastfeeding and biological properties of faecal E. coli strains. Acta Paediatr Scand 1975 Nov;54(6):807-12.
  8. ↑ Mårild S. Breastfeeding and Urinary Tract Infections. Lancet 1990;336:942.
  9. ↑ Pisacane A, et al. Breastfeeding and urinary tract infection. The Lancet, July 7, 1990, p50
  10. ↑ Pisacane A, Graziano L, Mazzarella G, et al. Breast-feeding and urinary tract infection. J Pediatr 1992;120:87-89.
  11. ↑ REFjournal American Academy of Pediatrics. Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health; Task Force on Pain in Infants, Children, and Adolescents. The Assessment and Management of Acute Pain in Infants, Children, and Adolescents (0793). Pediatrics. September 2002; 108(3): 793-7. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  12. ↑ REFjournal Lee N. Circumcision and Breastfeeding. J Hum Lact. 2000; 16(4): 295. PMID. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  13. ↑ REFjournal Caplan L. Circumcision and Breastfeeding: A Response to Nikki Lee's Letter. J Hum Lact. 2001; 17(1): 7. PMID. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  14. ↑ REFjournal Hill G. Breastfeeding must be given priority over circumcision. J Hum Lact. February 2003; 19(1): 21. PMID. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  15. ↑ REFjournal Aydoğlu B, Aydoğlu M, Okur MH. Social and psychological effects of circumcision: A narrative review PDF. Journal of Applied Nursing and Health. December 2022; 4(2): 264-71. DOI. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
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