Understanding Why Breastfeeding Rates are so Low

by Rachel

We all have an awareness as to how great and beneficial breastfeeding is and all the benefits that it can give babies as well as mothers. But despite this awareness, breastfeeding rates are still low. You might ask yourself, why? What are the reasons impeding the increase in breastfeeding rates? Read along and find out different reasons why.

Let’s look at the beginning, when a baby is delivered in the hospital. Since the baby’s first experience into the real world is set here, the hospital will usually set different beliefs into a baby and breastfeeding is not one of them because of numerous anti-breastfeeding acts that the hospital makes. For one, most hospitals will give babies a bottle and formula milk to feed into and the babies will be accustomed to that knowing that it is what is right, so when the mommy breastfeeds the baby, the baby will reject breast milk because he has been ‘trained’ on formula milk and bottle-feeding.

Furthermore, the aggressive advertising and marketing campaign of formula milk companies are also to blame. These companies give out free samples of their milk as a promotional tool to help advertise their company. Due to this, mothers are exposed to other feeding practices besides breastfeeding.

Another reason as to why breastfeeding rates are so low can be attributed to the lack of formal education and curriculum about it in medical school. So in turn, medical practitioners are exposed to little information about the activity, making them ill-equipped to recommend it to mothers.

I know that a lot of states and companies have actually implemented pro-breastfeeding measures to enable working moms to still expel breast milk during office hours, but again the maternal employment is one of the leading causes as to why breastfeeding rates still remain low after all the campaigns and awareness about it.

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

May 21, 2009   1 Comment

Different Options for the Breastfeeding Mother

by Rachel

Every new mother has every right to be excited about the arrival of the newest addition to their growing family. Being pregnant is indeed a blessing. While a mother is still pregnant, she will have to make important decisions whether or not she wants to fully breastfeed her baby or not.

Majority of the new mothers will opt to breastfeed their newborn fulltime. This just goes to show that a lot of mothers have belief and faith on the benefits of breastfeeding, not only to their baby but also on their own bodies.

If you are a new mother and you are also new to breastfeeding, you don’t have to worry about it because there are a lot of options readily available for you.

For working mothers out there who would also like to expel breast milk in the workplace, a lot of companies are into lactation and breastfeeding programs and most of the companies actually encourage pumping breast milk by allocating office space as pumping stations where mothers will have their own privacy they need.

Some states even require employers to allocate a few hours for the breastfeeding mothers who are also their employees as a chance for them to pump breast milk during office hours.

Breast pumps are also available for your breastfeeding needs. Breast pumps help mothers expel the milk that they need and this also gives them an easier time to do so. A lot of breast pumps nowadays are portable so you can take it with you anywhere you want to go. Some breast pumps can even enable you to pump both breasts at the same time so you are cutting your breast pumping time in half.

If you feel like breastfeeding is a daunting task that you must go through alone, you don’t have to fear it because there are numerous local community support groups that can help you with it. Find one in your community so that you will have all the help and guidance you will need during this challenging time.

Related Blogs

May 6, 2009   No Comments

Rundown on the Many Benefits of Breastfeeding

by Rachel

I’m sure you’ve already heard that breastfeeding is best for newborn babies. But are you familiar with the many benefits that come with this act? Not only will it benefit your baby, but you will also reap benefits from breastfeeding.

For your baby, breast milk is the best source of nutrition. The ideal time of breastfeeding is from 0 to 6 months. Breast milk has a lot of nutrients that can help the baby grow healthy. Another benefit that your baby can get from breast milk is colostrum, which is a thick, yellowish substance that comes out of your breasts in the first few days of delivering a baby. The colostrum is a great source of immunities and antibodies which can protect your baby from harmful diseases.

As for the mother’s side, there are also many benefits that can result from choosing to breast feed your baby. Breastfeeding can help your uterus return to its normal size after giving birth and helps prevent bleeding that can occur after giving birth. Breastfeeding is also seen as a natural contraceptive which allows your body to heal and gives it nutritional and health benefits. Giving your baby breast milk can also lower the risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

Breastfeeding can also work wonders on the emotional side because this activity fosters the strengthening of the bond between mother and child. Generally, the baby feels secure during this activity. Breastfeeding is also supported by health organizations and local communities because it can really help you in rearing healthy children. On top of all the benefits, your family can save money because breastfeeding will cut down costs of buying milk and feeding bottles.

All in all, breastfeeding has a lot of good benefits in ensuring your child’s health. It really helps in ensuring that your children will be healthy individuals and ward off diseases.

Related Blogs

February 8, 2009   No Comments