Birth & Parenting News: Breastfeeding in the News

As study after study continues to document the health benefits of breastfeeding, U.S. data indicate that while mothers want to breastfeed and are trying to do so, they continue to face multiple barriers to breastfeeding. Recent CDC recommendations and federal legislation may help to reduce some barriers, but only if nursing moms are aware of their rights and making informed choices about their caregivers.

Study Finds that Breastfeeding Reduces Infectious Diseases in Infancy

The study found that exclusive breastfeeding in the first four months and partial breastfeeding thereafter significantly reduced respiratory and gastrointestinal morbidity in infants. Read more.

Breastfeeding Reduces Risk for Fever after Immunization

A prospective cohort study set out to evaluate the effects of breastfeeding on the risk for fever after routine immunizations. Compared to infants who were not breastfed, infants who were exclusively breastfed had a reduced risk for fever following routine immunization by more than 50 percent. Read more.

The CDC’s 2010 Breastfeeding Report Card Details State-by-State Data

Compared with the last report card released in 2006, the data are underwhelming. Of five measures (percentage of women who breastfeed in the early postpartum period, at six months, at twelve months, exclusively at three months, and exclusively at six months), only one showed progress—the percentage of women who breastfeed in the early postpartum period went from 73% in 2006 to 75% in 2010. Two of the measures—percentage of women who breastfeed at twelve months and exclusively at six months—actually decreased. Read more.

CDC Recommends WHO Growth Charts

The CDC is recommending that health care providers begin using growth charts from WHO for all children under 24 months. Unlike the previous CDC charts, the WHO charts are based on normal growth for breastfed infants, who often grow more slowly between the ages of 3 and 18 months than those who are given formula. As a result, fewer U.S. children will be identified as underweight using the WHO charts. Has your pediatrician made the change? If not, please encourage them to do so. Read the full statement. Access the WHO charts.

New Federal Law Mandates Break Time for Nursing Mothers

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) took effect in March of 2010, requiring employers to provide break times for nursing mothers. Employers must provide a place other than a bathroom, shielded from view, and free from intrusions from coworkers and the public for mothers to express breast milk. Mothers have the right to express breast milk as often as needed for the duration of one year. Read more.

New Ad Calls Attention to “Booby Traps,” WHO Code

The Best for Babes Foundation recently unveiled a unique new breastfeeding ad in a special Pregnancy Wellness Report inserted in USA Today. The ad is the first of its kind to draw attention to WHO’S International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes. It urges parents to get the right support to navigate the “Booby Traps”-those cultural and institutional barriers that keep mothers from making informed feeding decisions and carrying them out. Most moms want to breastfeed, and don’t realize how they are being undermined by the very institutions that should be helping them.

Birth & Parenting News Blog

Each Wednesday, we highlight the latest news items, research results, consumer alerts, and legislative action alerts of interest to expectant and new parents and the professionals who work them.

Posted by Patty Brennan on November 3, 2010 • Filed under Birth & Parenting News
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