Childbirth Class - Breastfeeding
Learn more about Breastfeeding Advantages and Techniques
Dec 18, 2007
Class Five
Our online childbirth class continues with Class Five in the series of six classes. This week we are discussing some of the issues surrounding breastfeeding. While it might seem odd to take a class or read a book to help you learn to breastfeed your baby, learning the best ways to nurse your baby may be a challenge in the early days and weeks. Or you could be one of those mothers who is blessed with a baby that takes to breastfeeding like a duck to water. Undoubtedly the early weeks will have some of a learning curve for you as you discover what your baby likes or does not like. Breastfeeding requires getting to know your baby and identifying some of your baby's preferences, in addition to learning specific techniques.
Also in our online class for Week Five, we will review what we have learned about labor. Are you ready for the quiz at the end of class?
Step One: Advantages of Breastfeeding
1. Advantages to Breastfed Baby
- Easier to Digest - breastmilk is made and especially designed for babies so it digests better than cow's milk or soy-based formulas. There is no better food for babies.
- Immunities - breastmilk contains many types of antibodies which fight illness and protect the baby from getting sick.
- Colostrum - which is the first milk the baby gets, helps the baby to pass meconium stools and lines the baby's digestive tract with healthy bacteria.
- Protection from specific common illnesses such as ear infections and colds and viruses and digestive viruses such as diarrhea.
- Reduction in long-term health problems such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, type I diabetes, multiple sclerosis, hypertension, obesity, rheumatoid arthritis and celiac disease.
2. Advantages to the Breastfeeding Mother
- Weight loss - mothers use up 500 calories per day while breastfeeding.
- Breastfeeding helps to protect mothers from pre-menopausal breast cancer.
- Breastfeeding reduces the incidence of postpartum depression.
- Breastfeeding saves money in formula costs (appx $1200 per year for powder formulas) and medical expenses.
- Breastfeeding provides protection from osteoporosis
- Reduces the risk of uterine and ovarian cancer.
- Breastfeeding acts as a natural contraceptive method - it delays the onset of ovulation, however if you do not want to become pregnant again soon, use another method of contraception.
Step Two: Discovering the Truth about Infant Formula
While this is a topic that can cause mothers to become quite emotionally-charged, the reality is that feeding your baby infant formula is not only a less healthy substitute, it can negatively affect your baby's short-term and long-term health.
Another aspect about the safety of infant formula is that the formula industry is quite lucrative. It is not in their best interest for the hazards of infant formula to make it into the public arena. There is such a concern about how formula is marketed to the public that the World Health Organization has published guidelines that the formula companies are expected to follow. Because the real information about formula and its harmful side effects is not readily available to parents today, it is even more important that parents read everything possible about both of these feeding choices so that they can make the healthiest decision for their own children.
Step Three: Initiating Breastfeeding
The best time to introduce the baby to the breast is within the first hour of life. That does not mean that parents should wait an hour to initiate breastfeeding but rather to look for signs that the baby is ready to nurse (known as signs of "readiness") that typically occur within the first few minutes of life.
Here are some signs of readiness that shows the baby is ready to breastfeed:
- Rooting - turning the head to the side and opening the mouth
- Sucking - the baby may suck her fingers or tongue or even a finger if placed in the baby's mouth
Other important first breastfeeding techniques including keeping the baby on the mother's chest until he shows that he is ready to breastfeed. Bring the baby close to you, skin-to-skin with the baby's belly against your belly, lift your breast to tickle the baby's upper lip with your nipple in order to get the baby to open. Tickle for as long as possible to encourage the baby to open very wide!
In the first few days and weeks, you will want to be looking for signs that your baby is getting enough to eat, such as frequent stools and wet diapers, looking satisfied after feeding and weight gain.
Step Four: Review of Labor
This is a great week to look back to see if you remember your labor techniques and what to do in various scenarios. Here are a list of review questions to test your memory:
- What are some definite signs of labor? (How will you know if you are in labor?)
- How can you tell when it is time to go to your place of birthing?
- If you are hungry in labor, is it okay to eat? If so, what are good foods for labor?
- What comfort measures are good to use if your back is hurting?
- If you get to the hospital and are not admitted because your labor is going very slowly, what are some things to keep in mind? How can you cope with this type of labor?
- If you decide to use an epidural, when is a good time to get one?
- What are good positions to push in if your care provider expects a large baby?
Answers to Quiz questions can be found here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Our last class in the series will include information on postpartum and adjusting to life after baby!
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