U.S.

Breast Milk Is Best

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

November 7, 2000 / 3:38 PM EST / CBS

Breastfeeding babies is nothing new. But many women today have no experience with it, and neither did their mothers, and in some cases, their grandmothers.

The U.S. Surgeon General says that's a problem, because breast milk is baby's perfect food.

A decade of government campaigning on behalf of breastfeeding has boosted the percentage of American women who breastfeed from 50 percent to 64 percent, during their babies' first few weeks of life.

That's short of the 75 percent the government had hoped to achieve by this date, and absolutely tiny compared to the new targets the government hopes to hit by the year 2010.

According to a new report by the U.S. Surgeon General and the Department of Health and Human Services, the new goal is to have at least half of all mothers breastfeeding exclusively until their babies are six months old, with 25 percent of all mothers breastfeeding until the babies are one year old.

Only 29 percent of all mothers, and 19 percent of black mothers, breast-feed until their babies are 6 months old - a crucial time period, according to the report.

The message has already taken root in many homes, to the point where human milk banks have been set up, with some mothers donating surplus milk, and others withdrawing supplies for their infants.

But in other homes, breastfeeding is less likely to be mentioned.

"The culture of breast-feeding has been lost, especially in the low-income African-American community," said Dr. Yvonne Bronner of Morgan State University, who is working to counter the racial disparity with education and peer-counseling.

Add to that the effect of today's shortened hospital stays for new mothers, which often leaves little time to help women who may at first find breast-feeding difficult or painful.

"Help is available, but a lot of women never hear that," said Kay Sophar, a nurse practitioner and lactation consultant in Silver Spring, Md., who says most complaints are easily solved problems with how the baby's latching on.

The report calls for a cultural shift in how the nation regards breast-feeding - with policies to ensure that parents are told routinely why it's so healthy, that hospitals improve teaching of mothers in how to do it, and that workplaces make breast-feeding easier for employees.

The onus isn't just on moms. Support from the baby's father and grandmothers, and clear-cut doctor's advice, play huge roles in her decision. Yet black women in particular too often get little encouragement, especially because their own mothers likely used infant formula.

Why is breast-feeding so much better than formula? Breast-fed babies suffer fewer illnesses such as diarrhea, earache, pneumonia and other infections. Studies suggest breast-fed babies also may be less likely to develop asthma, diabetes or childhood cancer. Their brains seem to develop faster, their immune systems respond better to vaccines and they are less likely to become fat later in childhod.

Mothers benefit, too, shedding pregnancy pounds faster. Long-term breast-feeding may lower some women's risk of getting breast cancer. Not to mention it's cheap.

It's not for everyone: women who are HIV-positive shouldn't breast-feed. Babies with a rare metabolic disorder need plant-derived formula. Some women who have undergone breast-reduction surgery may not lactate properly.

But most women can breast-feed, stressed report chairwoman Suzanne H of the Department of Health and Human Services. "Be patient and get somebody to help you."

Among HHS' recommendations:

Hospitals should help women begin the first breast-feeding within an hour of birth, teaching new moms how to position the infant to suckle properly and offering prompt help with any difficulties.
Mother and baby should sleep in the same room so the baby can feed quickly on demand.
Doctors and nurses should encourage breast-feeding. "It only takes a word from physicians: 'You ought to breast-feed.' ... If the physician fails to make that simple statement, it's amazing the difference that makes," says Bronner.
Limit use of pacifiers or bottles until the baby is at least six weeks old. Artificial nipples teach babies to hold their tongues in a way that makes breast-feeding difficult, a common reason for breast-feeding trouble. After six weeks, most babies can easily shift between bottle and breast.
Working mothers should be encouraged to pump and freeze breast milk, and workplaces should allow adequate breaks and private rooms for pumping.
Public education, through schools, ad campaigns and health clinics, should stress breast-feeding's importance.
Health workers should increase mothers' access to peer counselors or lactation consultants if they have difficulty. "Pain is normal for the first two days. Past two days, you need to seek help," said Sophar, adding that adjusting how the baby is held so it doesn't clamp down on the breast solves most problems. Also helpful are fixing how the baby holds its tongue, clearing up skin infections, or increasing milk production with more feedings or pumpings - not supplemental formula.