CHENNAI: Six months of breastfeeding, approximately 12 times a day and 20 minutes each — you do the math. It’s not easy for her. A mother is prone to physical and psychological stress. While the awareness is increasing, some lactating mothers tend to pick up the milk powder that is bought well in advance even before the problems begin. According to UNICEF, 1.5 million babies around the world, across communities, die of diarrhoea every year. The cause? Bottle and formula feeding. In India especially, despite oral rehydration treatment and antibiotics, diarrhoea continues to be an important cause of infant mortality.
City Express had a chat with doctors to find out about health and other non-health related problems that moms face. For first-time mothers, it’s the most difficult. “How to breastfeed, the position, the dos and don’ts, the problems they can encounter…what they need is proper post-labour counselling,” said Dr Madhuri Prabu, neonatal paediatrician, Motherhood Hospital. “Nipple fissures, flat nipples, insufficient milk and difficulty in latching on are some of the most common reasons why women choose milk powder and feeding bottles. Now, sometimes, they can’t help it. The real problem arises when they get addicted to it, the easy way.”
A baby needs nothing (including water, vitamins or ayurvedic preparations) except breast milk for the first six months of its life. Anything besides breast milk may be harmful. This brings us to the social custom of feeding infants sugar water or honey for the first two days of its life. This custom is not followed much but a few drops are still being given as the first intake. Though a couple of doctors denied the practice, we spoke to many mothers who say that they still follow it.
Deepika, an educated, upper-middle class woman said, “Yes, my son was given drops of honey as part of a ritual. I did not stop them for two reasons. One, I had a ceaserian and was not aware of what was going on. Two, I didn’t mind. It was just a few drops and my son (now two years old) is healthy.” Two other women, one from a lower socio-economic status accepted the practice of giving honey drops to newborn.
So, isn’t it harmful? Though warnings are given, Dr R Kondammal, gynaecologist, Apollo Hospitals, said, “No harmful effects are noted these days because they only give a few drops. Similarly, gripe water is also neither good nor bad. We haven’t seen any harmful effects. In fact, in some cases, it actually helps soothe the infant.”
Kondammal also said that breastfeeding must not be stopped before six months. “Out of 10 mothers, five come with breastfeeding problems. What I’ve noticed is that people from the middle and upper classes opt for formula feed as it’s much easier and less time-consuming. Milk powder does not contain immunoglobulins, which is secreted by breast milk; it cannot protect the baby from diseases.”
Many would consider malnutrition to be the root cause but Dr Vasanthamani, dean, Villupuram Medical College, has a different perspective. Handling patients with rural background, she said, “Malnutrition is not the main problem anymore. Apart from calcium and Vitamin D3 deficiency, it’s the psychological issues faced by mothers, working women and also young moms.” Young mothers? “Yes, in earlier times, women got married at the age of 21 or 22 but now slowly in villages, women are again getting married as early as 16 when their body is not ready to take up social and family responsibilities. We are focusing on specific issues now as lack of general awareness is decreasing.”
In cities, working women are at a bigger disadvantage because of low maternity leave. Many are neither comfortable leaving their child at creches nor can they afford to take LOP (loss of pay). Dr Madhuri advises women to come home during lunch, breastfeed throughout the night or use a local breastfeed milk bank. Every little time counts. The worst decision would be to stop breastfeeding altogether.
According to a study by All India Institute of Medical Sciences and the Indian Council of Medical Research, working mothers who yield to shorter periods of breastfeeding have higher vulnerability to breast and ovarian cancer. In India, breast cancer rates have relatively been low in the past but with the changing lifestyles, there has been a sudden increase in cases among females.
Dr Kondammal added, “Short time period of breastfeeding increases estrogen exposure to breast. Hence, the increased risk of breast cancer.”
UNICEF states that in India between 2006 and 2013, there has been an improvement in the breastfeeding rates. The latest data show that 44.6% children are put to breastfeeding within one hour of birth and 64.9% children under six months of age are exclusively breastfed. A 70-year-old domestic maid said she understood the importance of breastmilk. “Although I never gave milk powder, there were other practices we followed that I realise now were wrong.”
Another woman, in her 50s told us how they had stopped throwing away the sticky discharge from the breast (colostrums) and instead fed it to the baby. “During those days, we were taught to consider colostrums bad but now we know how important it is.” Colustrum contains immunoglobulins and anti-infective cells that protect the newborn against common infections and allergies.
Awareness is definitely increasing and it’s always reassuring to see older women accept the changing mindset.
Source: http://www.newindianexpress.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment