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Subscribe to RSSBefore her second son, Hayes, was born a year ago, Erin Carroll was determined to breast-feed him.
Courtesy Erin Carroll
Erin Carroll and second son, Hayes, seen here at 4 months. Erin gave up breast-feeding Hayes when a hospital nurse insisted he needed formula because he'd lost too much weight.
“With my first one, I didn’t really have any expectations or plans for anything,” says Carroll, 30, a stay-at-home mom in Columbia, S.C.
Breast-feeding didn’t exactly work out with her first son, Hudson, three years ago. Hudson weighed nearly 10 pounds at birth, and, Carroll says, she couldn’t produce enough milk for him. He lost nearly 2 pounds, and by the time he was 6 weeks, she was feeding him formula exclusively.
With Hayes, “it turned out that I was making enough for him, but he just fell asleep any time I tried to nurse him.” Before they left the hospital when he was 3 days old, Carroll says, a nurse told her “he’s lost too much weight. We’ve got to do formula.” Carroll says, “I was devastated.”
Carroll is like many women with the best intentions about breast-feeding, according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the first to examine the discrepancy between how long pregnant women say they intend to exclusively breast-feed and how long they actually do.
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Carroll continued supplementing Hayes’ feedings with formula and by her first postpartum doctor’s appointment four weeks after his birth had decided to stop nursing him altogether.
“Omigosh, this formula is so easy,” Carroll recalls thinking. “It was sad at first, because I really just thought it would be different [with Hayes], and I didn’t have the same issues with both of them.”
Roughly half of the women in the new study said before they delivered they planned to breast-feed exclusively for at least three months, the CDC researchers report Monday in Pediatrics. But only a third of those women actually achieved their goal.
“The one that shocks me is the fact that 42 percent stopped in the first month,” lead author Cria Perrine, an epidemiologist in the CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, tells msnbc.com. And about a third of those women had abandoned plans to exclusively breast-feed by the time they took their baby home from the hospital.
“To me, this isn’t about the individual women,” Perrine says. “This to me says we as a society are not supporting mothers to feed their infants the way they want to.”
The study analyzed data from about 1,500 U.S. women in a 2005-2007 study of infant feeding practices. Most of the women were 25- to 34 years-old, white and married and had some post-high school education. Their babies were all healthy.
The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that mothers feed babies only breast milk (and medications or micronutrient supplements) for their first six months of life. “Breast milk is the best source of nutrition for young children and provides both short- and long-term health benefits,” including fewer infections and a lower risk of chronic conditions later in life, Perrine and her coauthors write.
The proportion of 6-month-old babies who’ve been exclusively breast-fed has increased in the United States, according to the CDC. In 2011, 14.8 percent were — up 4 percentage points from 2007, the first year the CDC issued a breast-feeding “report card.” That’s still well below the government’s target of 25.5 percent in the “Healthy People 2020” report.
In Perrine’s study, married moms with more than one child were more likely to exclusively breastfeed as long as they’d intended to. Moms who were obese, smoked or planned to breastfeed exclusively for at least seven months, which is longer than the minimum recommended by health experts, were less likely to meet their goal.
The researchers also found that six hospital practices helped predict whether new mothers would exclusively breast-feed as long as they’d planned:
- breast-feeding within one hour of birth
- no supplemental feedings with formula
- no pacifiers
- rooming in
- breast-feeding on demand
- information about breast-feeding support.
The most significant predictor was whether the hospital had supplemented breastfeeding with formula, which was reported by four out of 10 women in the study. Last summer, Perrine says, the CDC reported that about four out of five hospitals routinely gave formula to healthy breastfeeding newborns.
“I don’t think we know exactly why all of the hospitals are giving the formula,” says Perrine, whose study didn’t count those supplemental feedings as the end of exclusive breast-feeding. “I think it could be the weight issue. I think some nurses say let the mother sleep. It comes from a place of good intentions, but not everyone realizes how detrimental it can be to establishing breastfeeding.”
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Dr. Bill Sears' theory of "attachment parenting" is making headlines after a Time magazine cover story featured a photo of a mother breast-feeding her 3-year-old. NBC's Darlene Rodriguez reports on this parenting technique and TODAY's Savannah Guthrie speaks with the mother in the now-infamous photo and Dr. Sears.
Related:
Exclusive breast-feeding may be just too hard, study finds
Military mom sparks controversy over breast-feeding in public
Shock, buzz over Time cover of breast-feeding toddler
Leave a Comment:
I am pleased that this study is drawing alot to attention. I grew up in country where breast feeding is the primary source of food for an newborn. Here, it is a taboo to breastfeed a baby in public and women have to hide to go to designated areas to breastfeed thier babies. There are a lot of benefits of breastfeeding a baby which to me should be emphasize to a nursing mothers to practice breastfeeding their babies. A huge part of the public goes with what they see on television and care more about their looks (body) than the health of their babies. Hopefully we would one day recognize that breastfeeding is very important and do it right for our babies
Amy Tuteur, MD- You may want to take a look at the Surgeon General's report, which calls for support of breastfeeding (finally!) and to support the WHO code. There is a HUGE body of evidence supporting the RISKS of formula, including the ear infections, diarrhea, respiratory infections, SIDs, diabetes, childhood cancers... shall I go on? (Its all in that little report you should be paying attention to if you are an MD). You represent a big part of the problem in this country, that our health care professionals, those who are so trusted by new mothers are NOT educated to support breastfeeding or give evidenced based information.
I also wanted to point out one other flaw in several arguments here, it is NOT true that a "malnourished" mother (which is fairly uncommon anyway in america) will not supply her baby with needed nutrition from breastfeeding, mom's milk is perfect and consistent barring extreme conditions such as starvation. It is true the baby will get the needed nutrients before mom.
Lastly, I want to express concern that the formula companies have done such an awesome job at brainwashing people into believing formula is in any way comparable to mother's milk... it is not, not even close. It is cow's milk based and made in a factory to try and mimic it enough to keep baby's alive.... which it has accomplished, however they are not thriving. I see EVERY day in my practice formula change after formula change due to spit up, constipation, colic, gas, and on and on. It no picnic, and most of these mom's wish they could go back to a time when their milk was nourishing their babies, no one and nothing else can do that the way mom can. HUMAN MILK FOR HUMAN BABIES.
Thank you Kate!
I had four kids and all of them had difficulty for the first couple of months (Physically it was more difficult until their mouths got bigger b/c of me or some were tongue-tied) so I just supplemented w/ formula after I bf on demand until they got the hang of it, no big deal. I bf all of them for a year. Best thing I ever did to get them a headstart.
I never understood the logic of factory formula and cow's milk over having mother's milk as their main source of nutrients. Make sense to bf them until their molars come in so they can get their own nutrients from the food like other mammals, until then I eat as healthy as I can and cook home-cooked, healthy meals that he can eat. He only gets 8 oz of cow's milk, water (no juice), and bf.
If you have trouble bf, just try to do it on demand and supplement. You may find that you both will get the hang of it. Even something is better than nothing. Bf is best for the health of the baby
Formula should be used as a last resort, not as a first resort. Hospitals give out free samples to new mothers as they hold their one-day-old baby. The mothers' milk has probably not come in at that point, and the door is wide open to marketing that new mother with something that she not only doesn't need, but which is simply not an adequate substitute for actual breast milk, and may even cause harm (if not the formula itself, then simply the lack of breast milk).
Unfortunately, breast feeding is considered "dirty" by far too many people in this county (and other countries for sure). To breast feed in a public place is to subject yourself to dirty looks and "get a room" glances.
My wife breast fed for 1.5 years with our second child, and nearly a year with our first. Plenty of time and we felt we did the right thing.
But, as MusicGirl points out, mothers are lucky to get two weeks paid maternity leave. Beyond two weeks, maternity leave is a no-pay deal, and the mother often feels that she may lose her job.
New mothers produce Colostrum during the first few days. Colostrum contains essential flora that is introduced into the baby's stomach and is crucial to developing a healthy immune system. Stomach flora forms the baseline of one's immune system and is now considered an organ by the Medical Establishment.
Inadequate stomach flora leaves one more open to infections. These infections cause illness, and off to the doctor you go for antibiotics. The thing is, antibiotics are exactly what they say they are: anti-biotic. They destroy the stomach flora, which causes more illnesses, which begets more rounds of antibiotics. A viscous circle hated by parents everywhere, but loved by our for-profit Big Pharma and Medical industries.
There is a cow milk lobby in D.C.
There is a Baby Formula Lobby in D.C. (aka. Gerber, etc.)
There is no "Human Breast Milk for Babies" lobby in D.C. Why? Because there is no money to be made if the mother is using her own milk to feed her child.
Never mind that the baby formula company that produces "Similac" recalled thousands of bottles last year.
Mothers: Trust your bodies, not the commercials.
Sponsored by Burger King value meals, and WalMart drugs.
Classic...
Breastfeeding was too much work, and I stopped breastfeeding after 6 weeks. Stretched my breasts at maximum capacity, and now they are saggy. Yes, I am vain. I applaud women who keep up with it good for them. I have meet a lady who has two kids. She told me she breastfeed her first child and that child gets sick and has medical issues. Then, she told me she did not breastfeed her second child and he has no health issues. I do think drinking another mammals milk is odd, but it gets the job done and my kid is healthy. I get annoyed when mothers are persecuted by other mothers for not breastfeeding. People need to worry about themselves.
Just an FYI- your boobs get stretched out from pregnancy either way. Nursing makes little to no difference to the end result.
There is a long list of health benefits from breast-feeding for both children and mothers. Mooms quit breast-feeding earlier than planned are selfish.We all know that breast milk contains several nutritions and antibodies guarding against children's infectious diseases.Still, breast -feeding also reduces mother's breast cancer risk .A previous study has been shown that women with a family history of breast cancer were 59% less likely to develop breast cancer if they breastfed their children.Health experts advised "don't wean early,at least 6 months".
"Mooms quit breast-feeding earlier than planned are selfish." What right do you have to judge? Women in our society are actively discouraged from breastfeeding. It's tough enough being a mother without some judgmental b**ch making comments. BTW, I breast-fed all five of my children.
With over 7 billion people infesting Earth, draining and consuming every last natural resource on this planet, I think we need to stop focusing on articles related to rearing more parasites and concentrate on how to PREVENT pregnancies and all the other trivialities that accompany it.
Lol, college liberal meme in the flesh.
Wait 15 years and look back at the drivel you are spouting now, and I'm positive you'll cringe.
Actually, exclusively breastfeeding (no solids or formula) is almost as effective at preventing pregnancy as some hormonal bc methods.
This is true for up to 6 months in many women. After six months, studies have shown that the effectiveness of breast feeding as birth control significantly drops significantly after 6 months.
It also is only effective under a specific set of conditions:
* Breast feed with out supplementation, on demand, but at least every 4 hours during the day and every 6 hours at night
* Period has not resumed (2 consecutive days of spotting counts as a period when evaluating effectiveness of breast feeding as a contraception).
Also, pumping seems to reduce the effectiveness, mainly because it doesn't precisely replicate the suckling of the baby. The suckling of the baby prevents the surge of Gonadotropin-releasing hormone which triggers the change in FSH and LH which will stimulate the release of the egg.
So, it's effective birth control in the right circumstances.
That never worked for me! I became pregnant with my second and fourth children while I was breast-feeding my first and third.
momnotmrs: Yeah, I know women that it didn't work for either. My aunt had 7 children and breast fed all 7 of them - two of them are just almost 11 months apart. When she went in for her 6 week post-partum check up after delivering, she was informed she was pregnant again!
Like all contraception, there is a failure rate. I bet you are happy that it failed those particular times for you - you have two more wonderful children because of this :)
Weight loss is NORMAL in the first week. It takes typically 3~5 days for milk to come in, and up until then, most moms are producing colostrum. The baby's stomach is too small to process more than a marble sized amount of food anyways!
I mean, do people completely lack common sense?! What do they think people did before the advent of formula? Formula was introduced after World War II after all, and not everyone has goats or wet nurses at their disposal.
I don't think there is anything wrong with supplementing formula the first few days after the baby is born. My experience, which is what I hear happens with most babies, is that my baby took a few days to learn how to latch on properly to feed. In the meantime, rather than let him starve, I fed him formula and expressed breast milk. Once he figured out breast feeding I stopped the formula and he is now two months old and exclusively breast fed. I don't think feeding formula is bad, and I don't think we should judge moms who decide to stop breastfeeding early-breastfeeding can be quite challenging and difficult to keep up at times! Also some babies can be allergic to the proteins in mom's milk, some moms don't make enough milk, etc...there can be all kinds of issues; it's not all rosy as one might think. I think having support in the early days is critical, whether from a nurse, doctor, lactation consultant etc to tell you you're doing fine and encourage you to keep going. Also it bothers me how every now and then you hear in the news how some mom got kicked out of somewhere for breast feeding. I think that that attitude needs to change and if done discreetly, women shouldn't be made to feel ashamed to breast feed their child in public-all they are doing is feeding their hungry child, since when is that a crime!!
“This to me says we as a society are not supporting mothers to feed their infants the way they want to.”
I was told that mothers didn't breast feed back when mine were babies. I just did what I thought was best and didn't give a sh1t about "society" or what the "experts" thought. I sometimes breast-fed in public but I am not an exhibitionist so most people never had a clue. But I don't understand keeping the baby strictly on breast milk for six months. I had to give one of mine real food very early--he was big and some stress issues may have been a factor. I think most babies need other food before six months.
And about bottle mothers being lazy--breast feeding is by far the easy way to go. You don't have to mix and warm formula in the middle of the night. So stop trying to make it look like a huge sacrifice.
This is not the fault of the mothers; it's the fault of the hospitals, many of which do little to encourage breast-feeding moms. I breast-fed all five of my children for a minimum of 2 years each, and I had to fight at the hospital to keep them from giving the baby formula. In addition, at the hospitals where I had two of my children (three were born at home), no one offered to help me with breast-feeding; I had to ask!
Breastfeeding is exhausting! I did it for 3 months, to the day with each of my children. Actually, they were both preemies, so I went the way of the breast pump with them both and give them the bottle of it. It was so physically demanding. Every 3 hours or so, you have to go pump. It is some hard work. For those of you that can last the whole first year, I applaud you.
In the end, it really is a personal choice as to what a mother does for her children. Breast milk is the best, no denying that, but a mother does what she can. Some mom's have diseases and that complicates things and saps energy which could be a factor in some ones choice to not go the distance with it. And before long, your tot is going start munching on baby food, and table food and get all sorts of nutrion in due time. Don't beat yourself up if it doesn't work out in theory, practice can always be a lot different then theory....
Not a mom yet, but I already wish all the judgment would stop! Some women have physical reasons they can or can't breastfeed, some have psychological reasons. Some reasons are considered selfish, others are considered perfectly valid. None of that matters, because while breastfeeding is the ideal option, every woman's reason to breastfeed or not breastfeed is valid and important to her. We should support all mothers, whether or not they decide to breastfeed, for how long, and no matter what their reasons are.
It's understandable that even the most dedicated of Mothers may have difficulty finding a breast feeding schedule beneficial for both Mom and baby. One way to help you're infant to enjoy the bond of breast feeding while getting optimum nutrition is to express your breast milk and, if it is either a limited amount or very watery, use it with the formula mix. Even if your milk is very watery, it will still have the beneficial antibodies and other nutrients exclusive to breast milk. You can give your baby the bottle first and then finish with the breast. This way, if baby falls asleep at the nipple he/she will have fed sufficiently. And your feeding session will still be a warm, bonding experience.
I lost faith in all of the baby friendly hospital crap when the lactation consultant I had hid from me the fact that my daughter had lost 15 percent of her body weight and blamed my daughter's dehydration on me, saying that I was obviously not waking up every hour and nursing like I was told. I had been not sleeping, not even for a minute, for a week after my csection. The baby would scream and cry literally around the clock because I had no milk. When my baby was starting to get stuporous and not even trying to eat anymore I told the lactation team at the hospital they were full of crap lying to me and blaming me for my daughter's condition. I fed her formula and she started thriving. Eventually I got a full milk supply in at about 3 weeks after delivery and was able to transition my daughter to breastfeeding.
There is this odd belief among the breastfeeding crazies that if you just inform people hard enough that breastfeeding is best , they will automatically sacrifice any other priority to breastfeed the way that is considered "right". They can't stand that women from non USA cultures often don't feed the baby until mature milk comes in several days after delivery. Other women in the family breastfeed the baby or formula is used until the milk supply comes in. It has worked for thousands of years, but if those people were just told their culture is wrong they will "see the light". pfft. I love it when the crazies tell women with depression or bipolar disorder that need medications "you have to sacrifice yourself and not take medication so you can do whats best for your child".
The next time I have a child I am going to tell the hospital I want no lactation specialists any where near me. I have a friend who is an RN and a non crazy lactation consultant. I will be calling her if I need help.
I have bipolar disorder and had postpartum psychosis. When I saw a "specialist" on PPP, she told me that I obviously wasn't fit to be a mom and get my kid in full time daycare so someone better could care for her. That just set me off. They wouldn't even put me on my former medication. Just a sleeping pill.
After a long and drawn out psychotic spell, I got on the right meds and compromised on two days of daycare, just for my own sake. After that, not only will I never tell another mother that they are wrong, I will tell people to shove it when they say I'm wrong. It's not in my child's best interest to sacrifice my sanity. What's best for my child is a happy mom and a happy house.
The whole breastfeeding "debate" is nothing more then a way to make mothers feel inadequate. Children aren't as delicate as we think. Nobody is going to get everything 100% right in childrearing. The goal should be to produce well adjusted, thriving children who will turn into well adjusted, thriving adults, not to be 100% perfect in all matters of parenting.
Breast feeding is not for everyone and it does hurt but the pain goes away within a week or so and if you have the right information it can really help. It is normal for babies to drop a little weight in their first couple days of life so I don't know why that is a reason to not breastfeed. I do think most women should at least try but thats my opinion and I wouldnt force it on anyone.
When I had my second child a nurse tried to take her to the nursery and give her a bottle so I could sleep even though they had been told I wanted to breastfeed. I told her that she was absolutley not removing my child from my room and there were to be no bottles. I had already had a child that I breastfed exclusively for 3 months at age 15 and once I went back to school full time she still breast fed at night and on weekends until she was 11 months so I knew what I was doing.
I tried to BF my daughter for 2 1/2 months, but my supply couldn't keep up and she ate like a pig. So I pumped and gave her what I could and then supplemented with formula. She was never a picky eater and grew by leaps and bounds and was 24 pounds by the time she was 6 months old. BTW, she is not obese and her weight gain leveled off after the age of 6 months.
With my next one I am not going to sweat over Bf if it doesn't work out. I will try my best and see what works out best for everyone. I feel for those who have difficult pregnacies since I am not having an easy time right now. A health scare or a life or death situation can change your perspective, especially if you've had a pregnancy loss or child death.
2 1/2 months gave your daughter a great start on her immune system, among other benefits! With your next one, find a good online group to join if you'd like- you'll get lots of ideas on making it easier and keeping your supply up.