CDC: Hospitals Ill Prepared to Support Breastfeeding
With the Passage of Affordable Healthcare Act expanded to provide services to women who are breastfeeding. Hospitals are expected to provide new moms with access to support, counseling and instructions.
Unfortunately, recent reports show most hospitals are limited in providing adequate breastfeeding services. New mothers rarely receive effective support for breastfeeding according to a new report published by the Center for Disease Control.
Breastfeeding is one of the most effective measures to protect babies from infections and illnesses such as pneumonia, middle ear infections, and diarrhea. Breastfed babies are less likely to develop asthma and SIDS. Breast milk contains important fatty acids DHA and AA building blocks to help infant brain development. Mothers who breastfeed have reduced risk of breast and ovarian cancers.
CDC reported that only 14 percent of hospitals have written policies in regards to breastfeeding. Eighty percent of hospitals give formula to healthy breast-feeding infants unrelated to medical needs. American Academy of Pediatrics and World Health Organization recommends only breastfeeding for the first six months of infant’s life and continue to breastfeed up to 1 to 2 years.
CDC also found "room in" where the baby and the mother stay in the same room which encourages breastfeeding limited to only one third of hospitals nationwide.
"Hospitals need to better support breast-feeding, as this is one of the most important things a mother can do for her newborn," said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. He continues to state that "Breast-feeding helps babies grow up healthy and reduces health care costs.”
Below is a list of recommended protocols to care for new mothers by the Center for Disease Control:
- Provide better breastfeeding support services from hospitals
- Have 24 hour "room in" for mothers to stay with infants
- Encourage only breastfeeding unless there is a medical need
- Provide a comprehensive lactating support group, even after the mother has left the hospital
- Limit the distribution of formula samples given to new mothers from hospitals