While pregnant I was unsure if I wanted to breastfeed or not. I knew I wanted to try it, but was unsure if I would like it or if was something I would even be able to do. Aaron was born by c-section so while the doctors finished stapling me back together he was taken to the nursery to be washed, foot printed and get his first immunizations. As soon as I was in recovery they brought Aaron to me. The nurse had me immediately try nursing and he took right to it. It was painful at first and there were times when I wanted to give up on it but we stuck it out and I nursed him until he weaned himself at about 10 months. I couldn't figure out why he was weaning until I realized I was pregnant again. I don't think I was producing enough milk for him to be satisified so Aaron received formula for 2 months time, from 10-12 months, and then I switched him to milk. Aaron never developed any food allergies or skin issues unlike my second son, Alex. Alex was born by c-section as well and once in recovery I tried nursing him. He also immediately took to it. Alex was nursed until he was 14 months old, he never received formula. I started rice cereal with both boys about 4 months of age. Then increased the baby food intake to trying vegetables, fruits and meats. At about 10 months of age I started table food. Aaron never had any issues with trying adult food. When Alex was 10 months old I gave him some cottage cheese (the same age I tried it with Aaron). He started to swell up and got red itchy welts any place the cottage cheese had touched him. Apparently Alex was allergic to dairy products. The doctors told me to not try any more dairy products and to nurse him as long as possible. When I weaned Alex from breastfeeding I was to put him on soy milk. Alex is now 7 years old and is still allergice to dairy and nuts. He also had severe eczema as an infant/toddler. When he was 3 years old he began to outgrow some of the eczema but he still has sensitive skin. I've always wondered why being pregnant in the same area and feeding and raising my kids in the same way produced one child with allergies and one without. After reading an article about a study done in Japan regarding breastfeeding and allergies I was surprised that the results showed a higher proportion of completely breastfed babies having a greater risk of allergic diseases, such as eczema, wheezing and food allergies (Kusunoki, Moritmoto, Yasumi, Heike, Mukaida, Fujii, Nakahata, 2010). I had always thought that breastfeeding was so much better for my children and that is why I chose to breastfeed. The study went on to say there had been conflicting data over the years where breastfeeding used to be considered proactive in fighting against ashthma and other allergic diseases a number of recent studies have shown that breastfeeding might in fact be a risk factor in their development (Kusunoki et al., 2010). After reading this study I still would have breastfed my children and if I have any more children I will attempt to breastfeed them as well. I was unaware of Alex's food allergies until he was 10 months old so at that point I had already nursed him through most of his infancy.
Personally I feel there were many benefits of breastfeeding my sons. The bonding that took was place was irreplaceable for me. That isn't to say that bottle fed babies don't bond with their parents, bottle fed babies have the opportunity to bond with many adults, any adults that spend the time feeding them and holding them while they are being fed. I loved nursing my babies and I wouldn't have changed the fact that I nursed them as long as I did. There were times that it was very hard being the only parent that could feed them (Alex never would take a bottle even with expressed breastmilk in it) but in the end it was one of the things I remember most about their infancy and one of the moments I treasure.
Japan is actually working to increase the amount of mothers who breastfeed their babies. The benefits of breastfeeding is known to the Japanese culture and even after knowing all the facts they still found that less than 50% of mothers were fully breastfeeding at one month after birth (Awano & Shimada, 2010). "In 2007, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare Japan reported that 96% of women prior to childbirth wanted to breastfeed, and after childbirth almost all women started breastfeeding. However only 42.8% of mothers were fully breastfeeding at one month after birth" (Awano & Shimada, 2010). The typical length of a woman's hospital stay after birth in Japan is 5-7 days (in the US a natural birth is 2-3 days and c-section is 4-5 days). The study felt that since such a high percentage of mothers wanted to breastfeed prior to giving birth and they stay in the hospital such a long time after birth that they should try to give more support regarding breastfeeding while the mother and baby were still in the hospital (Awano & Shimada, 2010). Two hospitals were chosen (with high birthing rates) and a study was performed with two groups. One group given more support after birth regarding breastfeeding and those that were not. The women who were given more support felt more confident about breastfeeding and continued to breastfeed longer. The stastisitcs went from 2007 42.8 % of mothers breastfeeding at one month of age to 2008 72.2% of mothers breastfeeding at one month of age (Awano & Shimada, 2010).
I believe that to breastfeed you need support. Support from lacation consulatants if a mother is having difficulty nursing, support from the pediatrician, support groups, friends and most of all family. Having a partner that supports your choice to breastfeed and having a family that supports and encourages you to breastfeed makes a mother feel more confident about it and therefore they are more likely to succeed at it.
References
Kusunoki, T., Morimoto, R., Yasumi, N., Heike, T., Mukaida, K., Fujii, T., Nakahata, T., (2010). Breastfeeding and the prevalence of allergice diseases in schoolchildren: Does reverse causation matter? Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. (21), 60-66. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/detail?hid=111&sid=2dad1705-743e-4997-aa53-15806484aabb%40sessionmgr110&vid=11&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=a9h&AN=47829376
Awano, M., Shimada, K., (2010). Development and evaluation of self care program on breastfeeding in Japan: a quasi-experimental study. International Breastfeeding Journal. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/detail?hid=111&sid=2dad1705-743e-4997-aa53-15806484aabb%40sessionmgr110&vid=13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=a9h&AN=54289472
Amy,
ReplyDeleteThe differing health issues your son has are truly perplexing. Since you did the same thing with both boys, the environment should not have been the cause. My daughter is pregnant with her third boy. Her first two are also vastly different health wise, she bottle fed both. She is planning on breast feeding this time.
Mary L.
Amy
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the information on breastfeeding. I never breastfed either of my children and they both had problems with allergies- diary products, nuts,pencillin,fish and different types of grass,asthma & eczema and was told if I had breastfed they would have probably avoided some of those issues. So reading this information is perplexing to me but informative. I still want to try breastfeeding!
Quita,
ReplyDeleteI too felt that the longer I breastfed Alex the better his allergies would get. I was hopeful that he would outgrow them, so far that hasn't happened yet. I have a feeling that when more research has been done we may find that some children just have a predisposition to allergies based on genetic make-up. There are allergies (food and eczema) in our family history. Alex's paternal grandfather had severe eczema as a child and as an adult suffers with skin issues and his paternal grandmother has some different food allergies and intolerances. My nephew suffers from eczema as well. Like I posted in my blog, if I were to go back and do it all over again, I would still breastfeed Alex because I feel there was such bonding, such a connection and I think he did get so much out of it nutritionally.
Amy
Amy,
ReplyDeleteI also reading the information you posted about breastfeeding. I didn't breastfeed any of my children, and never had the desire to. My youngest daughter is the only one to suffer from being lactose intolerant. According to Berger, in our text, most babies who are breast-fed are less likely to get sick, because breast mild provides them with antibodies against any disease to which the mother is immune. The text also stated that breast-feeding decreases the risk of many diseases that appear in childhood and adulthood, among them asthma, obesity, and heart disease. The article you read, really surprised me. I guess with anything in life, there are many pros and cons.
My daughter-in-law just had my first grandbaby girl (February 25th) and she also had a c-section. She's trying to breastfed also, but is having some trouble, so therefore, she is alternating formula and breast milk.
Amy,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like breastfeeding and the relationship to allergies, eczema, and other ailments is complex. Of course there may be genetic factors, or changes in your diet, or even in stressors in the environment. The fact that whether breast feeding is best or not has changed from yes to no in the past just illustrates how complex we are. I would say that, since nature provided a means to nourish our children, then there probably wouldn't be any harm in breastfeeding. But that doesn't mean that there aren't also advantages to formula as well.
Since all my children are adopted, I have never breastfed. My boys were on formula since birth, and my daughter was breastfed by her biological mother until about 8 months old. I can say that, even though she never received a vaccine until she was with us at 13 months old, she gets sick the least and has no chronic health problems. The boys always seem to catch colds, have runny noses, and behavioral issues. However they were both preterm, and our daughter was full term. There is a lot to consider, even the fact that vaccines can play a part in developing things like allergies. Our boys were fed formula, and they don't have any chronic health issues or allergies, but neither does our daughter, who was breast fed most of her first year.