In 2006 a reported seventy-four percent of mothers initiated breastfeeding. The current objectives of Healthy People 2020 include increasing the rate of infants ever breastfed, and we strive for a goal of eighty-two percent by the year 2020. With increasing education, availability of certified lactation consultants, the National Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign, support through programs such as WIC, to name a few, breastfeeding receives a great foundation of support. Everyone deserves the healthiest start, and breast milk is just that in a baby’s first hours and the following year of rapid growth. The greatest part of breastfeeding is that it not only puts infants at reduced risks for SIDS, asthma, childhood leukemia and lymphoma, and obesity, but it also benefits mom as well. These benefits include decreased postpartum blood loss, decreased risk of Type II Diabetes, as well as reductions in hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and cardiovascular disease just to name a few. Moms continuously need more advocates and support throughout the community and clinics to accommodate their baby’s right to breastfeed. However what happens to the babies born before the full-term, thirty-eight weeks gestation? How do they benefit from the most perfectly designed and organic food?Breast milk is biologically designed to the exact age of an infant’s needs so the underdeveloped preterm infant requires breast milk for many protective reasons. The immature immune system benefits greatly from human milk and lower rates of necrotizing enterocolitis and sepsis are seen in the NICU. Research also shows long-term effects including fewer hospitalizations and readmissions in the following year after the preterm infant’s NICU discharge. In addition to the protection of the immature immune system, neurodevelopment in breastfed preterm infants improves as well. Mental, motor, and behavior scores at 18 and 30 months are significantly higher in the preterm breastfed baby. Luckily for mothers who have issues with feeding, or infants that require special feeding equipment, medical assistance is available. Expressed breast milk is an option for the preterm infant and can even be administered through feeding tubes. Very low birth weight infants weighing less than 1.5 kilograms automatically qualify for human donor milk when expressed breast milk is not an option for mothers. However, expressed breast milk is always the first recommendation.
Support and advocacy for the preterm NICU babies is essential for their futures. We can all advocate for those too little to voice for themselves that breast milk is the best first path to pave. Early skin-to-skin contact creates a maternal bond and stimulates an adequate milk supply. Frequent stimulation and offering of the breast exemplifies the long heard phrase that practice makes perfect! Mother’s need support from family and ongoing support from lactation consultants to establish goals and a successful plan to achieve these goals. With everyone’s support and ongoing education, preterm babies can be as successful at breast feeding as their counterpart full-term friends.
