Now it doesn't happen so much to us because my wife doesn't breastfeed the children anymore, but when she breastfed one and we talked to a pregnant friend we ended up talking about breastfeeding and on more than one occasion they told us that "I want to breastfeed, but only if I can, of course ... because if not, then I will give him the bottle ". This phrase, which seems perogrullo because it is clear that if a baby cannot be breastfed, what she should receive is infant formula, it seems to indicate that the woman does not really have a goal or goal with breastfeeding.
And who has a goal? You may wonder. Well, women who have been informed enough about it and who know what the recommendations are in relation to breastfeeding (for how long it is exclusively recommended, for how long as a main food but with complementary food and for how long as a food more ), which are the ones that say "yes, I will give you breast milk" and sometimes add "until one of us decides to leave it", "minimum 6 months", or maybe "until it weakens on its own".
Time is decided by each mother, but at the time they set a date, be 3 months, be 3 years, they are setting a goal that apparently has benefits in breastfeeding and in the babyWell, it has been seen in a study with premature babies that when they have a goal breastfeed more that when they don't have it and they leave before discharge home.
Study Data
The study was done in a neonatal ICU and aimed to see how babies were fed, as it is a particularly particular unit with babies in a fragile state of health, many care needs and where many are premature and do not always suck properly. A review was made of 88 cases of babies born before week 34 whose mothers breastfed them and saw how many were breastfeeding directly and how many ended up drinking milk in a bottle.
Of the total children, 59% started direct breastfeeding while the rest took breast milk in a bottle. 33% of the mothers had a goal, a goal in reference to breastfeeding, and these were the ones that it took longer to start supplementation with a bottle and those that could leave before discharge.
Apparently, according to the data, the mothers who had that goal we mentioned showed 13 times more likely to leave the baby with breastfeeding directly from your chest. Incredibly high figures in comparison.
The power of determination
Why that difference? Because of the power of determination and the power of information. When a woman has information about breastfeeding and has made the decision to breastfeed and give it for a certain time the chances of success are greater. Why? Well, because he leaves less things to chance, because he knows how to achieve a successful breastfeeding or where to turn in case of problems but, above all, because he has already made a decision and, as such, try to meet the objective.
When, as I said at the beginning, a woman decides to breastfeed but does not have a clear idea of whether she will succeed or how long she will breastfeed her chances of success in case of problems are lower because then the condition that she meets is met. He had verbalized himself and said: "I will breastfeed if I can ... if something goes wrong, I will give a bottle."
So if the baby is born premature and the grip on the chest is complicated, if not knowing how much your baby eats causes anxiety, if Do not trust your ability to feed your child and if he feels guilty for trying to breastfeed him but he sees that it seems too complicated and he gets voices that "with a bottle immediately gain weight" the chances of achieving that successful breastfeeding decrease greatly, as we have seen in the data.
So if you are pregnant, look for information on breastfeeding, perhaps in some breastfeeding group, perhaps in some book, perhaps in your health center, and evaluate what a good place to go in case of problems. Also, make a decision about it. You decide if you want to breastfeed or not, and if you want to give it for a while, if you want to fight in case there are problems or if you will only give it in case everything goes perfect.
If instead you are a health professional, be clear that you must continue doing what you are doing, that is, inform women about breastfeeding so that they know why it is important for babies to drink human milk and for them to know what the recommendations are: breast milk exclusively and in demand during the first 6 months, accompanied by complementary feeding until the year of life and, from 12 months, as one more food until at least 2 years and then until the mother or the baby decides.
That mothers already know? No it's not true. I often find mothers in the office breastfeeding wondering when they should stop breastfeeding, with babies of 3 or 4 months. The face they have left when I tell them that it is recommended to breastfeed much longer is worthy of photo. Some because they are looking forward to quitting, others because they feel tremendously relieved, victims of the pressures of family members who are already beginning to say that "you should leave the tit."
