EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING – WHY IT IS NECESSARY TO EVERY MOTHER!
EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING DEFINED
Exclusive breastfeeding simply means the practice of nursing mothers using breastmilk alone as the only liquid food to their infants for a period of at least six months . In this way, no other liquid such as water, fruit juice, or beverages are given to their infants in this period.
It is worthy of note that breastmilk contains high degree of nutrients, minerals and vitamins and they are in their right proportion to the health and wellness of the suckling baby. It also contains antibiotics – antibiotics are those elements which help the body fight against pathogens, that cause diseases in the body thereby increasing the body’s immune system against infections.
HOW EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING IS DONE
As earlier mentioned, exclusive breastfeeding is practiced by providing breastmilk alone for the infant for a period without any other liquid except multivitamins and mineral supplements in the form of drops, syrups, suspension, etc. This feeding is done by allowing the infant to suckle as many times as needed and doing so ad-lib meaning as much as the infant needs at a time. It begins immediately after birth. This way the milk produced in the first four days which is called colostrum is not neglected.
COLOSTRUM is very essential to the new born! It's usually yellowish in colour. The yellow colour is due to the high presence of a biochemical compound called beta-carotene which aid in the production of vitamin A, a requisite for the development of the retina- a part of the eye where images are formed.
Colostrum also contains vital antibiotics which are essential for boosting the immune system to help the body fight against infections caused by pathogens.
After the first four days, the milk produced will have a normal colour and is still given to the infant either suckling directly from the mother or as express milk- which is milk obtained by extraction from the mother’s breast into a feeding bottle, which is then preserved and fed to the baby at any convenient time.
Either way, the baby is fed with breast milk without any other liquid or solid food for the period of six months. This milk can be suckled by the baby directly from the mother’s breast or fed as express milk.
Express milk is the breast milk that is extracted from the nursing mother’s breast and kept in a feeder to be fed to the baby when necessary. Electrical pump, manual pump or manual extractor can be used for this. However, great care must be taken to ensure the milk is kept at the right temperature, to ensure it's wholesomeness.
THE UNIQUENESS OF THE BREAST MILK
The breast milk is produced in the mammalian gland of all mammals. The mammalian gland is the feature of mammals which aeperate them from all other classes of animals. This due to the fact that only mammals, through this unique feature, feed their young ones by producing milk which they use in feeding.
At an early stage of development, the young humans can not digest and assimilate solid foods, making the breast milk the only option. In the light of the aforementioned, we will take a look at the characteristics which gives the breast milk such a biological relevance.
To begin with, the breastmilk produced in the first four days after birth is has a thick, yellowish colour called colostrum
This unique milk is very rich in protein, contains less fat and high in biological compounds which helps in strengthening the baby’s immune system. Colostrum has the ability to enhance the development of the baby’s digestive track as the baby grows.
In the later days, the breastmilk becomes lighter in colour, as it contains more water which increases the quantity of milk produce as the baby tends to consume due to the increase in size of the stomach. Even with this increase, the quality of milk produced is still high in nutrients content and in a balanced proportion. Most importantly, the balance is adjusted naturally to suit the baby’s need at every point in time as the baby needs it, making the breastmilk unparalleled and in comparable with any other substitutes.
BENEFITS OF EXCUSIVE BREASTFEEDING TO THE BABY
Like earlier said the colostrum is the best form of antibiotics the baby can get due to it's high content of biological compounds which improves the baby’s immune system against infections.
In terms of mother-to-child bonding, this period exclusive breastfeeding offers the mother and the child an ample time to bond. This is due to the fact the extended time of suckling by exclusive breastfeeding is far more than the nonexclusive breastfeeding, thus the baby gets enough time to connect in a deeper dimension with its mother.
Studies have shown that babies fed exclusively with breast milk tend to have higher Intelligence Quotience, IQ than those fed with other liquids. This is because of the faster brain development due to the rich presence of biochemical compounds in the breast milk which aid brain development.
Also,, children exclusively fed with breast milk will show less behavioral problems unlike those fed with milk formula or any other liquids for that matter. This is due to the time of mother -to -child bonding with arises from their eye contact, voice recognition, physical contact such as stroking, massages etc. This helps to improve the baby’s sociability as they grow. This bonding will also in a larger extent improves baby’s emotional stability and security in to their adulthood.
Medically speaking, exclusive breastfeeding will reduce the rate of infections and disease susceptibility, in children due to the high presence antibiotics which help the body fight off pathogens which would have caused diseases as the immune system has been tremendously fortified..
Furthermore, exclusive breastfeeding helps in enhancing the physical development of the baby. This is because, the excellent, balanced nutrients content of breastmilk improves the overall growth and development of the physical body of the baby. Early bone formation supports baby’s weight as it grows. This support fastens the development of the limb bones for crawling, walking and running etc. The muscle tone, and other physical appearance also. The risks of certain life-long diseases such as obesity, diabetes, digestive tract diseases, hypertension, asthma, infant mortality etc can be greatly reduced through exclusive breastfeeding as the immune system of the benefiting children will be capable of overcoming their occurrence in totality, or eliminating the predisposing factors of the diseases.
AND THE MOTHERS TOO!
Breastfeeding is a practice that is as old as humanity and practiced by mothers the world over, is not only beneficial to the infants only, but their mothers too! The only obstacles to this universal practice of breastfeeding can be if the mother can not practice due to socio-economic, health or other conditions. But all things being equal, the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding to the mothers are tremendous. They include:
IMPROVEMENT OF MOTHER-TO-CHILD BONDING
Breastfeeding is an active practice in which both mother and child are involved, giving and receiving care and nourishment simultaneously, this way, they both make physical contact, eye contact, touches, stroking, even audible communication which are geared towards developing a strong bond between mother and child. This connection can help boost the child’s social, mental and emotional balance as they grow.
WEIGHT CONTROL
It is usual for nursing mothers to gain weight during their post partum periods, this weight gain if not checked can lead to many other illnesses such as hypertension, obesity, heart diseases, arthritis, among others. However, one of the natural means of weight control or reduction in nursing mothers is exclusive breastfeeding. This is true because the mother seems to "eat for two instead of one” this way the bulk of her food intake is reduced by her infant reducing buildup fatty tissues in her body.
REDUCED CHANNCES OF HEART DISEASES
Exclusive breastfeeding has been shown by studies to contribute to lowering the chances of having heart related diseases such as stroke, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases to mention a few. Several studies have shown that women who practiced exclusive breastfeeding at some point in their lives were seen to have lower risks or likelihood of developing any of the aforementioned heart-related illnesses among other diseases.
EFFECTIVE MEANS OF BIRTH CONTROL
As women breastfeed, the process of lactation releases a hormone called prolactine which is essential for milk production. The release of prolactine then prevents the production and release of estrogen and progesterone. These two are responsible for control and regulation of ovulation and menstruation in women. Thus, the cessation of ovulation prevents possible fertilization which results in pregnancy. And works to provide a means of birth control. It is important to note that, this method of birth control doesn't apply to all women because there are cases of women who got pregnant even while still breastfeeding!
LOWERS CHANCES OF CERTAIN DISEASES
The risks of diseases such as ovarian cancer, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, stroke, cervical cancer, etc seem to be lower in women who had breastfed at one point in their lives than those who hadn't. Breastfeeding can even shorten the post-partum healing of the womb as well as the related organs in women and reduces the occurrence of post-partum depression.
IMPROVES MOTHER-TO-CHILD BONDING
Exclusive breastfeeding increases the amount of times mother will make flesh to flesh contact with their infants. This increased contacts will in turn improve the physical, mental and emotional connection children make with their mothers to the point of improving their social and emotional wellbeing. Such children will grow up to become socially and emotionally stable adults.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC BENEFITS
Exclusive breastfeeding has some social and economic benefits to the mothers. You will notice infants breastfed exclusively will fall sick less, as such mothers will less often visit the hospital or spend less money on hospital bills thus making money available for other household expenses. Such mother will also have more leisure time, and more time to focus on other aspects of their lives.
IS THERE ANY CONSTRAINTS TO EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING?
As beneficial as breastfeeding is, it doesn't come without some constraints or difficulties.
To the nursing mothers, the continuous drag on their nipples by the babies can cause sore to develop resulting in serious pains in the nipples making breastfeeding a nightmare with every drag!
Also, among working mothers, there could be a time constraint due to the fact that, these women will have to spend over five hours at work, stay in traffic after closing from work, as such may not have all the time they need to breastfeed their babies as they require.
Furthermore, as mothers continue to breastfeed, the suckling time may reduce the time the women spend with their spouses, as well as other children if the child is not the first! This change of attention may stifle the mother’s relationships with the other members of the family. She may also loose a lot of sleep at night as she has to wake up many times to breastfeed. This will make her feel dizzy in the day thereby Hinapping from time to time.
Again, some mothers especially first-time mothers may not have the experience of proper breastfeeding technique, the lack of experience will hinder all the benefits this practice has to offer because of the inconveniences to both mother and child.
HOW DO YOU SEEK HELP?
If you experience sore nipples during breastfeeding, seek advice from your postnatal healthcare provider. You also try to adjust the positioning of the nipples in your baby’s mouth. You can also give your baby a gentle tap on their shoulder or arm each time they 'bite’ or pressure the nipples to much, this will lift the pressure.
Working nursing mothers can use express milk. Here, note must be taken not to keep express milk longer than two hours outside the body temperature. It can be kept in a refrigerator and warmed before giving to baby.
Mothers can also, practice spending suckling time with other members of the family, that is not isolating from them when breastfeeding but doing so even with the father, other siblings being around to encourage their infant to have their meal. This way, their touches, voices and presence will also improve their bonding.
First-time mothers can seek for help from older mothers with the right experience or go for the services of experts or ask for help from friends and neighbors who can assist them to make breastfeeding more effective for both mothers and their infants.
CONCLUSION
In some social, cultural and work environments, certain prevailing conditions can make the practice of exclusively feeding babies with breastmilk difficult. But with the right information, the right mindset, the right attitude and loving family members and friends plus expert advice from qualified medical workers, exclusive breastfeeding can be an experience every nursing mother will be grateful she didn't ignore!
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