 |
| Source: www.unicef.org |
Breastfeeding is the biological normal for mother and baby. It is the way nature intended for humans to feed their young. As Diane Wiessinger explains the claim of human milk being superior is simply not true (1996). Human milk is the basic necessity for human babies, formula or artificial baby milk is just plain and simply inferior (Wiessinger, 1996). This is extremely apparent in the developing nations where infants die if their mothers cannot breastfeed (WHO, 2011).
 |
Source: www.jyi.org/articleimages/1243/originals/img0.jpg |
This blog post will be about breastfeeding in the developing nation of Kenya in Africa. A health concern about breastfeeding in cities like Nairobi, Kenya is the high incidence of HIV (Berger, 2009). One of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UNICEF goals is to reduce the mother-to-child HIV transmission in the developing nations (WHO, 2011, UNICEF, n.d.). Due to the potential risk of transmission via breast milk and breast feeding, bottle feeding artificial milk has been claimed to be safer for babies of HIV-positive mothers (CDC, 2010).
According to a new update from WHO, breastfeeding may in fact be safer (WHO, 2011). The risk for baby to die from unclean and unsanitary feeding methods outweighs the benefit of preventing HIV transmissions. In fact, the data shows HIV-positive mothers are more likely to transmit the virus during pregnancy and birth than while breastfeeding (WHO, 2011). The WHO supports exclusive breastfeeding for six months for babies whose mothers are HIV positive (WHO, 2011). In fact, partial breastfeeding can increase the risk of transmission for the vulnerable infant, and not breastfeeding can increase the risk for infection to a potentially immunocompromise HIV-positive baby (WHO, 2011).
 |
| Source: http://adayofprayeraction.org |
Unfortunately, the companies that manufacture artificial baby milk, make unfounded claims. Visit a popular formula company’s website and you will read “Nourishing the world’s children for the best start in life”(Mead Johnson & Company, LLC., 1996-2012). This would be only true if we don’t count Nairobi’s vulnerable HIV-positive babies as part of the world’s children! A better slogan would read: Nourishing the developed nations’ children for a start in life, when breastfeeding is not feasible and human milk is not available.
Here is the take home message, breastfeeding should be protected and promoted all over the world. In particular, in parts of the world where there are immediate health issues with artificial feeding. This includes the vulnerable babies of HIV-positive women in Nairobi, Kenya.
References
Berger, K. S. (2009). The developing person through childhood (5th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
CDC. (2010, March 4). Breastfeeding and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), and Acquired Immunodeficiency Virus (AIDS). Retrieved from CDC website on March 9, 2012 from http://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/disease/hiv.htm
Mead Johnson & Company, LLC. (1996,2012). Meadjohnson nutrition homepage. Retrieved from http://www.meadjohnson.com/Pages/default.aspx
UNICEF. (n.d.).UNICEF's Response. Retrieved on March 9, 2012 from http://www.unicef.org/programme/breastfeeding/response.htm
WHO. (2011, January). Kesho Bora Study: Preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV during breastfeeding [Online document]. Retrieved on March 8, 2012 from http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/rtis/KeshoBora_study.pdf
Wiessinger, D. (1996).Watch your language. [Online article]. Retrieved from http://www.whale.to/a/wiessinger.html
I know this issue is close to your heart and I appreciate all the work that you did in researching the topic. I had never considered the issue of passing on diseases to the child through breast feeding versus the effect of contaminated water in formula.
ReplyDeleteI do want to share a bit of my story. I wanted badly to breastfeed my 3 children. Each one, I said this time would be different and tried so hard. The pain was unbearable. All of the lactation consultants I worked with said I just needed to get through the pain. I even planned on pumping and bottle feeding the pumped milk. But the pain continued.
With my 3rd baby I had a lactation consultant finally figure out what was wrong and declared that the pain likely wouldn't go away but possibly lessen. My husband and I decided with each child that it wasn't worth pursuing and transitioned to formula.
When I hear people rant (you aren't) about how breast is best, it always makes me feel horrible. I think about the mothers in Kenya and around the world where that is the only way to healthily feed their children. What would have happened to my children 200 years ago?
I am blessed to have formula as an option. I was able to bond with my children where I wouldn't have been able to if I continued to breastfeed. I can't complain, I have 3 beautiful children who are all quite healthy. I just worry about all the other mothers who may be feeling my pain.
Thank you for sharing your work and passion in this area of early childhood and keep up the great research and help you provide to so many families in your life!
Dear Amy, I can empathize with the feeling of loss. It can be tough for a mom to be told "breast is best" and then be given no alternatives other than "suffer through pain" or formula feed.
DeletePain is never a normal condition in any human function that has to be repeated. I often encounter moms with horrible pain or discomfort at the latch and told this is normal! Which is NOT at all! Pain can mean a range of things: from a shallow latch, which any trained Lactation consultant can help remedy; to a more serious medical condition such as baby's oral structure or physical differences, short chins, tongue-tie, assymetry. A good supportive Lactation Consultant gives moms in pain alternatives to preserve milk supply until whatever is causing the problem to be fixed or allow baby to grow enough to overcome his or her challenge with the latch.
The lactation field and its professionals are still figuring out how they can support all moms. Unfortunately, because we think breastfeeding is a choice rather than a birth right, we are not spending the resources to achieve this fast enough. Amy, thank you for sharing with me your story. I will hope as we become more knowledgeable, our children and grandchildren will be given a different message and ensure their success with breastfeeding!
Thanks for your kind words. Unfortunately all of my kids were perfect. Perfect latch. Great milk supply. It was all me :(
DeleteI agree that we need to consider breastfeeding a birth right! That is such a great way to put it and much different than a choice. As with most things in society, we swing in one direction and then will work on swinging back the other way. So our children should hopefully be in the swinging back.
Asalas & Amy, I have really only thought of breast feeding as a mother's choice. Thank you both for sharing. Sometimes it is easy to miss the "obvious" in that conditions could be a factor or mother's health. I guess some of this knowledge may also come with experience. Sometimes I think we take choice for granted...till choice is no longer an option.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your great post. I visited the Wiessinger article that you posted on my blog and used in your posting. You successfully helped my procrastinate the rest of my school work today! I love the article because it doesn't just say "this is the way it is" and give you know alternative. The language we use about breastfeeding is the beginning of the social change we are all striving for.
ReplyDeleteThanks Rene! I love that article and share it any time I can. I do hope you were able to finish school work today... I am myself have been struggling to finish for the week :(
DeleteI can empathize with both aspects of the breastfeeding issue. Like I stated in my blog, I was never a big proponent of breastfeeding before I had my daughter. I nursed her as best I could, however, I could only produce enough milk for each feeding. I was always sort of jealous that I couldn't have extra or stockpile of milk for her. For example, her first milk that she was able to take was 1 ml. A drop basically was what she received at first. By the time she left the hospital at 30 days old, she was up to 35 ml of milk. That was all I could produce regardless of the amount of time I pumped.
ReplyDeleteThanks Angie for sharing!