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A mere 4% of hospitals in America provide mothers with the fullrange of support they need to be able to breastfeed, says a new Vital Signs report issued by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control andPrevention). The authors stressed that providing full hospitalsupport to mothers and their newborns is a crucial part ofimproving children's health. Breastfeeding has many benefits,including reducing a baby's chances of becoming obese later on inlife. The USA has one of the highest childhood obesity rates in the world. CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. said: "Hospitals play a vital role in supporting a mother to be able tobreastfeed. Those first few hours and days that a mom and her babyspend learning to breastfeed are critical. Hospitals need to bettersupport breastfeeding, as this is one of the most important thingsa mother can do for her newborn. Breastfeeding helps babies grow uphealthy and reduces health care costs." The Vital Signs report, which gathered data from the National Survey of MaternityPractices in Infant Nutrition and Care, known as mPINC (a CDCdatabase), found that only 1 in every 7 US hospitals has a written,model breastfeeding policy. The authors also found that almost 4 in every 5 US hospitals givehealthy breastfed newborns formula milk - something that is notmedically necessary. Such practices undermine mother and baby'schances of continuing breastfeeding at home. Rooming-in is only practiced by one-third of hospitals in America.A practice which helps mothers and infants learn how to breastfeed,by letting them try lots of times. Three-quarters of hospitals do not provide mother and baby withsupport after they have left the hospital. Examples include afollow-up visit, a phone call, referrals to lactation consultantsand other vital support systems that exist in their localcommunity. The mPINC survey compares US hospitals with WHO/UNICEF Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding guidelines. The authors stress that the guidelines contain proven hospital practices that improvebreastfeeding rates by supporting the mother, something vital forpublic health and endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The guidelines include the following recommendations: Unless there is a medical need, do not give infants drink or foodother than breast milk. Mothers should be encouraged to room in 24 hours per day with theirbabies Mothers should be put in touch with support groups and other localresources so that their breastfeeding may continue successfullyafter they has left the hospital A hospital that has made a concerted effort to support mothers tobegin and continue breastfeeding by supporting and adhering to theTen Steps to Successful Breastfeeding can be designated as Baby-Friendly . Ursula Bauer, Ph.D., M.P.H., director of CDC's National Center forChronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, said: "In the United States most women want to breastfeed, and most womenstart. But without hospital support many women have a hard timecontinuing to breastfeed, and they stop early. It is critical thathospitals take action to fully support breastfeeding mothers andbabies so they can continue to breastfeed long after their hospitalstay." According to the CDC: Poor breastfeeding rates add $2.2 billion to annual medical costsin America A baby who stops breastfeeding early has a higher risk of becomingobese, developing diabetes one day, and suffering respiratory and ear infections A baby who stops breastfeeding early is likely to require moredoctor visits, prescriptions and hospitalizations Hospitals could do the following to improve breastfeeding rates:Implement the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, partner withBaby-Friendly hospital and learn how to improve the service, usethe mPINC survey data to decide which maternity care practices needimproving, and stop giving away formula samples to breastfeedingmothers. "Hospital Support for Breastfeeding - Preventing obesity begins inhospitals" Written by Christian Nordqvist Copyright: Medical News Today Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today Additional References Citations. I am an expert from personalized-lapelpins.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Custom Hang Tags , China Metal Pin Badges, Custom Medals,and more.
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