Breastfeeding – Benefits for Baby and Mom

Intro: We're talking wellness at MemorialCare Health System. It's time for Weekly Dose of Wellness. Here's Deborah Howell.

Deborah Howell (Host): Hello everybody. Welcome to our program. You're listening to Weekly Dose of Wellness brought to you by MemorialCare Health System. I am Deborah Howell. Today our guest is Terri Nikoletich, RN and Program Director for Perinatal Education and Lactation Support Services at Miller Children's and Women's Hospital in Long Beach. Today we're going to be talking a little bit to Nurse Nikoletich about the benefits of breastfeeding for baby and for mom. Welcome, Nurse Nikoletich.

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Good morning.

Deborah Howell (Host): Would you rather I call you Terri?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: I would prefer that, thank you.

Deborah Howell (Host): Easier for me too.

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Okay.

Deborah Howell (Host): All right, Terri, let's get right into it. What benefits do breastfeeding have for babies?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Well, there is many benefits for babies. Probably the primary that we think of first is just that extra bonding and attachment that happens when moms hold their baby so close as they provide breast milk. But we also want our moms to understand that breast milk is unique in that it is species-specific. Human babies were meant to receive human milk. And it's been shown that when that occurs, it provides additional protection to the baby. They tend to become sick less often, they tend to develop less common respiratory infections, ear infections, diarrhea. Common instances that you see happen in a lot of young children's lives. We also see that in the future these children tend to have less instances of obesity, asthma, it also seems to reduce the risk of childhood cancers and also decreases the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. We don't actually know what causes Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but we do know what seems to reduce the risk and breastfeeding is one of those things.

Deborah Howell (Host): That's just incredible. I can't imagine how they figured that out, but I'm sure they did.

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Well there's lots of studies that they've done. I like to tell moms it's almost like giving that baby your first, the first immunization, and it doesn't hurt.

Deborah Howell (Host): Not much anyway. So does breastfeeding benefit the moms as well as the babies?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Absolutely. In the immediate period of time after delivery, the sucking at the breast stimulates oxytocin to be released and that helps her uterus contract down even better and thereby it decreases the amount of bleeding that might occur post-delivery. We also see that moms that are breastfeeding tend to experience lower rates of postpartum depression. And then in the future we see that when women have breastfed, and the longer that they breastfeed for, they seem to have a lower risk of developing uterine, breast, or ovarian cancer. And probably the best benefit is the fact that it's extremely convenient and it's free.

Deborah Howell (Host): Yeah, there you go. As long as you can feed yourself, you can feed your kid for free.

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Yes.

Deborah Howell (Host): Now, I have a question. Before I ask this next question, you said the longer the benefit. Now there is a point where it gets a bit ridiculous if the kid is four years old and...

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Well, you know, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that women breastfeed their babies for at least one year. The first six months being exclusive, meaning that's the only milk that baby's going to receive, that's the only fluid that baby's going to receive. And then as they add solids, they still continue to provide some breast milk feedings. But the World Health Organization, they actually recommend that women breastfeed for two years. And of course the World Health Organization, they're looking at our whole world, all the countries, they see in their studies of course that in our countries where we have very high infant mortality and morbidity rates, the longer those babies are on the breast, the more chance they have of surviving. The healthier the moms are, the healthier the babies are. But currently our recommendation in our country is at least one year. We're excited when we just get a mom to a month, two months, six months, because many of our moms go back to work shortly after work and that has its own little challenges.

Deborah Howell (Host): Of course. Do you have any tips for those new moms trying to breastfeed and get everything done in a day?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Well actually initially it may feel to a mom like that's all she's doing is feeding her baby, because breast milk is that perfect size of protein for human babies, they digest it relatively quickly and they do tend to need to nurse more often than if you were to give them a bottle of formula for example. However, as time goes on, those feedings do stretch because they become better at it, their tummies have a capacity to grow, they're able to hold more milk and they do eventually stretch out their feedings just like any other baby does. However, they'll cluster feed periodically where they want to nurse a lot more often and then maybe the next day they go back to those three to four hour feedings. So it's important for a mom to just learn as much as she can about what breastfeeding experiences are like. Thank goodness there's so many more resources for young moms, much more so than there was when I breastfed my babies, so it's important for her to relax. Remember that it's a rare instance that our bodies ever let us down. We were created to have this ability to breastfeed our babies. The milk we're providing is species-specific, which means it's exactly what our babies need to be healthy, and there absolutely is no substitute that measures up to what breast milk provides. The next thing she needs to do is build her support system. It's important for new moms to hang out with other new moms, especially those that are also breastfeeding because you can support, you can encourage each other, you can share information and education. So I always, when I have the opportunity to talk to a new mom, I always ask them who are they talking to? Who are they spending some time with? It's so important for her to have that place to go with her baby to just relax once in a while. So you can look out in your community for things like support groups that are offered through your La Leche leagues, your parks and recreation. And I think it's always better when moms kind of look for those things before they actually need them because that's just all that preparatory work that really can help you feel supported in the decisions that you make and helps you be a better parent, better mama.

Deborah Howell (Host): Everything, if you get in there early and you get a little team of girls and you have them in your circle, because everything is new when you first have a baby, and so at least if that's already in place that's something that's not new, that's a place of comfort you can go to.

Terri Nikoletich, RN: Right. It really does take a village to really help. Our families need to be nurtured and as nurses when they're in the hospital with us we have that unique opportunity to mother the mother. And the way that we mother the mother, the way we respect her decisions, the way we care for her in a culturally appropriate manner, all of that mothering, it's modeling to her how she should mother her children and mother her baby. So we have this narrow window of time that's just those first few days to try to ensure that our moms get off to the best start possible.

Deborah Howell (Host): I can't say enough for what you RNs do in that situation. Not to mention every other situation, but it's such a crucial time for a new mommy. Now we touched on this earlier. Many women do complain that breastfeeding hurts a little bit, should it?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: It really shouldn't hurt. Most moms, it's a new experience, they may have a sensation of tugging or pulling, but it really should not be painful. When it is painful, we want to know because it usually is a positional issue. It could be that the baby's not latching correctly. Remember breastfeeding isn't something that a lot of women come to that say oh I've done this, I know it's a piece of cake. Most of the time it's like how do I do this? How does the baby know to do this? We have, the babies figure it out very quickly and so you need to just make sure that that baby is in a good position, tummy to tummy, that the baby's latch is appropriate because when a baby is breastfeeding with an inappropriate latch or there's a positional issue, it can absolutely hurt. And it lets us know we need to do something quickly because we don't want any damage to occur and lastly we don't want mom to give up on breastfeeding because it hurts because it really shouldn't hurt. So we are so fortunate here at Miller Children's and Women's Hospital in that we have all of our nurses in our labor and delivery unit as well as our postpartum unit have all been educated on how to help assist a woman in breastfeeding. And then in addition to that, they also know when they need a little bit more assistance and that's when our lactation consultants come in and can come in with those moms that are really having some challenges and assist them.

Deborah Howell (Host): We have 30 seconds left so for moms or moms-to-be that may be listening, where should they call for more information about lactation services?

Terri Nikoletich, RN: They can call 562-933-2744. And that phone is answered by Carrie who runs our Essentials Breastfeeding Supply store. She's also a certified lactation educator, so she really knows how to best direct the mom. Does she need an appointment at our outpatient lactation clinic because maybe this mom has already gone home? Is the mom looking for some type of supportive supplies? Maybe pumps, maybe breast pads. We carry quite an array of items that can help support a breastfeeding mom. And then we do have our clinic three days a week.

Deborah Howell (Host): Good, okay, excellent. Well we're going to have you back because we have a lot more to cover, but for the moment we want to thank you for being on the program today, Terri, for spending some time with us, talking about breastfeeding and how very important it is for both mommy and baby. It's been great to have you on the program today. To listen to the podcast or for more information, please visit memorialcare.org. That's memorialcare.org. I'm Deborah Howell. Join us again next time as we explore another Weekly Dose of Wellness, brought to you by MemorialCare Health System. Have a fantastic day.