Breastfeeding: the 10 most common consultations after giving birth
The WHO and the Spanish Association of Pediatrics AEP, among other agents, recommend the exclusive breastfeeding during the 6 first months of life and later, together with other foods, up to 2 years or more. However, although most babies start breastfeeding at birth, only 30% keep it exclusively at 6 months in our country.
The 10 most common consultations of mothers after giving birth
Most new mothers often have many doubts to establish breastfeeding and there are many rumors that circulate in our society about this ancestral practice that has so many health benefits for both the baby and the mother.
For this reason, we asked the pediatrician Miryam Triana, responsible for the Medical Consultation of Breastfeeding Vithas Nisa Pardo de Aravaca Hospital, about the main concerns that haunt mothers about breastfeeding as soon as they give birth to their baby . This pediatrician remembers that Breastfeeding It provides numerous benefits for both the child and the mother, and points out and demystifies ten points of habitual consultation among mothers who have just given birth.
1. Chest pain. Breastfeeding should not hurt. The first days may bother you because of the hypersensitivity of the nipple, but if breastfeeding hurts, it is that the attachment of the baby is not adequate.
2. You have to eat for two. Lactating mothers invest about 700 kcal in producing milk. Of these, 500kcal are obtained from milk and the rest of the deposits generated during pregnancy. During lactation, we must make a healthy and varied diet, it is not necessary to eat for two.
3. Not all milks feed the same. Breast milk is the best food for all babies. With a few exceptions (due to extreme malnutrition or mother's disease) all the milks have a very similar composition. Each mother produces the best milk for her baby.
4. Colostrum does not work, wait until the milk rises. In some cultures it is thought that colostrum, the milk of the first hours / days, is impure and should not be taken by the baby. Nothing is further from reality; Colostrum is very rich in immunoglobulins and other defensive cells, creating immediate protection for the newborn. In addition, it is easily digested and prepares the baby's intestine.
5. There are foods that should not be taken while breastfeeding. Some foods that mothers ingest give more flavor to breast milk than others (for example, garlic or asparagus) but it does not mean that they can not take them; The nursing mother should eat a varied and healthy diet. Also, you can take foods that generate gases (eg legumes), because the gas does not pass through the milk.
6. It is advisable to alternate the breasts every 20 minutes. Breastfeeding is on demand, when the baby wants and for as long as he wants. Until it is released, we should not change our chests. The first part of the blowjob is more watery and richer in carbohydrates and the final part, richer in fat; It is convenient to let the baby empty his chest well. Only with one breast are we able to breastfeed (as in the case of twins or breast surgery).
7. Mothers with small breasts will have little milk. Unless we suffer from breast hypoplasia, breast size is not an indicator of the amount of milk we will be able to produce. Each mother has the best breast for her baby.
8. During breastfeeding you have to drink lots of water and lots of milk. During lactation we must follow a healthy and varied diet. We should not increase our fluid intake, we should drink when we are thirsty.
9. As of the year, breast milk no longer feeds. Breast milk remains the ideal food also from the year. The fat content of breast milk is higher after 12 months.
10. It is convenient to express the milk to see how much the baby takes. The baby has a much more powerful suction than the breast pump, so what we extract does not reflect what the baby is taking. The best indicator that a baby is eating well is weight gain.
Miryam Triana. Pediatrician and head of the Medical Consultation of Breastfeeding Vithas Nisa Pardo de Aravaca Hospital.
