A new study published online in the journal Pediatrics suggests that breast-feeding for the first six months of life for most babies would prevent more than 900 infant deaths and save more than $13 billion dollars annually. How can such a small life choice make such a big difference?
Breast milk is not only cheaper and more environmentally sustainable than packaged formulas, it is also a big part of how newborns develop their bodies in order to grow into healthy adults. Breast milk contains antibodies, which help babies stave off infections. It also affects insulin levels in baby’s blood, which could reduce breast-fed babies’ risk of developing diabetes and obesity. With only 12% of mothers in the United States following government recommended guidelines that babies be given breast milk exclusively for the first six months of life, the lead author of the new study, Dr. Melissa Bartick of Harvard Medical School, thinks that breast feeding is a public health issue.
43% of mothers in the U.S. do at least some breast feeding in the first six months, but many hospitals offer newborns formula even when mothers are planning to breast feed. Doctors would like to see the number of mothers breast feeding their children for six months closer to 90%, though it’s clear that breast feeding is difficult for many working mothers. Hopefully that will change soon, as the new health care laws require large employers to provide private places for working mom’s to pump breast milk. Also, a new provision that went into affect April 1st will start evaluating hospitals on their efforts to make sure babies are successfully breast feeding before they’re sent home as part of the hospital accreditation process.
