There is real medical reasons not to breastfeed, as we will see. Out of these specific causes, if a woman wishes to breastfeed she should receive all the real and proven information to achieve it, just as a woman who chooses not to breastfeed also needs information on artificial breastfeeding.
Many women have had to give up breastfeeding, which they wanted, for supposedly medical reasons, that however, the World Health Organization It does not include among those that indicate that they must necessarily lead to the suspension of breastfeeding or to the introduction of breastfeeding supplements.
There are mothers who are prescribed medications that really have a risk for the infant, but a lower risk than the introduction of artificial breastfeeding and which could also be perfectly replaced by others with lower risk. For a dental treatment or a surgical intervention it is not necessary to wean.
To increase the intake of milk in a baby, we don't have to wean, even partially, at least as the first alternative. It is not a reason to introduce bottles that a baby is not in the 80th percentile or that falls below the percentile. That does not indicate that you need artificial milk, because a baby from the 15th percentile is as healthy as the 80's. If there are no worrisome signs in your health or a clear weight loss, breastfeeding should be the last option, at least since the medical point of view. There may be additional reasons that make a mother opt for supplements.
AdvertisingBut in this topic we are going to deal with the medical causes for which the World Health Organization advise against or ask for caution in breastfeeding.
Let's not forget that breast milk production can be increased and in fact, in most cases it goes back to breastfeeding on demand and the application of simple learning techniques. Even if at any particular time it is necessary to supplement, it can be done with extracted milk and not with substitute. To treat a principle of mastitis should not be weaned, but take care that the chest empties well, medically treat with the appropriate antibiotic if necessary and take some preventive measures.
But, as I pointed out, there are some serious medical problems that discourage breastfeeding or that make it happen under control. Do we know them well?
The World Health Organization notes that consequences of not breastfeeding they involve increasing the health risks of the mother and the child. Some of the negative consequences of artificial breastfeeding are fully demonstrated, others, which I do not mention as WHO does not yet do so, are under study and there is increasing evidence that breastfeeding protects from a huge number of disorders of health.
Non-breastfed babies suffer more diarrhea, meningitis, otitis, pneumonia and urinary infections. Later they will have more chances of developing Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, diabetes, obesity, overweight and high blood pressure. Moms will suffer higher rates of ovarian cancer, breast cancer before menopause and hemorrhages after childbirth.
Breast milk is a product that has compounds impossible to reproduce in a laboratory, living cells that nature has made us produce to protect our babies. That no industrial product can reproduce.
Despite the clear benefits of breast milk there are cases in which it is due, for medical reasons, totally stop breastfeeding, and others in which it must be complemented or monitored. Then we will see them.
Baby diseases:
There are some exceptional cases in which the baby cannot receive any type of milk, but formulas that do not contain certain compounds. These diseases are classical galactosemia and urine disease in maple syrup. Even in the case of phenylketonuria, breastfeeding with a special formula can be supplemented with small amounts of breast milk under strict supervision.
The galactosemia It is an inherited enzymatic disease, transmitted as an autosomal recessive trait and whose occurrence is approximately 1 for every 60,000 births among white people, while the rate is different for other groups.
People with galactosemia are unable to completely break down simple galactose sugar, which makes up half of the lactose, the sugar found in milk. Lactose is a disaccharide (di means 2 and saccharide means sugar) because it is composed of two sugars, galactose and glucose, bound together.
If a baby with galactosemia is given milk, galactose derivatives accumulate in the baby's system, causing damage to the liver, brain, kidneys and eyes. After drinking milk for a few days, a newborn with galactosemia will refuse to eat and develop jaundice, vomiting, lethargy, irritability and seizures. Also, liver enlargement will occur and sugar may be low. Continuous feeding with dairy products leads to liver cirrhosis, cataract formation in the eye (which can cause partial blindness) and mental retardation.
The disease of the urine smelling of maple syrup (MSUD) is caused by a genetic abnormality. People with this condition cannot metabolize branched chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, which leads to an accumulation of these chemicals in the blood.
In its most severe form, this disease can damage the brain during times of physical stress (such as infection, fever or not eating food for a long time). This disease also occurs intermittently or mildly. Even in its mildest form, infections can cause mental retardation and high levels of leucine.
The phenylketonuria It is a hereditary disease, which means that it is transmitted from parents to children. Both parents must transmit the defective gene for the baby to suffer from the disease, which is called an autosomal recessive trait. Babies with phenylketonuria lack an enzyme called phenylalanine hydroxylase, necessary to break down an essential amino acid, called phenylalanine, found in foods that contain protein.
Without the enzyme, levels of phenylalanine and two closely related substances accumulate in the body. These substances are harmful to the central nervous system and cause brain damage. Phenylketonuria is a disease that can be treated. The treatment includes an extremely low phenylalanine diet, especially when the child is growing up. Babies should drink a milk with an extremely low phenylalanine content and balanced with respect to the remaining essential amino acids.
Other babies, although they must continue to be fed primarily with breast milk, may need supplements in a controlled way and for a certain time. These are very low weight babies (below 1500 grams) and those born before the 32nd week of gestation. The supplement should also be used in those children born preterm, with low weight for their gestational age and in those who have, due to the mother having diabetes or due to hypoxia in childbirth, problems in the assimilation of sugars, which is determined when the Blood glycemia does not respond correctly to feeding with exclusive breastfeeding.
He use of supplements, in the other cases, it should only be introduced, for medical reasons, when it is confirmed that breast milk is not sufficient food once thoroughly studied each case and using techniques that help trace a production before: breastfeeding on demand, observation of the posture and development of the tits, insistence on breastfeeding and breast compression and support of specialized groups.
In babies, you have to pay close attention to weight loss and signs of dehydration or poor activity, even if they are mild symptoms, because in those cases you have to act directly. In principle, a decrease in the percentile, while there is growth and the baby is active and wet diapers is not a problem that requires the introduction of substitutes immediately. In these cases, going to a pediatrician with extensive knowledge about breastfeeding and a certified lactation consultant can be very useful.
In the next topic I will analyze the Maternal health medical reasons that may contraindicate breastfeeding.
