Yes, every mom knows that breastfeeding is best. Study shows that babies who breastfeed are smarter, healthier and happier. According to the studies conducted, mothers are recommended to breast feed their babies for six months. New vision reported that around 37% of mothers in Uganda do not breastfeed their babies exclusively for six months.
Varying reasons are given by different mothers as to why they don’t breastfeed their babies:
Demand at work: With the little usual three months maternity leave given by most work places, mothers sometimes have no choice but go back to work after being with their babies for only a few months. This leaves mothers to leave babies home to be fed on baby formula or some of them resort to breast pumping their milk and storing it in refrigerators.
Inadequate lactation: Some mothers fail to breastfeed because they lack milk in their breasts. For most working mothers, when they resume work they have no time to eat or breastfeed. This makes their bodies to stop producing enough milk to feed their babies since their bodies have started to adjust to the routine.
Biting babies: Some mothers have stopped breast feeding their babies due to the fact that these babies have started to bite. Imagine placing your beautiful baby on the breast and she/he just bites you. The older they get the more tricks these babies bring. One of the mothers confessed that “when my baby turned 4months, he started biting my nipples. He did this three times which made me put him on baby formula since my breasts had wounds” Says Maurine.
Health conditions: Some mothers have been advised by doctors not to breast feed due to some health conditions like if a mother is HIV positive. The world health organization (WHO) recommends that when HIV positive mother breastfeed, they should receive ARVs and follow WHO guidelines for infant feeding. Other diseases that stop mothers range from tuberculosis, cancer and malaria.
Sagging breasts: Most women believe that breastfeeding makes their breasts sag. Just like today’s generation wants to stay top notch they don’t want to have bad boobs. This makes them hate to breast their little babies. They also complain that when their breasts are breastfeeding their men don’t want to be with them which affects their love making.
Lifestyle: Some mothers don’t want to breast feed because it will change their lifestyle. Bottle feeding leaves new mothers without an option to stay on their diets, food and medications they use. So in order to stay fit or go back to their workout routines they stop breastfeeding.
Unplanned child: Some mothers have had unplanned children, for example if one wants a baby boy and she gives birth to a girl. Some mothers will hate these babies and wish they didn’t give birth to them. This makes them even deny them food/ breast milk.
What do we need to do?
In order to promote breastfeeding and provide good health and nutrition to the child, we need to address the work related challenges of mothers through supporting them with breastfeeding rooms at their work places where they can have breaks to go feed their babies. Or increase on mothers maternity leave to allow them more time with their babies.
Mothers should also feed well in order to increase milk production so that they produce enough milk to feed their babies whenever they need it. They should eat healthy and this means eating a balanced diet. They also should not have stress because stress decreases milk production.
Midwives and doctors should continue doing what they have been doing by continuing to push these mothers to breastfeed their babies other than paying some other person to look after their new born babies
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