Breastfeeding: ask questions and check tips and reports from mothers

Breast milk is considered the most complete food for the baby, in addition to strengthening the bond between mother and child. Below, you can learn about all the benefits of breastfeeding, clarify your main doubts and follow reports from mothers on the subject, in addition to the necessary care with feeding and storing milk. It is worth checking!

Benefits of breastfeeding

Most people have heard about the importance of breastfeeding. But in practice, many still have doubts about the matter. To give you an idea, it is estimated that it can prevent 13% of deaths in children under 5 years of age from preventable causes worldwide.

“Breastfeeding is considered the strategy with the greatest impact in reducing infant mortality. In Brazil, in 14 municipalities in the state of São Paulo, the impact was on average 9.3% in a survey carried out in 2003”, observes Fábia Queiroga Oliveira, pediatrician and supervisor of the Milk Bank at Hospital Santa Lúcia.

In addition, breastfeeding, more than a means of feeding, is the first physical contact between mother and child, and also one of the main ways to strengthen this important family and love bond in the first months of the baby’s life. Discover the main benefits of breastfeeding:

1. Ideal milk

“Just as all species of mammals produce the ideal milk for the development of their young, the human species is no different: it produces the ideal milk for the baby”, highlights Fábia.

“Human milk is composed of balanced nutrients, ideal for the consumption and development of the baby from the first hour after birth. The calories, amount of lipids, proteins, and lactose are adapted in the best possible way to each stage of the child’s development”, he adds.

2. Protection against disease

Fábia explains that human milk has numerous components of the immune system, which makes it extremely important in preventing infections and allergies. “IgA, Igm, IgG, macrophages, T lymphocytes are some of these protective factors. We can say that breast milk is the first vaccine that the child receives to protect him from numerous diseases,” she says.

“Today, the importance of breastfeeding in the prevention of chronic diseases, such as high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes, is well known”, adds the doctor.

3. Development of intestinal flora

“The natural probiotics that exist in human milk will help in the perfect development of the newborn’s intestinal flora”, highlights Fábia. “Because of its nutritional and defense importance, breast milk is so important in reducing infant mortality”, explains the doctor.

4. Strengthening the mother-baby bond

Another great importance of breastfeeding, according to Fábia, is the strengthening of the mother-child bond, which begins as soon as the child is born and is placed skin-to-skin with the mother.

5. Benefits for the mother

“For the mother, breastfeeding within the first hour postpartum helps the uterus to contract and reduce postpartum bleeding. Mothers who breastfeed also have a lower risk of getting breast cancer”, highlights Fábia.

Stages of breastfeeding

Did you know that breast milk changes composition, color and consistency during the breastfeeding period? Know the variations that occur:

• First phase: “called colostrum, in the first four to five days, it is a more fluid milk, rich in water, proteins and defense cells”, explains Fábia.
• Second phase: it is called transition milk. It has a higher volume per feed compared to colostrum. It is the phase in which the milk undergoes gradual nutritional changes between the characteristics of colostrum and mature milk. For example, there is a decrease in protein levels and an increase in fats and carbohydrates.
• Third stage: the milk is called mature. This phase, according to Fábia, starts around the 10th day. “Milk already has more fat in relation to colostrum and, therefore, will give a greater feeling of satiety and increase the speed of weight gain”, says the doctor.

“Each phase is programmed for the child’s ability to digest and for the baby’s need for the moment”, explains Fábia. “The WHO recommends that children should be exclusively breastfed at their mothers’ breasts until the sixth month, when complementary feeding should be introduced and complemented breastfeeding maintained until two years of age”, emphasizes the doctor.

Times, frequency and quantity of milk: what is ideal?

Fábia explains that the child must be breastfed on demand, that is, without time restrictions. “And no introduction of waters, teas, juices or milk formulas, unless prescribed by the doctor for some specific reason,” he says. “In general, a baby breastfeeds, on average, 8 to 12 times a day. It tends to take longer intervals as it grows”, highlights the doctor.

“Colostrum, for example, has a very fast digestibility and, therefore, normally the baby in the first week of life is breastfed at very short intervals, and also usually breastfeeds more at night – since milk production is initially higher at night. night,” he adds.

The recommendation, according to Fábia, is that the mother adapts to the child’s rhythm and tries to rest when the child sleeps, even during the day.

“The duration of the feeding should also not be stipulated. Normally the child has control, gives signs of satiety and leaves the breast. It is important that the mother has the patience to let the child empty the entire breast, and then she will get more fat – which is the component that comes out at the end of the feeding – and, thus, she will be more satisfied”, guides Fábia.

“For this reason, we also recommend that the mother does not keep changing breasts during a breastfeed with mature milk, that is, after 10 days postpartum. Most of the time, one breast satisfies the child’s hunger”, adds the doctor.

Feeding during the lactation period

It is important that the woman who is breastfeeding has a balanced diet and with regular schedules. As breastfeeding can lead to hunger, the mother should not wait too long to eat (which would make her overdo it and look for more fatty foods to promote satiety). Here are tips for healthy eating:

• A good breakfast: with cereals or whole-grain breads, low-fat cheeses and natural juices.
• Morning snack: a fruit is a good tip.
• Full lunch: with rice, potatoes or pasta, beans, vegetables and lean meat.
• Afternoon snack: you can repeat breakfast foods, for example.
• Dinner: a complete meal, such as rice, vegetables, and lean meat.
• Supper: a fruit or natural yogurt with whole grain cereal.

Some women who have the habit of drinking milk comment that babies experience colic. But, in reality, each mother should notice what, in her diet, causes discomfort in the child (in addition to the normal physiological colic, which she presents in the first three months of life).

It is also necessary to be careful with bad fats (trans and saturated) present in fried foods and industrialized foods, whole milk and derivatives and fatty red meats. It is also not good to exaggerate the consumption of caffeine (found in coffee, black tea, cola-based soft drinks, etc.). Moderation is the keyword.

“Initially, we do not recommend that you remove anything from the feed. The mother must maintain the food she is used to eating, she must also not ‘invent’ too many new things. The important thing is that you eat well, in a healthy way and that you drink a lot of liquid to produce quality milk and in good quantity”, guides Fábia.

Breast milk storage

Fábia explains that it is possible to store human milk for personal consumption or for donation. “The mother must protect her mouth and hair, using a cap and mask, wash her hands up to the elbow, massage the feeds and milk. The technique is taught by professionals who work with breastfeeding”, she highlights.

“The milk must be removed in a previously sterilized glass with a plastic lid. Put the date on the glass and store in the freezer. The validity for consumption is 15 days. If it is not used during this period, it can be donated to a human milk bank, because, if pasteurized for up to 15 days, it will be valid for 6 months and can be consumed by babies hospitalized in a neonatal ICU”, adds the doctor.

“Raw milk can only be consumed by the child itself, raw human milk (unpasteurized) is not offered to another baby, but cross-breastfeeding is also contraindicated, that is, a mother breastfeeding another child who is not her child”, emphasizes Fábia. .

8 products for collecting and storing breast milk

Below, you can find products to collect and store milk. But remember: in case of doubts about the procedure, always consult a professional you trust.

1. Bottles for collecting breast milk The BestMilk, at Submarino
2. Medela milk collection bottles, at Drogasil
3. Lillo breast milk container, in Americanas
4. Buba breast milk storage bag at Shoptime
5. Medela thermal bag with reusable ice, at Ponto Frio
6. Manual breast pump Lillo Mamy, at Droga Raia
7. G-Tech manual breast pump, at Casas Bahia
8. Multikids Baby electric breast pump, in Extra

today’s donor

Not everyone is aware, but nowadays, human milk banks regulate the function of the old “wet nurse”, since it is not allowed to distribute human milk without it being pasteurized. This ensures both the health of the donor mother and the baby. To be a donor, a woman must:

• To be breastfeeding your baby;
• Not having any disease that contraindicates breastfeeding;
• You are producing more milk than your baby needs;
• Make this donation for free;
• And, preferably, not being a smoker.

Milk collected for pasteurization must be stored in a freezer or freezer. The priority for the distribution of human milk are premature and low birth weight infants, hospitalized in Neonatal Intensive Care Units, always with a doctor’s or nutritionist’s prescription.

If the woman is interested in donating, she should contact a milk bank in her city and learn about the procedure that will surely make a difference in many lives.

Breastfeeding cup: what is it?

The breastfeeding cup is an alternative to the bottle to give the child when the mother, for some reason, cannot breastfeed: either because she is going to start work, for example, or because she will be away from home for a few hours.

The bottle, despite being the most used object to offer milk to the baby, generates some controversy, mainly because it is the most likely utensil to cause nipple confusion. In other words, the sucking that the baby does on the bottle is similar to that on the mother’s breasts, but without its benefits. And, as the bottle can offer an easier option for sucking in and out, this can cause the baby to be confused later on with the movement and force he needs to make when he’s feeding on the…