LLLI Center for Breastfeeding Information
Journal Abstract of the Month for September 2006
"Better Breastfeeding, Healthier Lives: How programs and providers can help women improve breastfeeding practices"
Author: Vidya Setty, MPH
Population Reports. Series L, No. 14. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health,The INFO Project. 23 (3): March 2006.
Abstract:
The INFO Project at The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has created this Population Report to address some of the barriers to breastfeeding, particularly in developing countries. Sections of the report are devoted to contraception, which includes a detailed description about the Lactation Amenorrhea Method (LAM); the importance of community, healthcare professional, and household support for breastfeeding; and the difficult feeding decisions faced by those in developing countries who also have HIV/AIDS.
Among the suggestions put forward by the report are the creation of more Baby-Friendly hospitals; an increase in training of community members, government officials, and healthcare providers about both the benefits of breastfeeding and the tools to favor its success; mother-to-mother and/or community support that begins in the hospital and continues after discharge as well as being promoted community-wide for the some 60% of women in developing countries who do not have access to hospitals for childbirth; and consistent enforcement of the Innocenti Declaration and the WHO Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes by the governments of all countries. Supporting each suggestion are statistics that back up the positive response to it in terms of increased breastfeeding rates.
In addition to the main report, the INFO Project has created a companion document, Breastfeeding Questions Answered: A Guide for Providers. This guide answers common questions asked by those healthcare providers whose knowledge of breastfeeding may need to be augmented.
This paper is categorized by the following keywords:
Advantages
Barriers
BFHI (Breastfeeding-Friendly Hospital Initiative)
HIV/AIDS
Developing Countries
Contraception
LAM (Lactation Amenorrhea Method)
Peer Counselors
Nutrition Infant
Nutrition Maternal
WHO Code
This Population Report is available full-text for free at
http://www.infoforhealth.org/pr/l14/published/l14.pdf
http://www.infoforhealth.org/inforeports/breastfeeding/index.shtml
Additional reports and information about the INFO Project can be found at
http://www.infoforhealth.org
Additional information on breastfeeding can be found on the LLLI website at http://lalecheleague.org
Past Journal Abstracts of the Month
