Necessity of Breastfeeding
Introduction
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), breastfeeding is ranked among the most important strategies for ensuring survival and health in infants. Nonetheless, the organization affirms that two out of three infants around the globe are improperly breastfed, which is a significant discrepancy in childhood development. Breastmilk is essential for children as its clean and comprises antibodies that boost immunity. Also, the process of breastfeeding is vital for women, as mothers who do so are at a lower risk of ovarian and breast cancers (WHO, 2020). This paper encapsulates the integral role of breastfeeding in childhood development and compares the practice to substitutes like bottle-feeding. Infants pick up essential nutrients from breastmilk, while mothers recover better from childbirth through breastfeeding. Further, it reviews several state laws on breastfeeding, highlighting what mothers from different regions are expected to fulfill.
The Nutritional Value of Breastmilk
Scientifically, breastmilk is an integral component of child development that supplies infants with necessary nutrients, enhances immunity, and promotes growth. Evidence shows that babies who breastfeed sufficiently in the initial six months of their life are at a lower risk from allergies and other childhood illnesses (Marino, 2018). Also, infants digest breastmilk faster, and it’s more beneficial for their microbiome, compared to other substitute foods. Studies also show that children who breastfeed exclusively have a lower chance of developing autism. The notion is based on the fact that an infant can develop ASD when their brain neurons are unmyelinated. On the other hand, demyelination could stem form a low supply of IGF hormones due to genetic or environmental factors. Breastmilk contains IGF hormones, and could thus replenish the insufficient supply, which consequently curbs the onset of ASD.
Breastfeeding vs. Bottle-feeding
The choice of whether to breastfeed or bottle-feed an infant is a personal dilemma for parents around the globe. Both approaches have their pros and cons, which have made the issue a controversy and a center of debates. According to WHO, breastfeeding is the ideal method for supplying nutrients to infants. Also, they should be exclusively fed on breastmilk for a full year before the introduction of other foods. Among the advantages of breastmilk is that it’s readily available for the child, no prep work, and breastfeeding is integral for building mother-child emotional bonds. Breast milk also strengthens the child’s immunity and prevents illnesses like ADS, allergies, asthma, and bacterial infections, to name a few.
Likewise, mothers benefit from the process through means like burning calories, bonding with their offspring, and reducing risk to ovarian and breast cancers. Nonetheless, breastfeeding comes with several hurdles that make some parents opt for bottle-feeding. One, the process could extremely uncomfortable for some individuals, mainly new mothers, and during the first few weeks. Second, when breastfeeding, there is no strategy of measuring how much the baby is taking, so they might be overfed or underfed inadvertently. Third, breastfeeding mothers need to carefully control the intake of various products like medication or alcohol, which could utterly affect their lifestyle. The reason is that some harmful components can be passed to infants through breastmilk. Fourth, and most importantly, babies need to feed regularly during the day, and it can be challenging to maintain the schedule when the mother is working. Indeed, the last factor prevents most women from fulfilling the recommendation of a one-year of exclusive breastfeeding due to socioeconomic factors like employment and poverty.
Bottle-feeding can include either breastmilk or formula, which is fed through a feeding bottle. If the mother uses breastmilk, the infant will take up all the necessary nutrients, without depending on the mother’s body. On the other hand, despite being approved by the FDA, the resources offered by breastmilk. The pros of bottle-feeding include; increased mothers’ flexibility, employing surrogate feeders, and regulating food quantities. Bottle-feeding also has several cons, including inadequate protection from infections, it could cause constipation, and some feeding equipment is expensive to purchase and maintain (Goldman, 2016).
State Laws on Breastfeeding
In the United States, health officials and public nursing staff work towards promoting breastfeeding to enhance child health. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) are among the federal interventions that mandate employers to authorize reasonable breastfeeding breaks to employees for one year after childbirth. Employees should also not compensate employers for time spent on the activity, and the latter should also provide areas for expressing breastmilk. Likewise, the Fairness for Breastfeeding Act of 2019, requires various public buildings to allocate designated areas for women to express milk, other than bathrooms.
At the state level, all jurisdictions in the U.S. soil have specific laws that allow mothers to express milk in public or private spaces. Also, a significant portion of states frees breastfeeding from public indecency, while others have specific regulations for expressing milk in the workplace. Also, several states have distinct laws for breastfeeding in public and private locations. For example, malls and public spaces in Puerto Rico have to provide designated zones for expressing milk and diaper change, that aren’t washrooms. New Jersey, on the other hand, exempts items like breast pumps and other breastfeeding items from sales tax (NCSL, 2020).
Conclusion
Indeed, breastmilk is second to none in the provision of nutrients for growing infants. However, several reasons make some mothers opt for bottle-feeding. Both methods their pros and cons, but if possible, parents should implement breastfeeding to leverage all the health benefits. Employers and society should also take a step to learn the applicable regulations on breastfeeding in various situations and jurisdictions, for the wellbeing of mothers and infants.
References
Goldman, R. (2016, February 17). Breast-Feeding vs. Bottle-Feeding: The Pros and Cons. Retrieved from Healthline: https://www.healthline.com/health/parenting/breastfeeding-pros-and-cons
Marino, S. (2018, April 19). The Special Ed Epidemic: What the Science Says on Breast Feeding. Retrieved from Focus for Health: https://www.focusforhealth.org/part-4-special-ed-epidemic-science-says-breast-feeding/
NCSL. (2020, September 7). Breastfeeding State Laws. Retrieved from National Conference of State Legislatures: https://www.ncsl.org/research/health/breastfeeding-state-laws.aspx
WHO. (2020). Breastfeeding. Retrieved from World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/health-topics/breastfeeding#tab=tab_1