Maternal and Child Health Journal

Maternal and Child Health JournalCoulibaly, Ramata, MD, MSc Seguin, Louise Zunzunegui, Maria-Victoria Gauvin, Lise (2006) cogitate Between Maternal Breast-Feeding Duration and Quebec Infants Health A Population-Based Study. Are the ca social occasion Different for Poor Children? Maternal and Child Health Journal. 10537-543. Coulibaly, et al. test bosom supply patterns for mothers based on family income and then examine the entropy for effects on childrens wellness. The results argon in-line with other studies which show that women from higher(prenominal) income groups are more than seeming to heart feed their babies and to titty feed them for long durations. Further, the study found that breast aliment regardless of income group, reduced the rate of chronic health problems in the infant children and the number of hospital visits. The benefits of breast feeding are well documented with regards to infants health, growth, immunity, and development. According to data assemb led by Healthy heap 2010, breastfeeding decreases the number of facial expressions and severity of diarrhea, respiratory infections, and ear infections. Further, breast feeding saves mothers and families the additional costs of infant formula and thus is more economical than nursing bottle feeding. Despite these advant historic periods Coulibaly et al. and other authors frequently show that execrable income households and demographics that traditionally are indicators of dishonor incomes (African Americans and commence educated women) prepare turn away rates of breast feeding than higher income families and demographic groups traditionally associated with higher incomes (white non-hispanics and college educated women). Healthy People 2010 aims to gain rates of breast feeding to 75% in the early postpartum head, 50% for the first 6 months, and 25 percent for the first year. To meet these goals, more belittleder income women allow need to breast feed their infant children. The facts uncovered by the term and also those cited by Healthy People 2010 with regard to breast feeding rates and income status are counter intuitive. On the surface it would come along that poor women and families would non be able to afford the convenience of bottle feeding and would therefore have higher rates of breastfeeding than their higher income counterparts. However, this is not the case and therefore breastfeeding rates must not be this instant related to income. Instead other variables must be restricting lower income women from breastfeeding. It is commonly believed that the benefits of breastfeeding may not be widely understood and that educational efforts would increase breastfeeding rates. This has ilkly been true and advertisements on city busses and involvement of community health defecateers and social rickers are likely largely responsible for the increase in breast feeding rates that have been documented by estimable people 2010. However to meet the goals of Healthy People 2010, I believe that more action is required to address issues that are likely holding back many mothers from breast feeding their infant children. It is my printing that one of the main impediments for mothers thinking more or less breastfeeding is their job. The data by healthy people 2010 that shows over 60% of women currently breastfeed their children during the postpartum period when they are most likely to be on maternity throw as well as the precipitous drop in breast feeding rates to 29% at 6 months and 16% at 1 year after mothers have gone back to work support this hypothesis. I also believe that lower income earning women are more hampered by their jobs then women from higher incomes. I believe this to be the case since many lower income work in service related industries as cashiers or other industries where there are limited private spaces for them to use a breast pump or refrigerate their pumped milk. Further, lower income women are more l ikely to be considered expendable employees due to their privation of work place skills. In comparison, many women work in government agency settings have access to quiet rooms with refrigerators and are working on important projects to their employers and cannot be easily replaced. Thus, to meet the goals of Healthy People 2010, health professionals need to work with governmental leaders to help them understand the richness of this issue in reducing our nations health care costs. All places of problem should be pierced to establish a quiet room where a women can use a breast pump in privacy and then store her milk until her shift is complete. Further, mothers that return to the work force must be guaranteed work brakes at appropriate intervals to the age of their infant children to maximize the milk pumped. Many employers of low income women will likely never establish a environment that is friendly to the breastfeeding mother without both(prenominal) governmental penalties for failure to comply and incentives to encourage compliance. This article prompted me to think about the data on breastfeeding versus economic level and reflect on my hold observations. As a immigrant to this country, I have many friends that at generation tried to balance raising a small infants while working a low paying jobs. I have observed their work facilities in parking garages, retail stores, etc. and now understand that they did not have proper facilities for them to operate a breast pump in privacy and store the product milk. Also, because I also have worked whatsoever of these same jobs, I know that often I was grateful to have the job and often felt intimidated to ask my manager, many time as that was what the manager wanted me to feel, for anything special. Thus, I understand how difficult it is for women fight in these jobs and trying to support their baby to ask for things not on hand(predicate) at their work place.Because of these experiences, I believe that t hat many of the restrictions to breastfeeding by low income mothers will not go away without government regulations and protections. Healthy People 2010 is right to set the goals to increase breastfeeding, but to achieve it health professionals like ourselves now need to educate our government leaders.