Other content tagged: breastfeeding
Born into a humanitarian emergency: How to improve essential newborn care in natural disaster and war zones
Essential Newborn Care (ENC) defines minimum standards for the care of infants that must be applied immediately after birth and in the first weeks of life. ENC can be applied in any situation, as it significantly prevents neonatal deaths. However, the adaption to humanitarian disaster settings remains a challenge. Wars, refugee crises, and natural disaster affect millions of people around the world and do not spare infants born into these adverse environments.…
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The power of developmental care – exploring the mechanisms to shorten Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) hospitalisation
Developmental care is an approach to improve the care of infants hospitalised in a NICU. It includes measures to adapt the NICU environment to be more patient-friendly, foster parental involvement in care, increase oral immune therapy and exclusive breastfeeding. A new study conducted in 14 hospitals in China and including more than 1,300 low birth weight infants highlights the promising outcomes of developmental care. Most significantly, the length of hospitalisation was markedly shorter…
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Research priorities for care of preterm or low birth-weight infants: Health policy
The outcomes of preterm birth remain concerning in many countries: Approximately 11% of infants worldwide are born preterm, and preterm birth complications are still the leading cause of death among children under five years of age. This is why, in 2020 the WHO convened a Guideline Development Group (GDG) to examine evidence and formulate recommendations for the care of preterm or low birth-weight (LBW) infants. The 25 new WHO recommendations confirm the pivotal…
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Beneficial influence of breastfeeding on Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)-associated acute lower respiratory infections in children – a systematic literature review
The Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) poses a significant risk of serious infection in children worldwide, in particular in children in low-income and middle-income countries. However, previous studies indicated that breastfeeding could be a protective factor as it strengthens the immune system and protects against other serious childhood infections. A current systematic review summarises the available evidence on breastfeeding and its effects on acute lower respiratory infections which are associated with RSV. Breastfeeding is officially…
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Experiences on delivery and breastfeeding practices in Beijing, China during Covid-19
A Chinese study compared women’s experiences who delivered before and during the lockdown regarding feeding practices and childbearing. Interestingly, breastfeeding was seemingly positively influenced by the lockdown, the study from Beijing shows. The COVID-19 pandemic had a tremendous impact on all aspects of life, including pregnant and delivering women and their families. Despite the severity of the virus, the WHO recommended breastfeeding during the pandemic, when taking suitable precautions, as human milk is the optimal…
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The culture of breastfeeding and human milk donation before and after the pandemic: best practice example from Brazil
Breastfeeding is potentially one of the top nutrition interventions that can reduce the mortality of children under 5 years of age. For preterm infants, breastfeeding is also an important strategy to warrant health and quality of life, as well as bonding, and although it can be a more difficult process, it is possible and should be encouraged, protected, promoted, and supported by everyone: healthcare professionals and families. For those preemies whose mothers cannot provide breastmilk, the second-best option of nutrition…
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Breastfeeding attitudes in the UK
A study conducted in the UK explored the relationship between a mother’s attitude toward breastfeeding, her personality traits, and her parenting style. After analysing a large sample of mothers, the “high nurturance” parenting style was linked to a mother’s tendency of initiating breastfeeding. Furthermore, the personality did not relate with her breastfeeding attitude, but older mothers tended to feel more positively towards breastfeeding than younger ones. These findings could be relevant for improving future…
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Maintaining human milk bank services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic
Human Milk Bank (HMB) services have been impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. To better understand the impact, a Virtual Communication Network (VCN) was formed to collect data and experiences from HMBs across 35 countries. Every year approx. 800,000 infants receive donor human milk (DHM) worldwide. However, seven pandemic-related vulnerabilities to HMB service provision were identified. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends donor human milk from milk banks (HMB) as the next best…
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Prevention of Coronavirus transmission from mothers to newborns while breastfeeding and engaging in skin-to-skin contact
So far, there is insufficient knowledge about COVID-19 spreading to newborns from their mothers who tested positive for the virus at the time of the birth. A new study suggests that hygiene precautions can protect neonates from contracting the virus during breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact with the mother. Salvatore and colleagues conducted a study with women who tested positive for COVID-19 at the time of the birth of their child. In total, 82 infants born at three New York hospitals…
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The importance of the right fatty acids in early nutrition
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA) are so-called long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) found in breastmilk. They play important roles in the growth and development of babies, especially in brain development and function. To resemble the composition of breastmilk, infant formula has been supplemented with these two fatty acids for many years as the benefits of supplementing DHA together with ARA in infant formula and follow-on formula have been scientifically proven. Yet, a…
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