Breastfeeding Clinical Question Blog/Lactfacts

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The American Academy of Pediatrics published a new policy statement in December 2016 entitled Donor Human Milk for the High Risk Infant: Preparation, Safety, and Usage Options in the United States. The AAP has determined that there is sufficient evidence to conclude that pasteurized donor human milk (PDHM) is […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The Early Term Infant is defined as an infant born between 37 0/7 and 38 6/7 weeks’ gestation, whereas late preterm infants are born between 35 0/7 and 36 6/7 weeks’ gestation. According to the updated Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine protocol #10 entitled ‘Breastfeeding the Late Preterm and Early […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Everyone seems to know that breastfeeding infants have fewer middle ear infections, aka acute otitis media (AOM). End of story? Need we know more? The authors of a 2016 article on breastfeeding and childhood ear infections raise our awareness of the long term health and financial impact of AOM. […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Do pacifiers reduce the duration of exclusive breastfeeding? Many of us have suspected this, but so far studies have not been definitive on the topic. The issue has been that women with breastfeeding problems are more likely to use a pacifier, making it difficult to blame pacifiers themselves for […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM For many years, since we have been keeping track of breastfeeding rates in the USA, we’ve known that certain racial/ethnic groups have higher breastfeeding rates than others. We also know that mothers and babies who breastfeed have better health outcomes compared to those who have not breastfed. This research […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Do you wonder what to advise parents regarding their young child’s nutrition, once they start solid food? I assume you know that breastfeeding all by itself is optimal nutrition until 6 months, at which time solid foods should be added to the infant’s diet, as the infant continues to […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Breastfeeding prevents Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), according to the latest American Academy of Pediatric Policy Statement entitled SIDS and Other Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2016 Recommendations for a Safe Infant Sleeping Environment. SIDS is an unexpected infant death which, after thorough evaluation, does not have a known cause. […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Does delayed cord clamping help prevent anemia in breastfeeding infants? The American Academy of Pediatrics, in its 2010 clinical report Diagnosis and Prevention of Iron Deficiency and Iron Deficiency Anemia in Infants and Young Children (0-3 years of age) recommends that all infants receive iron supplementation until they begin […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Rooming-in is a standard of care for all mothers and infants postpartum, and is defined as keeping the infant in the mother’s room after birth and throughout hospitalization, unless there is a medical reason for maternal-infant separation. In September 2016, American Academy of Pediatrics published their clinical report on […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Is there evidence that breastfeeding reduces the severity of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) and the duration of hospitalization for infants born with NAS? This is the topic of a recent study that reviewed research published in the last 10 years. The authors found 10 studies that evaluated the effect […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM What are the effects of epidural anesthesia and breastfeeding? A recent systematic review analyzed published research studies on epidural anesthesia and breastfeeding. They included 23 articles, all of which were written in English, did not include subjects undergoing cesarean births, reported effects of epidural analgesia during labor, and included […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The question this week is about Downs Syndrome and Breastfeeding. In August 2016, The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine published an update of its Clinical Protocol entitled ‘Breastfeeding the Hypotonic Infant’. The article highlights suggested breastfeeding management of the infant with Trisomy 21, also known as Downs syndrome. Which of […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The question this week is the effect of tobacco smoking and breastfeeding. According to the United States Centers for Disease Control, 10.7% of pregnant women smoke tobacco, with 50-80% of these mothers relapsing to smoking within 6 months postpartum. The article for this week’s Clinical Question of the Week […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM Does it or doesn’t it? You know, the decade’s old question of – Does the natural bone remodeling after weaning make the bones stronger to prevent osteoporosis? No one is disputing that a breastfeeding woman who is not ovulating decreases her bone density by 5-10% (that’s a lot!). When […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM In 2016 the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) updated their guideline on infant feeding for mothers who live with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Areas of the world with high HIV rates are more prone to high child mortality rates. The high child mortality […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The Center for Disease Control (CDC) just released its latest Breastfeeding Report Card. The report provides data on breastfeeding support indicators in each state, such as the number of lactation consultants per capita and the percent of births at Baby Friendly facilities. It also details the breastfeeding rates in […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) published a press release in July 2016 on the risk of not breastfeeding within the first hour of life after birth. They report that 77 million newborns globally, or 1 in 2, are not put to the breast within the first […]

by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM A Mama – your sister, cousin, client, patient, or bff calls you, doggone tired after nursing her 2-month old baby every 2-3 hours during the last few nights. She confides in you that she has been cuddling with her baby in bed and falling asleep while nursing, rather than […]