Breastfeeding (Part 1)

Kepada semua ibu2 atau bakal ibu2 bole le membaca artikel ni utk menambahkan ilmu pasal selok-belok bfeed nih. Aku pun memula takdak gak ilmu utk aku jadikan panduan nk bfeed. Tp Alhamdu lillah aku telah diperkenalkan pada web yg amat2 bagus dari segi penyusuan nih iaitu susuibu.com. Hehe sejak membaca kesemua forum yg terkandung di dalamnya, maka semangat berkobar-kobar utk bfeed pun timbul..nasib baik jumpa masa tgh preggy 6 bln..so masih belum terlewat...

Jadi aku harap pada sesiapa yg mbaca tanamkan semangat utk bfeed si kecil anda nnt ye. Tolong jgn menafikan haknya yg telah ditentukan olehNya.. Kita sebagai emak...berikanlah yg terbaik buat si manja..kerana...

SUSU IBU....Tiada yang lebih baik darinya.....

(Artikel yg ku cedok dari blogs salah seorang member Susuibu.com)

Breast milk refers to the milk produced by a mother to feed her baby. It provides the primary source of nutrition for newborns before they are able to eat and digest other foods; older infants and toddlers may continue to be breastfed. The baby nursing from its own mother is the most ordinary way of obtaining breastmilk, but the milk can be pumped and then fed by baby bottle, cup and/or spoon, supplementation drip system, and nasogastric tube. Breastmilk can be supplied by a woman other than the baby's mother; this is known as wetnursing.

Production
Under the influence of the hormones prolactin and oxytocin, women produce milk after childbirth to feed the baby. The initial milk produced is often referred to as colostrum, which is high in the immunoglobulin IgA, which coats the gastrointestinal tract. This helps to protect the newborn until its own immune system is functioning properly, and creates a mild laxative effect, expelling meconium and helping to prevent the build up of bilirubin (a contributory factor in jaundice).

There are many reasons a mother may not produce enough breast milk. Some of the most common are an improper latch (i.e. the baby does not connect efficiently with the nipple), not nursing or pumping enough to meet supply, certain medications (including the contraceptive pill), illness, and dehydration. A rarer reason is Sheehan's syndrome, also known as postpartum hypopituitarism, which is associated with prolactin deficiency; this syndrome may require hormone replacement.

Lack of supply can be addressed by nursing and/or pumping more frequently.[citation needed] The more the mother nurses her baby, or pumps, the more milk is produced.[citation needed] It is very helpful to nurse on demand - to nurse when the baby wants to nurse rather than on a schedule. If pumping; it is helpful to have an electric high grade pump so that all of the milk ducts are stimulated. Some mothers try to increase their milk supply in other ways - by taking the herb fenugreek, used for hundreds of years to increase supply ("Mother's Milk" teas contain fenugreek as well as other supply-increasing herbs); there are also prescription medications that can be used, such as Domperidone (off-label use) and Reglan.[citation needed] Increasers of milk supply are known as galactagogues.

Composition
The exact integrated properties of breast milk are not entirely understood[citation needed], but the nutrient content after this period[citation needed] is relatively consistent and draws its ingredients from the mother's food supply. If that supply is found lacking, content is obtained from the mother's bodily stores. The exact composition of breast milk varies from day to day, depending on food consumption and environment, meaning that the ratio of water to fat fluctuates. Foremilk, the milk released at the beginning of a feed, is watery, low in fat and high in carbohydrates relative to the creamier hindmilk which is released as the feed progresses. The breast can never be truly "emptied" since milk production is a continuous biological process.
Human milk contains 0.8% to 0.9% protein, 3% to 5% fat, 6.9% to 7.2% carbohydrates and 0.2% ash (minerals). Carbohydrates are mainly lactose; several lactose-based oligosaccharides have been identified as minor components. The principal proteins are casein homologous to bovine beta-casein, alpha-lactalbumin, lactoferrin, IgA, lysozyme and serum albumin. Non-protein nitrogen-containing compounds, making up 25% of the milk's nitrogen, include urea, uric acid, creatine, creatinine, amino acids and nucleotides.[2][3]

Mother's milk has been shown to supply a type of endocannabinoid (the natural neurotransmitters which marijuana simulates), 2-Arachidonoyl glycerol.[4]
Though now it is almost universally prescribed, in the 1950s the practice of breastfeeding went through a period where it was out of vogue and the use of infant formula was considered superior to breast milk.

However, it is now universally recognized that there is no commercial formula that can equal breast milk. In addition to the appropriate amounts of carbohydrate, protein and fat, breast milk also provides vitamins, minerals, digestive enzymes and hormones - all of the things that a growing infant will require. Breast milk also contains antibodies and lymphocytes from the mother that help the baby resist infections. The immune function of breastmilk is individualized, as the mother, through her touching and taking care of the baby, comes into contact with pathogens that colonize the baby and consequently her body makes the appropriate antibodies and immune cells. This is a process that obviously cannot be replicated on an industrial basis.

Women who are breastfeeding should consult with their physician regarding substances that can be unwittingly passed to the infant via breast milk, such as alcohol, viruses (HIV or HTLV-1) or medications.

Most women who do not breastfeed use infant formula, but breast milk donated by volunteers to human milk banks can be obtained by prescription.[5] Cow's milk is recommended as a substitute, but only for children over one year of age.