NNLM Network of the National Library of Medicine

Breastfeeding Information

It is recommend that babies feed only on breast milk for the first 6 months, and then continue to have breast milk as a main part of their diet until they are at least 1 to 2 years old. Although most infants born in 2017 started breastfeeding (84.1%), only 58.3% of infants were breastfeeding at 6 months. The percentage of breastfed infants supplemented with infant formula before 2 days of age was 19.2% among infants born in 2017, an increase from 16.9% among infants born in 2016.

Source: Breastfeeding Report Card United States, 2020

What obstacles do mothers encounter when they attempt to breastfeed?

Very few health problems make breastfeeding not possible. However, other reasons may prevent breastfeeding.

• Lack of experience or understanding among family members of how best to support mothers and babies.
• Not enough opportunities to communicate with other breastfeeding mothers.
• Lack of up-to-date instruction and information from health care professionals.
• Hospital practices that make it hard to get started with successful breastfeeding.
• Lack of accommodation to breastfeed or express milk at the workplace.

Source: Breastfeeding: Surgeon General’s Call to Action Fact Sheet

There's an NIH for that...and more

The National Institutes of Health is the leading medical research agency for evidence-based science of health and wellness. Agencies that study infant feeding include:

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) conducts and supports research on Breastfeeding and Breast Milk

Links to websites of groups that study or provide information about breastfeeding and breast milk include:

• MedlinePlus is a good starting point for finding trustworthy health information and website resources for Breastfeeding or Infant and Newborn Nutrition
• American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) The AAP is an organization of pediatricians committed to the health and well-being of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. Visit the breastfeeding initiatives website information for families
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Breastfeeding The CDC's site provides information and links to resources on breastfeeding, including the CDC Breastfeeding Report Card.
• Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Read more about medication safety during pregnancy at the FDA Medicine and Pregnancy page. You can also sign up to take part in one of the FDA's Pregnancy Registries to help scientists and health care providers learn more about medication safety during pregnancy.
• Nutrition During Lactation The U.S. Department of Agriculture provides links to resources on breastfeeding and the nutritional requirements of infants.
• Office on Women's Health (OWH) OWH sponsors the National Breastfeeding Helpline. Call 800-994-9662 to speak with trained breastfeeding peer counselors who can help answer common breastfeeding questions in English or Spanish. In addition, OWH offers the following resources on breastfeeding:
  • A–Z Health Topics: Breastfeeding
  • Finding Breastfeeding Support and Information
  • Your Guide to Breastfeeding (PDF 2.2 MB) (available in English, Spanish, and Chinese; editions for African American women and for American Indian and Alaska Native women also available)
  • It's Only Natural provides information for African American women and their families on the benefits of breastfeeding.

Book

Breastfeeding Doesn’t Need to Suck is an evidence-based guide full of practical advice to enhance your physical and psychological well-being so that you and your baby can thrive. The book aims to help expectant and new mothers reach their breastfeeding goals and care for their babies with confidence. While new motherhood is challenging, there are ways to make it easier. A mother’s mental and physical health are essential, and that is the focus of this book. The scientific literature tells us that breastfeeding creates a powerful physiological response in the mother, which protects her mental health. When breastfeeding is going well, it prompts a powerful physiological mechanism that can help minimize the stress and inflammatory responses that underlie depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

Breastfeeding Doesn't Need to Suck: How to Nurture Your Baby and Your Mental Health | Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, PhD | American Psychological Association | 2022 | 197 pages | ISBN: 978-1433833847

Author

Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, PhD is a board-certified lactation consultant and researcher in breastfeeding, depression, trauma, and women’s health psychology.

Official Website of Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

Book

Over half a century later, baby formula is a seventy-billion-dollar industry and Black mothers have the lowest breastfeeding rates in the country. Since slavery, legal, political, and societal factors have routinely denied Black women the ability to choose how to feed their babies. In Skimmed, Andrea Freeman tells the riveting story of the Fultz quadruplets while uncovering how feeding America's youngest citizens is awash in social, legal, and cultural inequalities. This book highlights the making of a modern public health crisis, the four extraordinary girls whose stories encapsulate a nationwide injustice, and how we can fight for a healthier future.

Skimmed: Breastfeeding, Race, and Injustice | Andrea Freeman | Stanford University Press | 2019 | 304 pages | ISBN: 978-1503628960

Author

Andrea Freeman is Associate Professor at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa William S. Richardson School of Law. Freeman writes and researches at the intersection of critical race theory and issues of food policy, health, and consumer credit. She is the pioneer of the theory of "food oppression," which examines how partnerships between the government and corporations lead to racial and gender health disparities. Her work has been featured on NPR, Huffington Post, Salon, The Washington Post, The Conversation, Pacific Standard, and more.

Faculty Profile of Andrea Freeman

Interviews

Book

Everything You Want To Know About Chestfeeding takes its readers through what chestfeeding looks like for over a dozen different parents from all walks of life, races, sexualities, and gender identities. Though these stories are all unique there is one thing they have in common; Every single parent needed support they didn’t get. This profound read aims to bring chest- feeding parents of the past, present, and future together finally in an effort for them to feel heard, educated, and understood. 

Sweet Nectar is a recent release from a newer author and an independent book publisher. Our selection criteria for the Reading Club usually include books from larger publishers, as well as books that have had time to be vetted by subject matter experts. After reviewing this book for its relevance to our August Infant Feeding theme, we came to a consensus: this book offers accessible, relatable, and diverse stories. We thought that the inclusion of these poignant vignettes was more important than strictly meeting all of our regular selection standards. It is our hope that this book achieves the objective of connecting to a variety of lived experiences (regarding gender, class, faith, etc.) and provides helpful health information regarding chestfeeding. -- Lorin Jackson

Sweet Nectar: (Hopefully) Everything You Want To Know About Chestfeeding | Kylia P Kennedy | BlackGold Publishing | 2022 | 152 pages | ISBN: 978-1953130099

Author

Kylia P Kennedy is a mother, Certified Breastfeeding Specialist, and founder of Sweet Nectar Lactation Services, a business dedicated to providing affordable and personalized care.