Breastfeeding

According to studies conducted, breastfeeding is very important for the baby, mother, and the society. How is breastfeeding important for the health of the baby? Well, breastfeeding protects the baby immune system as its body is growing. This milk is very rich in nutrients and antibodies to protect your baby. Plus, breast milk is easier for the baby to digest which helps protects the baby from any diseases or illnesses. The benefits for the mother is that it is cost savvy, it helps the mother bond to her baby, and it is also great for the mother's health as well. The nation benefits overall when mothers breastfeed. Recent research shows that if 90 percent of families breastfed exclusively for 6 months, nearly 1,000 deaths among infants could be prevented. The United States would also save $13 billion per year — medical care costs are lower for fully breastfed infants than never-breastfed infants. Breastfed infants typically need fewer sick care visits, prescriptions, and hospitalizations.

Breastfeeding also contributes to a more productive workforce since mothers miss less work to care for sick infants. Employer medical costs are also lower.

Breastfeeding is also better for the environment. There is less trash and plastic waste compared to that produced by formula cans and bottle supplies (womenshealth.gov).  Also it is very common for women in third world countries to breastfeed due to the costs and also for the benefits for the baby. It just makes sense if a woman does not have the monies to buy the formula to breastfeed.

This topic is dear to me because I breast fed my 3 year old for the first couple months. I recovered well from the hospital. Also, my son has not had to go to the emergency room for any illness. Every once in a while he may get the sniffles but he has not had a severe cold, earache, or any illness. I have been very blessed to not have to go through the doctor visits and emergency visits. My 3 year old could not be any more healthier than a big child or an adult. 

For additional information on breastfeeding, visit www.womenhealth.gov.

First Births in Australia

In Australia, three main settings are available in which to give birth: hospital, home, and birth center. Nineteen women participated in the study . They were recruited using purposive and theoretical sampling. Purposeful sampling occurs where the phenomenon is known to exist. Theoretical sampling is the process of data collection for generating theory whereby the analyst jointly collects, codes, and analyzes the data, and decides what data to collect next and where to find them in order to develop the theory as it emerges. Unlike statistical sampling, theoretical sampling cannot be predetermined prior to the outset of the study, and sampling decisions emerge as the study progresses.
 Evidence suggests that women select their place of birth according to the level of choice and responsibility they wish to take in the birth: Women who choose out-of-hospital care tend to want more control over decisions regarding themselves, their bodies, and the birth environment compared with women who choose hospital care. 
According to the data that was collected, women who had given birth to their first baby were initially identified in the postnatal ward of a large tertiary referral hospital and asked to consent to being interviewed 6 weeks later. Women who had their first baby at home were contacted by their independent midwives and asked if they could be approached to participate. One first-time mother who had given birth in a private hospital, two first-time mothers who had given birth in a birth center, and two multiparous women (one hospital birth and one home birth) were also identified and invited to participate. Each potential participant received an information sheet that explained the purpose of the study and what would be required of participants. Each participant signed a consent form. Only one woman (planned hospital birth) chose not to participate.
The participants ranged from 19 to 37 years of age. Women who had had home births were on average 30 years old compared with 25 years old for the women who had had hospital births. All of the women had partners. Three women had university degrees (one in the home-birth group and three in the hospital-birth group). One of the home-birth women was transferred to hospital and had a forceps birth. All of the women who gave birth in hospital—except for one (forceps birth)—had normal vaginal births. Most of the women attended formal antenatal childbirth education (all of the home-birth group, and 5 of 8 in the hospital-birth group).  Compared to the women who chose home birth, the women who chose hospital birth seemed less concerned about personal decision making, more dependent on their caregivers, and more trusting of the medical system. As two women noted: Women who chose a home birth viewed medical interventions as negative and dangerous, while those who chose a hospital birth viewed medical interventions as positive.

Reference
Budin, Wendy C. (2008). Preparing for the First Birth: Mothers' Experiences at Home and in Hospital in Australia. Journal of Perinatal Education. Retrieved January 12, 2012 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2582407/.

My Personal Birthing Experience

On Christmas Eve of 2009, I was awaken by sharp pains at 6:30 in the morning. I took 2 Tylenol and the pain went away so I decided to go back to sleep because I was planning to wake up around 8 am to help fix a Christmas Eve morning breakfast for my friend and her family. We were vacationing in Gatlinsburg, Tennessee for the holidays. I was exactly 8 months pregnant and wanted to take a vacation before my due date on January 24, 2010 so one of my friends invited me along for her family vacation to one of the nicest log cabins in Gatlinsburg. I thought I was getting away for a quick retreat; however, other events took place which I was not prepared for. Around 8 am, the sharp pains in my back were stronger so I called my friend to my room and she went in retrieved her family from the living room. Her mother than replied, "You are in labor." I was thinking to myself, I have another month to go...I am not supposed to be in labor especially not on my vacation. I didn't have any baby clothes, bottles, car seat, or anything for the baby. The pain was getting worse and then my water broke. So my friend and her family rushed me to Fort Sevier Medical Center at 9:30 am. Everything was happening so fast. I asked for medicine because the labor pains were so strong but I had already dilated 7 cm when I arrived to the hospital. So I had to go through natural labor. Poor me! At 11:14 am, Gabriel Alexander Frost was born. He weighed exactly 5lbs and zero ounces. He was so tiny and so cute. Immediately after he was born, Gabriel was ready to feed. He gained a couple ounces before we left the hospital the day after Christmas. So I basically spent my Christmas holiday in another city and hospital. The staff was so very helpful, encouraging, and resourceful. As I was going through the labor, I had two nurses to give me massages for my back, legs, and feet. That really helped to keep me calm since this was my first pregnancy and I felt so unprepared. They offered clothes, a car seat, and other necessary items since I was a out of town visitor. Gabriel just turned 3 years old on this past Christmas Eve, and everyone calls him the miracle baby or Christmas baby. I will have an amazing story of his birth to tell him when he gets older. I can't wait to tell him how he crashed Mommy's Christmas Vacation!!1