subject: Info On The Pluses Of Breast Feeding [print this page] A large part of knowing how and why to breast feed begins with knowing exactly how the process works. A woman's breast is pretty much a large gland. Size has nothing to do with how much milk is created or how well a woman can breast feed; size depends upon the fatty tissues surrounding the inner system. Cells inside the breast called aveoli create milk as a reaction to the hormone prolactin. A hormone Oxytocin makes small muscles around the aveoli to tighten and move milk through small tubes that lead to the areola and nipple.
Baby formula cannot exactly match the chemical makeup of human breast milk, it does not contain the hormones and antibodies that infants may need. Breast milk changes over time to give the baby what it needs. During pregnancy and right after birth the breast milk is usually thick and yellow, this type of breast milk is called colostrum, it contains all the nutrients that newborns need. Around about day three or day five it thins out and begins to look white and contains all the things your baby needs at that time including sugars and fats.
Part of understanding how to breast feed properly comes from knowing how breast milk is created to begin with. A woman's breast is essentially a large gland. Cells inside a woman's breast called aveoli create milk in response to the hormone prolactin, then a hormone called oxytocin makes small muscles around the cells constrict and move milk through the tubes that lead to the milk ducts in the nipple itself and around the areola. The size of a woman's breast have nothing to do with how much milk they will produce and will not affect the ability or effectiveness of her breastfeeding.
A problem a few new mothers encounter is a difficult latching issue. The infant may not latch properly and cause pain to the mother. The infant may only be sucking the nipple and not getting an adequate amount of milk.
Breast feeding shouldn't hurt if it does then you should help your baby re latch by placing a clean finger in the corner of your babies mouth to break the latch. The infant may be only sucking on the nipple which could cause pain. The nipple should not look flat or compressed when it comes out of the infant's mouth it should look long and round or the same as it did before it fed.
Breast feeding should not be a painful experience. If a latch hurts then it is best to help your baby relatch and follow the steps previously mentioned. The mother should know that a baby knows how to latch and how to find a breast on its own.
A mother should learn her child's signs of hunger as early on as possible by keeping the baby in the room with her while she is in the hospital. Babies will become more alert and active when they are hungry they will put their fists to their mouths or move their head around searching for a breast, crying is a critical sign of hunger.
