|
 |
Statements From Professional Groups
|
“Human milk is uniquely superior for infant feeding and is species-specific; all substitute feeding options differ markedly from it. The breast-fed infant is the reference or normative model against which all alternative feeding methods must be measured with regard to growth, health, development, and all other short- and long-term outcomes.”
—American Academy of Pediatrics (Policy Statement, December 1997)
|
 From the American Academy of Pediatrics, Policy Statement, December 1997:
“From its inception, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has been a staunch advocate of breast-feeding as the optimal form of nutrition for infants. One of the earliest AAP publications was a 1948 manual, Standards and Recommendations for the Hospital Care of Newborn Infants. This manual included a recommendation to make every effort to have every mother nurse her full-term infant.”
“Extensive research, especially in recent years, documents diverse and compelling advantages to infants, mothers, families, and society from breast-feeding and the use of human milk for infant feeding. These include health, nutritional, immunologic, developmental, psychological, social, economic, and environmental benefits.”
“In addition to individual health benefits, breast-feeding provides significant social and economic benefits to the nation, including reduced health care costs and reduced employee absenteeism for care attributable to child illness.”
From the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses: “AWHONN supports breast-feeding as the optimal method of infant feeding.”
“The protein content of breast milk is digested more easily by the infant than the protein in breast milk substitute. The fatty acid and cholesterol content of breast milk is perfectly suited to the development of the infant’s nervous system. In addition, the carbohydrate content of breast milk helps to control the growth of bacteria and improve the absorption of important minerals. Breast-feeding has been shown to decrease the incidence of certain bacterial and viral infections in babies, as well as decrease the frequency of certain allergic disorders.” (statement by the board, June 1999)
From the National Breast-feeding Policy Conference:
“Failure to utilize breast milk as the food for all children for at least the first year of life leads to increased risk of poor health and development for both infants and mothers.”
(November 12-13, 1998)
From the American Academy of Family Physicians:
“The American Academy of Family Physicians acknowledges that human milk is the optimal form of nutrition for infants except in instances of specific contraindications to its use. While absolute contraindications are rare, there are barriers in modern society which inhibit initiation and continuation of breast-feeding.”
From David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D., Surgeon General, U.S. Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
“The Health and Human Services (HHS) Blueprint for Action on Breast-feeding, which was released on October 30, 2000, recommends that infants should be exclusively breast-fed during the first four to six months, preferably for a full six months, and ideally through the first year of life.”
|
|
