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Why
Overweight Women Face Breast-feeding Problems
There's no question that breast-feeding has important health
benefits for both women and their babies.
Now a new study offers important hope for at least one group
of women who traditionally have met with lactation failure.
The research focused on overweight women, many of whom can
have difficulty making enough milk for successful breast-feeding.
Researchers say the study, presented at the Pediatric Academic
Societies' annual meeting in Seattle, is the first to document
a physical problem as a potential cause.
"The most important finding is that we have discovered
a biological reason -- as opposed to a psychological or
sociological reason -- for lactation failure," says
study author Dr. Chris Kjolhede.
Kjolhede is a research scientist at Bassett Healthcare in
New York state, who worked in conjunction with Cornell University
scientists on the new finding.
The reason, Kjolhede believes, is related to decreased levels
of prolactin, a hormone that originates in the pituitary
gland in the brain, but is actually synthesized or utilized
in many cells throughout the body.
During pregnancy, prolactin allows growth of the cells that
help secrete milk. Shortly after birth, infant suckling
at the breast stimulates a surge of prolactin, which, in
turn, initiates rapid milk production in the breast.
If prolactin is in short supply -- either during pregnancy
or shortly thereafter -- suckling appears to have a lessened
effect on production of the hormone, Kjolhede says.
"We suspect that some overweight or obese women who
intend to breast-feed actually fail to do so because of
the blunted prolactin surge in response to suckling,"
Kjolhede says.
For obstetrician Dr. Steve Farber, the finding has merit,
but he's less certain that being overweight is the only
link to decreased prolactin.
"Prolactin is the hormone that makes milk, so lowered
levels certainly can compromise milk production," says
Farber. However, he adds the act of suckling is what causes
prolactin levels to rise. "I'm not certain that being
overweight would interfere with that -- at least not from
what this study tells us thus far," Farber says.
He also points out that while some overweight women have
problems breast-feeding, so do some normal weight women,
or even women who are underweight. And, he says, no woman
should be discouraged from breast-feeding if a lot of milk
is not forthcoming right away.
"They can successfully supplement breast milk with
formula and still give the child the benefits of breast-feeding,"
Farber says.
The new study involved 40 white women from rural New York
state who had just given birth and planned to breast-feed.
Beginning on the second day following delivery, each of
the women received a blood test to measure prolactin levels
just before a breast-feeding session, and again, 30 minutes
after the attempt at infant suckling. The same tests were
repeated again on day seven.
In the women diagnosed as overweight or obese before pregnancy,
prolactin levels were significantly lower both on day two
and day seven, says Kjolhede.
After taking into account both the baby's birth weight,
whether this was the woman's first child, and the length
of the actual suckling episode -- all of which can influence
milk production -- the researchers conclude that being overweight
remained a significant factor for difficulty breast-feeding.
"I think that what the results of our study show is
that we need to identify women at risk for 'failure' and
provide them with as much support as possible in the postpartum
period," Kjolhede says.
To learn more about overcoming breast-feeding problems,
visit La
Leche League International.
Article Source: HealthDay
Article Author: Colette Bouchez
Net Reference 101
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