Breast-Feeding

Abstract

1. Full-term newborn infants should be breastfed, except if there are specific contraindications or when breast-feeding is unsuccessful. 2. Education about breast-feeding should be provided in schools for all children, and better education about breast-feeding and infant nutrition should be provided in the curriculum of physicians and nurses. Information about breast-feeding should also be presented in public communications media. 3. Prenatal instruction should include both theoretical and practical information about breast-feeding. 4. Attitudes and practices in prenatal clinics and in maternity wards should encourage a climate which favors breast-feeding. The staff should include nurses and other personnel who are not only favorably disposed toward breast-feeding but also knowledgeable and skilled in the art. 5. Consultation between maternity services and agencies committed to breast-feeding should be strengthened. 6. Studies should be conducted on the feasibility of breast-feeding infants at day nurseries adjacent to places of work subsequent to an appropriate leave of absence following the birth of an infant.