FYI...Anyone else read this or a related report? Unless I missed it, no info
re: initiation, BF management, number/% affected and standard deviations,
etc. but may "fit" with some PCOS info. Too bad the OB, who mainly said some
good things, didn't also mention that many overweight women produce
abundantly vs. some normal and underweight women also have production isses.
<A HREF="http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=97&ncid=97&e=2&u=/hsn/20030503/hl_hsn/why_overweight_women_face_breast_feeding_problems">http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=97&ncid=97&e=2&
u=/hsn/20030503/hl_hsn/why_overweight_women_face_breast_feeding_problems</A>
Why Overweight Women Face Breast-feeding Problems
Sat May 3, 7:02 PM ET
By Colette Bouchez
HealthScoutNews Reporter
SATURDAY, May 3 (HealthScoutNews) -- 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 May 3 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 temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html
|
