CDC Recognizes Link Between Birth Practices and Breastfeeding
The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) welcomes the inclusion of the Maternity Care Practices in the CDC’s new Guide to Breastfeeding Interventions. This publication follows a strong new policy statement in support of Breastfeeding from the American Academy of Pediatrics last winter, Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk. The link between childbirth and breastfeeding is a hallmark of CIMS’s own Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative (MFCI), whose Tenth Step lists the steps of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. The evidence-based Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative (MFCI) was adapted as a model for the World Health Organization’s Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding.
(PRWEB) August 4, 2005 -- Ponte Vedra
Beach,Florida: The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) welcomes
the inclusion of the Maternity Care Practices in the CDC’s new Guide to
Breastfeeding Interventions. This publication follows a strong new policy
statement in support of Breastfeeding from the American Academy of Pediatrics
last winter, Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk.
The link between
childbirth and breastfeeding is a hallmark of CIMS’s own Mother-Friendly
Childbirth Initiative (MFCI), whose Tenth Step lists the steps of the
Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. The evidence-based Mother-Friendly Childbirth
Initiative (MFCI) was adapted as a model for the World Health Organization’s
Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding.
Research shows that
breastfeeding is vital to the short and long term health of babies and mothers.
Birth practices such as induction, epidural anesthesia, episiotomy, and cesarean
section can make breastfeeding more difficult. Furthermore, hospital procedures
that separate mothers and babies can interfere with the establishment of
breastfeeding. This Guide acknowledges the importance of keeping mother and baby
together during the birth and in the hours and days after birth for a successful
breastfeeding relationship.
“For the CDC to come out this strongly on the
affect of maternity practices on breastfeeding is fabulous. This is the first
time a US government policy document has linked birth practices to
breastfeeding, and may be one of the first policy documents that addresses some
of the MFCI steps clearly, “ said lactation consultant Linda Smith, IBCLC, and a
CIMS Board member.
Ms. Smith collaborated with the late Mary Kroeger,
CNM, on Impact of Birthing Practices on Breastfeeding, which examines the
research about this important link.
For more information about the Guide to
Breastfeeding Interventions, go to http://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/.
The AAP’s
Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk can be found at http://www.aap.org/healthtopics/breastfeeding.cfm
To
learn about the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative, go to http://www.motherfriendly.org
The WHO’s Global Strategy
on Infant and Young Child Feeding can be found at http://www.who.int/nut/#inf
The Coalition for Improving
Maternity Services (CIMS), a United Nations recognized NGO, is a collaborative
effort of numerous individuals, leading researchers, and more than 50
organizations representing over 90,000 members. Promoting a wellness model of
maternity care that will improve birth outcomes and substantially reduce costs,
CIMS developed Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative in 1996. A consensus
document that has been recognized as an important model for improving the
healthcare and well being of children beginning at birth, the Mother-Friendly
Childbirth Initiative has been translated into over a dozen languages and is
gaining support around the world.
Contact:
Rae Davies, Executive
Director
1-(888) 282-CIMS
Fax: 904-285-2120
Website: www.motherfriendly.org
# # #
Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/8/prweb268791.htm