Pregnancy

• Caregiver’s Guide to the Breastfed Baby

  Human milk does not look like formula or cow’s milk. It may be a different color or consistency, and it is normal for it to be bluish, greenish, or even brownish in color. Frozen milk, or milk expressed during the early days of nursing (which still contains colostrum) may look yellowish. Human milk that is properly stored is not spoiled, unless it smells sour or tastes bad.

• Information Sheet and Care Plan for Yeast (Candida)

  Candida (also called yeast, or thrush) is a fungus that occurs naturally in the mucous membranes and on the skin. Use of antibiotics promotes the overgrowth of yeast by killing off the good bacteria that normally keep the yeast from multiplying too quickly.During pregnancy, yeast infections are more common because high levels of estrogen lead to elevated levels of sugar, and yeast feeds on sugar.

• Breastfeeding Mom’s Sore Nipples

  Nipple soreness is one of the most common reasons new mothers give for discontinuing breastfeeding, often during the first week of nursing. This is quite unfortunate, for nipple soreness is almost always a short-term problem, and can usually be corrected in a matter of days. Breastfeeding isnt supposed to hurt, but the fact of the matter is that most mothers will experience some degree of soreness during the early stages of nursing. It is common to feel some discomfort when the baby first latches on, especially in the first days after birth before the milk has come in. This type of soreness will usually ease up after the first few sucks, especially after the milk lets down and flows freely.

• Breastfeeding Mom Returning to Work or School

  Once you successfully make it through the early weeks of breastfeeding, and manage to overcome any problems you may have had in the beginning (soreness, engorgement, hormonal rushes, etc.) you usually experience a honeymoon period.Just at the point when you are beginning to get the hang of this whole mothering thing and are settling into a routine, it is time to go back to work or school.

• Breastfeeding Benefits: How They Add Up

  Most new mothers wonder how long they should breastfeed their baby. While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends nursing for at least the first year of life, this may not be a realistic goal for many mothers. It is important to know that even if you only nurse your baby for a few weeks or even a few days, you will both receive many important benefits from the nursing relationship.

• Breastfeeding and Birth Control

  For the nursing mother who wants to space her pregnancies, there are many birth control options to choose from. Each method offers advantages and disadvantages.

• Breastfeeding After a Cesarean

  In the United States, nearly one in four births is a cesarean birth. Many of these cesareans are unexpected, so it is a good idea for the expectant mother to become informed and educated about the procedure before her baby arrives. An operative birth versus a vaginal birth can impact the breastfeeding experience in several ways. Mothers who have eagerly anticipated a vaginal birth may feel disappointed and inadequate because their expectations havent been met, and they may even be afraid that because they failed at giving birth, they may also fail at breastfeeding. These concerns are unfounded, because there is no reason that nursing cant be successful for the mother who has had a c-section. Breastfeeding can help normalize the experience of an operative birth.

• Breast Infections and Plugged Ducts

  Some mothers nurse several babies and never experience plugged ducts or mastitis (breast infection), while others have recurrent problems. There are many reasons for these problems to occur, but treatment is essentially the same: rest, apply heat,breastfeed often on the affected side, and use antibiotics when medically necessary.