Royal College of Physicians of Ireland Highlights The Health Benefits Of Breastfeeding
The Faculty of Paediatrics, Faculty of Public Health and the Institute of Obstetricians and
Gynaecologists of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland released a paper recently highlighting the benefits of breastfeeding and how to raise breastfeeding rates in Ireland.
The Faculty of Paediatrics is the national training and professional body for paediatricians in Ireland. Paediatricians manage and take care of children from birth through their teenage years, with the subset of neonatology which is a focus primarily on newborns.
The paper was written to raise Ireland’s rate of breastfeeding by educating parents and doctors alike about the numerous benefits.
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It is important to note that the Royal College does not make any mention of mothers who are unable to breastfeed their babies and instead, they focus on raising the rates of those mothers who are able. Many mums across Ireland have struggled with breastfeeding and have gone on to raise happy, healthy babies.
Low Breastfeeding Rates in Ireland
According to the Royal College of Physicians, “despite improvements over the last 15 years, breastfeeding rates in Ireland remain below international targets.” These low rates can be determined by any number of factors, from culture norms to gaps in knowledge from healthcare professionals to lack of support for new parents.
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Spokesperson and one of the lead authors, Dr Anne Doolan, is a consultant neonatologist and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). In speaking for the Royal College of Physicians on the benefits of breastfeeding, she said:
“We know that breastfeeding provides optimal nutrition for infant’s growth and development, and that it has the potential to improve health on a nationwide scale. We have a national policy which contributes to normalising breastfeeding, but barriers still exist.”
“It is difficult for many to access specialist support when needed. We have very limited numbers of publicly funded lactation consultants. Such support can make a huge difference in getting breastfeeding off to a good start.”
Increasing Hands-On Resources
She highlights Public Health Nurses as key figures in helping women through their breastfeeding journey postpartum because they can immediately identify breastfeeding challenges. Doolan suggests strengthening this role in women’s journeys through implementing more public health nurse resources focused on child health and wellbeing services, “as per Sláintcare and the National Health Childhood programme.”
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The amazing and highly experienced authors of the paper agree that there are systemic problems that contribute to the low breastfeeding rates in Ireland and that new mothers are not the ones to blame for the statistics.
Empowering New Parents
Dr Meredith Kinoshita adds on top of systematic problems facing new mothers regarding breastfeeding, there are even inconsistencies in those very systems. She says that many mothers get conflicting information about the benefits of breastfeeding, which can undermine their confidence and lead to uncertainty. She is sure that having consistent information and an appropriate, up to date education is key to providing new parents with the boost they need.
“Healthcare professionals should have the appropriate education and skillset to support breastfeeding, with consistent information and continuity between services in hospitals and the community.”