Why Babies Should Be Breastfed Within the first 30 Minutes Of Delivery
Child health professionals have advised moms to breastfeed their newborns within the first 30 to 60 minutes of delivery, pointing out the benefits to the baby’s health.
They contend that delaying breastfeeding can leave babies vulnerable to infections and irreversible health problems.
The experts, Idi-Araba Prof. Edamisan Temiye, Consultant Paediatric Haematologist and Oncologist at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, and Dr. Zainab Imam, Paediatrician and Neonatologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, noted that early breastfeeding was advantageous for both the mother and the child.
Temiye warned that if a baby is not nursed early enough, they may get hypoglycaemia, which is a dangerously low blood sugar level.
Hypoglycaemia, a health expert warned, must be prevented at all costs because it may lead to irreversible damage to the brain of the baby.
Why Babies Should Be Breastfed Within the first 30 Minutes Of Delivery
According to an online health portal, MedicalNewsToday, “Hypoglycaemia is the medical term for low blood sugar in newborns. It is common immediately after birth but usually corrects itself when the infant begins feeding regularly.
“Hypoglycaemia in a newborn is treatable however, without treatment; this medical condition can cause lasting damage.”
The expert explained saying, “A baby should be breastfed within the first 30 minutes. Within that time the baby is still alert and will quickly grab onto the breast and interpret proper placement of the breast, and proper sucking and you will solve the problem of the baby not sucking almost immediately.
“But when you delay after about one hour or more after delivery, the baby falls asleep and it may take a longer time to get the baby to start sucking,” he said.
In addition, “The little dense milk that comes out first is rich enough to prevent the baby from developing hypoglycaemia which is low blood sugar.
“If you don’t breastfeed the baby early enough they may become hypoglycaemic and if the baby has severe hypoglycaemia it can damage the brain forever, so hypoglycaemia must be prevented at all cost because the brain of that baby may be damaged for life,” he said.
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