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Breast Feeding Issues



Many women are faced with breastfeeding issues as breastfeeding may not be easy for some women. Here are some of the roadblocks that one might encounter:

• Blocked Duct: This does not literally mean that the milk duct is blocked. What it actually means is that the tender tissues surrounding the milk duct become swollen and inflamed.
• Breast Pain: This is often a result of what is known as the ‘let down’ reflex. ‘Let down’ refers to the actual flow of milk through the duct. Some women experience mild tingling, some experience pressure and pain, while some feel nothing at all.
• Breast Refusal: Breast refusal occurs due to various reasons such as a ear infection that causes pain while sucking, a cold or a stuffy nose that makes breathing difficult, not latching on properly and so on.
• Nipple Confusion: This is likely to happen if the baby is made to switch from breast to bottle and vice versa.
• Minor Trauma to Breasts or Nipples: This could include sore nipples, bleeding nipples, engorged breasts, cracked nipples and/or thrush (yeast infection)
• Mastitis: This is an inflammation of the breast and is characterized by symptoms such as heat in the breast, swelling, hardness and soreness.
• Other problems include leaking breasts, overabundant milk supply or a lack of it, baby’s insistence to feed from one breast only and so on.



Frequently asked questions

• Breast Health And Nipple Discharge
• How to Stop Milk Supply?
• How to Increase Your Milk Supply?

References

1. American Academy of Pediatrics. New Mother's Guide to Breastfeeding. Meek JY, ed. New York, NY: Bantam Books; 2002
2. Kramer MS, Chalmers B, Hodnett ED, et al. Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus. JAMA. 2001;285 :413 –420