Why do so many moms of preemies formula feed?

Question

I'm honestly looking for a good answer here, I'm not just ranting. I'm normally a breastfeeding mom, and would absolutely make certain I breastfed my baby if born a preemie (my son almost was...). There are so many added benefits of breastmilk that preemies ESPECIALLY need.

I can respect the choices of women who choose to bottlefeed a full term baby. But it honestly hits me hard when a woman won't breastfeed a preemie.

I know NICU's are stressful, and that there are extra hurdles when breastfeeding a preemie. Some women honestly can't, and I'd guess that is a bit more common with preemies than full term babies. But that said, they are hurdles that you can get through- it is most often totally doable. I was talked to by two NICU nurses and a neonatologist, so I'm not just guessing here.

How can mothers choose not to breastfeed their preemies?

Thank you all for the great answers and not being offended or defensive. I really appreciate the new perspective.

thelady1958- your answer is bogus. I am a 38DD and have had no problems (breast size wise) breastfeeding two babies. A woman's breast size, whether tiny or huge, has no bearing on whether she's able to breastfeed.

The feeding through a tube issue- maybe, but why can't they get breastmilk through a tube? I'll have to look into that.

Otherwise, you're just wrong. I hope it's honest miseducation rather than exuses on behalf of your daughter.

Answer 1

How can mothers choose to not breastfeed their full term babies?

I think many moms do not give breastfeeding a good enough chance. They try it once or twice and realize "Hey this is really hard! And it hurts!" and they give up because they think a bottle is easier.

I think many women are not educated enough about the benefits of breast feeding.

I think many women do not use their resources (lactation consultants, doctors, ask-a-nurse hotlines).

Answer 2

There are a few reasons.. for one, a preemie generally has problems latching on because his mouth is sooo small and can only fit around the nipple. If the baby latches at the nipple, this will cause EXTREME pain for the mother and also the baby will not get a good flow of milk. Another reason is, often times preemies need to be hospitalized to assist with breathing, if they are hospitalized at 32 weeks, they will stay until they are considered full-term at 37 weeks and until their lungs are fully developed. How can a mother breastfeed if the baby is in the hospital? Unless she stays there 24/7 too.
A mother can breastfeed after the baby is home but she will have to work to keep the milk in, like pumping and storing until her baby comes home. It can be done, but it's very challenging.
Hope this answers your concerns.

Answer 3

Im mom to a preemie at 32 weeks and full term baby. I breastfed both, but can tell you the preemie was a lot harder, and never did quite get the latching down, moved onto exculsive pumping.

The one thing I can think of, is our preemie getting sent home from the NICU ended up depending on his eating and gaining weight. As I said, latching was still really tough, and I had support of nurses, lac consultant and family. Also thank goodness I could afford a great pump.

So I could guess early finances might be a reason, keeping a preemie in a hospital stay longer (decent insurance) plus weighing a $300 pump vs $20 can of formula (although you may not realize then how much formula adds up)

Answer 4

It's not always a choice. Some preemies have a very hard time latching on. I know my daughter did. Plus she had to eat 2oz every two hours and the nurses had to measure to make sure that's what she was getting. So needless to say you can really measure how much the babies getting when your breastfeeding. I tried really hard to breast feed my daughter. I pumped and bottle feed but I got very sick after having her and just wasn't able to produce enough milk for her. So it's not always a choice.

Answer 5

This is an interesting question, and I'm not surprised to see BS like "too big busted to nurse" -- how that could make sense to anybody, I have no idea -- but, anyway, while looking up something else I came across:

"...the majority of mothers breastfeeding preterm infants electively switch their infant to partial or exclusive formula feeding during the first year..."*

Which I thought might interest you. Stunning, no? You'd think the advantages of nursing would be clear quite quickly. I wonder how much of that is "helpful" doctors suggesting "supplements" or similar nonsense? From the same study:

"At 6 weeks' postterm, exclusively breastfed infants were already 513 g (95% CI: 310-715) lighter and 1.6cm (95% CI: 0.8-2.3) shorter than the PDF group, and they remained smaller up to 9 months' postterm."

You have to imagine that that makes formula look like a good idea to the extremely short of sight...

* from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/108/3/703

edit: interestingly, see:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ao4rE.EHb4Gui4OTgfs21Arty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071030211129AAKd1sK&show=7#profile-info-CpWGvDvRaa

(baby was in NICU, 'wish I could've breastfed')

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Asxqam0vU1RwUbYIH49X2Ezty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071030213057AAm0dus&show=7#profile-info-CpWGvDvRaa

(same mother five minutes later -- 'I can relactate? YAY, tell me more')

You can kinda see the "helpful" nurses and doctors fetching the poor new mum who "couldn't" breastfeed her poor baby in the NICU some free formula to take home, eh? Sigh...

Answer 6

A lot of preemies need to have more calories than what breast milk can provide. My baby girl was 8 weeks early, and buy the time she would have been able to breastfeed (@ 4weeks) The doctors recommened 22Cal formula to help her gain weight (& she did... she is 7lbs 4oz and 11 wks old when she was 2lbs 10oz when she was born)

Answer 7

just to toss in the large breasted thing here... size does not matter... it can be a little more difficult, but so is finding a blouse that fits you.

I know of somone who breastfed twins w/ a size H cup... they were very small - like 3-4 lbs each... pumped at first, then w/ a nipple shield, then by 4-5 months they were both just on the breast like normal. Neither ever had a drop of formula... one got a few servings of a human milk fortifier (which is made from human milk) by prescription mixed in w/ mom's milk.

Answer 8

my son was only 4 weeks early and hes breastfed and almost 7 months:) although some of them cant be breastfed and only get food though ivs some mothers breastmilk dires up- i knew a women who pumped for 8 months until she dried up because he son was in the nicu with an intestinal problem. but it is better for them especially a preemie- some hospitals even take breastmilk donations for it
ALso, a very good friend of mine had her baby at 23w 5 d and she obviously couldnt eat yet but my friend was pumping. unfortunatly Leiya only lived for 2 weeks:(

Answer 9

Several reasons:
-NICU babies need to be fed very frequently and often the mother's milk isn't quite in

-Breast Feedings often mean that the babies have to be out of the incubators and this poses a risk for some babies.

-Babies that age aren't fully developed and often will not latch. The baby cannot afford to lose weight while waiting for milk to come in.

-Some babies have to be on a higher calorie formula to promote weight gain

-Some babies have to be tube fed

All in all when a baby is placed the NICU, most often the attention is on making sure the baby can survive and if it's most likely that the baby will do best while on formula, that's what they are given. The las thing that mother needs is to be hastled over not breast feeding. No one argues that breast feeding is what's best for the babies...but it isn't always possible.

i hope this helps.

Answer 10

I was not allowed to breast feed my daughter since I was on lithium. she was 5 weeks early. I wanted to and when I did try they yelled at me. She took right to it though. So I cried and put up w/ bottle feeding her and am now feeding her nutramigen which is really expensive.