The mother of all banks
Saturday, May 12, 2012
SHWETHA KANNAN reports
Tomorrow is Mother’s Day and the first connect between a new born baby and its mother is the time when she breastfeeds her child. While some mothers keep their children away from this privilege because of myths like colostrum, the first milk that is secreted after birth is not good, breastfeeding leads to the mother losing her figure etc., there are some mothers who are not able to provide their little ones with their milk because of poor health or other reasons. For such mothers, a milk bank is a ray of hope.
Jayashree Ramchandra (21) from Walkeshwar delivered a baby boy through caesarean on April 21, 2012. But it wasn’t an easy delivery because Jayahsree was hypertensive and the foetus was underweight. When her blood pressure shot up during the 30th week of gestation, doctors at the Cama and Albless Hospital at CST had to induce labour for the betterment of the mother and the unborn child. But when the induction failed and she couldn’t deliver vaginally, she had to undergo a caesarean. And this was how her 1.2 kg bundle of joy was born. Because of these complications, Jayashree faced some issues with regards to lactation and was worried about the nutrition of her child. But her worries were put to ease thanks to the fully functional human milk bank at the hospital. For eleven days, the baby was enriched with nutrition that a mother’s milk provides a baby with, as she was given the human milk stored at the hospital’s human milk bank. The child is now better and the mother full of smiles.
Another such mother is 28-year-old Noorjahan from Mazgaon, Mumbai. Her baby girl born on April 24, 2012 was a pre-term baby. After delivering the baby in the eight month of pregnancy, Noorjahan too had some issues with lactation, but because of the human milk bank at the Cama and Albless Hospital her baby is doing good and gaining weight.
Both Jayashree and Noorjahan feel that the concept of human milk banking is very useful and helpful as it provides the baby the essential nourishment when required the most. True. Why waste mother’s milk, which is no less than nectar for a child, by simply discarding it, when it can be used to give another baby the gift of good health?
This thought prompted Rajesh Bokadia, President, Rotary Club of Mumbai, Nariman Point (RCMNP) to start the initiative of establishing human milk banks in the city, making his club the first one to have started an initiative of this kind.
“Human milk banking is an issue that needs to be talked about especially in a country where thirty per cent of new born babies do not get the required quantity or quality of mothers’ milk. Mother’s milk is very essential for the baby’s growth and nutrition. While a lot is being talked about blood donation and other such causes, this issue addresses the need of the baby from the time it is born and hence is also equally important,” said Rajesh.
In this initiative, the RCMNP bears all the expenses of getting the equipments required for milk banking, sprucing up the place so that it looks like a milk bank etc. All they require from the hospitals is space to set up the bank. And Rajesh informed us that getting space and convincing the hospital authorities is the most difficult part.
“People have several reservations about milk banking and thanks to the bureaucracy and red tapism, getting a space to set up a milk bank at a hospital is difficult. We bear all the expenses of setting up the bank,” said Rajesh. Setting up a human blood bank requires around eight to ten lakhs. The hospital has to bear the recurring expenses which are negligible said Rajesh. The RCMNP has established two human milk banks in the city at J.J. Hospital, Cama and Albless Hospital and one at Dinanath Mangeshker Hospital at Pune and one at the Rajiv Gandhi hospital at Thane.
While this issue needs to be addressed with more vigour, the current set ups at JJ and the Cama and Albless Hospital, are doing well and the response from women to this initiative seems to be encouraging.
“The response to human milk banking is good but more needs to be done. The concept of human milk banking is extremely important and useful because babies who are under weight, are not able to suckle well or whose mothers aren’t able to lactate in sufficient quantities due to various reasons can benefit from such banks,” said Dr. Rajshri Katke, Medical Superintendent, Cama and Albless Hospital, where the human milk bank has been functional since 2007. The human milk bank at JJ too seems to be getting a good response. “Women, when properly informed, willingly donate milk. We collect nine to ten litres of milk per month,” said Dr. Ashok Rathod, head of the paediatric department, JJ Hospital.
So while the milk banks are doing their bit, what are the reasons not all women lactate in quantities that is enough to take care of the needs of her own child but also help other tiny tots get their share of good health? According to Dr. Suman Bijlani, Consultant Gynaecologist, Kohinoor Hospital and Director, Gyneguide clinic, the main reason for women not being able to breastfeed is lack of confidence.
“Fears like not being able to breastfeed the child or that the quantity wouldn’t be enough, affect lactation adversely. Then comes lack of education about lactation techniques like the correct way holding the baby, sitting in a position that will not tire the mother, giving the baby entire area and not only the nipples for suckling.
“Not knowing the correct latching techniques (the way the baby latches on the breast) which leads to cracked nipples and cracked nipples lead to painful breastfeeding, which might become a deterrent for breastfeeding,” concluded Dr. Bijlani.
Benefits of breastfeeding for the child and the mother
Breast feeding makes the child strong and gives it protection from infections. Mother’s milk provides up to thirty per cent of a child’s energy till the age of two. For mothers, breastfeeding provides protection against breast and ovarian cancers, osteoporosis and anaemia and helps facilitate the process of coming back to normal physical status.
What if a mother does not breastfeed?
Putting on excess weight; the necessary tissue changes that have to take place would not take place, which may lead to cancer. Toning of the abdominal tissues wouldn’t be proper and she may have to put in extra efforts, which, if she had breastfed her child, would have taken place naturally.
“During the first six months, the baby should be exclusively breast-fed and, after that, during the next six months, the baby can be given cow’s milk, mashed potatoes, moong water, etc., along with mother’s milk.”
Dr. Rajshri Katke, Medical Superintendent,
Cama and Albless Hospital
Reference Link
http://afternoondc.in/city-news/the-mother-of-all-banks/article_55375
Our baby is 1 year 8 months and still breast feeding. My wife wants to donate breast milk once. Can anyone guide?
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