ACOG Calls On Health Care Providers, Employers To Support Women Who Choose To Breast-Feed

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists on Wednesday in a committee opinion called on health care providers, employers and hospitals to support women who choose to breast-feed their infants in an effort to increase the number of women in the U.S. who breast-feed, Reuters Health reports (Reuters Health, 1/31). According to the committee opinion -- titled "Breast-feeding: Maternal and Infant Aspects" and published in this month's issue of the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology -- breast-feeding is the "preferred method of feeding for newborns and infants, and nearly every woman can breast-feed her child." A woman should not breast-feed if she uses illicit drugs or is a heavy drinker; if she has HIV or certain other viruses; or the infant has galactosemia, an uncommon condition involving high galactose sugar levels in the blood, the group said. ACOG recommends that women exclusively breast-feed their infants for at least the first six months after birth (ACOG release, 2/1). The goal of the federal government's Healthy People 2010 campaign is to have 50% or more of women breast-feeding at six months and 25% at one year. According to ACOG, this goal can be achieved if women receive proper support services and education. "Women should be supported in integrating breast-feeding into their daily lives in the community and in the workplace to enable them to continue breast-feeding as long as possible," ACOG said (Reuters Health, 1/31).

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