Skip main navigation

New offer! Get 30% off your first 2 months of Unlimited Monthly. Start your subscription for just £29.99 £19.99. New subscribers only. T&Cs apply

Find out more
Home / Healthcare & Medicine / Nutrition / Nutrition: Eating to Live Well / How to Breastfeed Successfully

How to Breastfeed Successfully

video
View transcript
14.7
Next, I will introduce you how to breastfeed successfully. There are several things that a mother needs to be aware of. To breastfeed your baby, first, you have to be well prepared before childbirth, and select a baby-friendly hospital to give birth to your baby. The second is that the mother has to gain enough confidence and believe that breastfeeding will be successful. Lastly, family supports and good communication with nanny are important. First, what is a baby-friendly hospital?
59.2
Since 2000, the Taiwan government has followed the regulation from WHO and started to promote baby-friendly hospitals. The difference between baby-friendly hospital and the traditional hospital is that it emphasizes the environments and assistance service of breastfeeding. So what does the baby-friendly hospitals provide? The first is that medical and nursing staff will make sure expectant mothers to understand the advantages of breastfeeding, and they can assist mothers to breastfeed successfully. Next, the nursing staff will help the mother to breastfeed the baby as soon as possible after delivery and this is the first time golden hour for breastfeeding. And it can last for 20 or even 30 minutes Why is it important?
104.6
It is because the lactation is mainly relied on the stimulation of baby’s sucking. Breastfeeding at the delivery table is to timely tell the mother’s body that the baby is delivered and needs breast milk. The timely breastfeeding at the delivery table will stimulate milk production. Third, a baby-friendly hospital encourages and implements 24-hour rooming-in service. In tradition hospitals, new born babies will be gathered in the Nursery Room and be taken care of by nurses. In a baby-friendly hospital, mothers learn how to take care of babies with the assistance of nursing staff and how to carry out breastfeeding in this 24-hour rooming-in service.
155.4
When mothers stay with babies for 24 hours a day, mothers will be able to learn when babies will cry and when they will sleep. Whey they cry, mothers can learn whether it is because of the wet diaper or hunger. When babies need milk, with 24-hour rooming-in, mothers can have the nursing staff to help to breastfeed the baby according to baby’s demand. And this very important for a mother to breastfeeding successfully in the future. The baby-friendly hospitals will not provide anything that interfere breastfeeding, such as baby formula or pacifier. This service enables mothers to step out the first successful step for breastfeeding in the hospital and they can continue breastfeeding after discharge from the hospital.

The Baby-friendly Hospital Initiative was launched by WHO and UNICEF in 1991. The initiative is a global effort to implement practices that protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

The gold time of 1st breastfeed is shortly after childbirth, this is also called “breastfeeding at the delivery table.” If the new mom can breastfeed successfully at the beginning, it will become easier later. Prof. Chen will explain the situation in Taiwan. How The Baby-friendly Hospital can help a new mom breastfeed their newborn.

In your region, do you have baby-friendly hospitals also? How do you learn these information? Do the doctors recommend it or you find breastfeeding information through other sources? If you are comfortable to share, let us know what you think! Please remember to avoid sensitive topics and we would recommend not oversharing in your post!

Want to keep learning?

This content is taken from Taipei Medical University online course
Nutrition: Eating to Live Well
View Course
See other articles from this course
This article is from the online course:

Nutrition: Eating to Live Well

Created by
Join Now
This article is from the free online

Nutrition: Eating to Live Well

Created by
Join Now
FutureLearn - Learning For Life

Reach your personal and professional goals

Unlock access to hundreds of expert online courses and degrees from top universities and educators to gain accredited qualifications and professional CV-building certificates.

Join over 18 million learners to launch, switch or build upon your career, all at your own pace, across a wide range of topic areas.

Start Learning now

Register to receive updates

  • Create an account to receive our newsletter, course recommendations and promotions.

    Register for free