Breastfeeding – Midwife Tamika

Have you heard about the magic hour?

As a midwife and mother I have witness and experienced the almost magical and mystical power of skin to skin contact in the first hour of birth. There is substantial evidence to suggest that the impact of this imprinting time is vital for bonding between mother/infant, establishing breastfeeding and the establishment of life in the extra uterine environment. A number of things instinctively happen when a mother is left undisturbed with her infant in the first hour after birth. Sometimes the amount of oxytocin in the room following a birth is almost palpable.

When a mother and baby are left undisturbed to connect and commence breastfeeding infants are more likely to successfully breastfeed then those who are separated at birth. The ability for baby to achieve an optimal latch and minimise painful latching is also intensified when babies go through this stage within an hour of birth.

The breast crawl is something that I am always amazed to see. Infants usually exhibit the following stages following birth …

Rest and relax

This is where the baby who has just been through the birthing journey will often just rest and be peaceful. Some babies will even go to sleep during this time.

Awakening the senses

During this time the baby will appear alert and may suck his/her fists and lips the baby may start salivating and then will start making their way down to the breast

Crawling to the source

Babies will use all sorts of mechanisms to get to the breast unassisted. Some babies will bob their heads, others will do a little cheek walk and others will throw themselves down towards the breast.

The first latch

Once the baby is in the vicinity of the nipple – most babies will start to attempt to latch. They will often grab at the breast with their hands/lick or nuzzle the areola and eventually will latch on with very little assistance from mum.

The importance of this magic hour

Allows the infant to regulate their body temperature, heart rate, breathing and stabilise blood sugar levels
Encourages hormone boost in mother to help stop bleeding and start the lactation process
Assists the mothering/bonding hormone between mother and infant (certain hormones are released during this time to assist with bonding)
Encourages first latch, imprinting latching technique that can assist with establishing breastfeeding
Allows baby to receive all of their cord blood

When families are pregnant there is often significant emphasis on the labour/birth process and not a lot of thought goes into what happens in the moment and days following the birth. It is really important to be aware and understand the physiological normal principles that can follow the birth of your baby and ensure that they have the best opportunity to follow these principles. Immediate skin to skin and allowing baby to do the breast crawl can also be facilitated in most births – both planned/unplanned cesarean births, instrumental births and even premature births.

Speak with your care provider and have uninterupted skin to skin and allowing baby to do the breast crawl added to your list of birth preferences. Even after the first hour – keeping baby skin to skin for the following days is also a great way to establish breastfeeding.

Tamika x

I have see this article around Facebook recently. I also hear lot of talk about parents introducing solids to their 8/9/10 week old babies.

The fact that I hear of many parents introducing solids too early really concerns me so I wanted to share some information.

Whilst there is still debate in regards to the timing of introduction of solid foods (4-6 months vs 6 months), there is unilateral agreement from health authorities worldwide that babies should NOT be introduced to any form of solid food before the fourth month of a babies life.
Countless studies have shown that introducing supplementary foods before at least the fourth month of life poses significant risk and health problems to infants as before this age, – the digestive system, immune system, kidneys and ability to chew and swallow are not yet fully developed or ready for solids.
Early introduction of foods has been proven to increase the risk of asthma, allergies, coeliac disease, digestion problems, gastroenteritis, respiratory tract infections, ear infections, obesity, diabetes and SIDS death.
For over 20 years now many health experts (The World Health Organization, Unicef, American Academy of Paediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, Australian National and Medical Research Council, Health Canada, SIDS and Kids association, Le Leche League and Australian Breastfeeding Association) agree that it is best to leave the introduction of solid foods until at least 6 months.

The current recommendations from all advisory bodies mentioned include: babies should be exclusively breastfed (no cereal, juice or any other foods) for the first 6 months of life.
Not only does introducing solid foods prior to the recommended time frame increase health risks for the infant but also impacts the breastfeeding relationship and the mothers ability to maintain her milk production.

By replacing breastfeed with solid foods and enforcing artificial spacing of feeds (especially in the first three months when milk production regulation is establishing) the mothers milk production may decrease.

You can read more on my thoughts on when and how solids should be introduced here.

Tag: Breastfeeding

The Magic Hour

Dangers of early introduction of solids