Recommended Core Competencies for Specialists Practicing Breastfeeding and Lactation Medicine.

A central goal of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine is the development of clinical protocols for managing common medical problems that may impact breastfeeding success. These protocols serve only as guidelines for the care of breastfeeding mothers and infants and do not delineate an exclusive course of treatment or serve as standards of medical care. Variations in treatment may be appropriate according to the needs of an individual patient. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine recognizes that not all lactating individuals identify as women. Using genderinclusive language, however, is not possible in all languages and all countries and for all readers. The position of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (https://doi.org/10.1089/bfm.2021.29188.abm) is to interpret clinical protocols within the framework of inclusivity of all breastfeeding, chestfeeding, and human milk-feeding individuals.

Islamic Beliefs About Milk Kinship and Donor Human Milk in the United States.

Milk kinship is an Islamic belief that human milk creates a kinship between the breastfeeding woman and her nonbiological nursing infant (as well as the woman's biological nursing infants) prohibiting future marriages between "milk brothers and sisters." As such, Muslim families in the Western world may be reluctant to use donor human milk from human milk banks given the anonymity and multiplicity of donors. Health care providers for the mother-newborn dyad should be aware of this belief to have respectful, informed conversations with Muslim families and appropriately advocate for healthy newborn feeding. With this article, we outline the basis of milk kinship in Islamic beliefs, explore religious and bioethical interpretations of milk kinship, and provide information for physicians and other health care workers to become more knowledgeable about this practice.

ABM Clinical Protocol #14: Breastfeeding-Friendly Physician's Office-Optimizing Care for Infants and Children.

A central goal of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine is the development of clinical protocols for managing common medical problems that may impact breastfeeding success. These protocols serve only as guidelines for the care of breastfeeding mothers and infants and do not delineate an exclusive course of treatment or serve as standards of medical care. Variations in treatment may be appropriate according to the needs of an individual patient.

Children's drinking water: parental preferences and implications for fluoride exposure.

PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to: describe children's drinking water sources; determine if any demographic factors are associated with water choice; describe parents' reasons for selecting bottled water; and determine parents' ability to provide enough information about their drinking water for providers to assess children's fluoride exposure. METHODS: Subjects were parents of children 6 months to 15-years-old. A questionnaire was verbally administered in English or Spanish. Chi-square analyses were used to evaluate associations among study variables. RESULTS: Of 194 parents, 134 (69%) gave their children bottled water either exclusively or with tap water. Bottled water use was not significantly associated with the primary source of tap water, parent's education level, or household income. Reasons for giving children bottled water included: fear of contaminants in tap water; taste and/or smell of tap water; and convenience of bottled water. For parents using bottled water, over 65% did not know the brand's fluoride content. CONCLUSIONS: Barriers to an accurate fluoride assessment include frequent bottled water use and parental uncertainty about its fluoride content. By initiating communication with parents and educating them about fluoride sources, health care and dental providers may be able to better evaluate the adequacy of children's fluoride exposure and decide whether fluoride supplementation is necessary.

The Nuts and Bolts of Breastfeeding: Anatomy and Physiology of Lactation.

Breastmilk is the physiologic norm for infant nutrition. Despite recommendations from major health organizations, many women in the U.S. are not achieving this metric. Understanding breast anatomy and lactation physiology will allow physicians to gain knowledge of the processes, which control lactation enabling physicians to appropriately manage the breastfeeding dyad. The interplay of hormones involved in lactation and milk management affect milk initiation, as well as ongoing milk production (galactopoesis). The unique components of breastmilk that provide protection against infection and chronic diseases also change between and during feeds. Colostrum and the importance of early skin-to-skin after delivery will also be discussed.

Promote Breastfeeding in the Outpatient Setting: It's Easy!

The numerous benefits for both mother and baby of breastfeeding are evidence-based and well-defined. Breastmilk is the physiologic norm for infant nutrition, offering multiple health benefits and protections for mothers and babies. Although major medical and health organizations, which represent the health of women and children, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG), American Academy of Family Practice (AAFP), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Public Health Service (NPHS), all recommend exclusive breastfeeding, few women meet the recommended goals for duration and exclusivity, despite high initiation rates. This article will discuss the barriers women face when breastfeeding. Strategies will be discussed on how physicians and health care providers can assist and advocate for their mothers while helping to improve the health of women and children. Physicians/pediatricians can support women and design interventions that can help patients' mothers overcome these challenges.

Breastfeeding: What are the Barriers? Why Women Struggle to Achieve Their Goals.

Despite recognized health benefits for both mothers and infants, significant disparities still exist in the rates of breastfeeding in the United States. Major organizations representing the health of women and children (including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], American Academy of Pediatrics [AAP], American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology [ACOG], American Academy of Family Physicians [AAFP], United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization [WHO], and the United States Public Health Service [PHS]) recommend exclusive breastfeeding, but statistics show that although many women initiate breastfeeding, few meet the recommended goals for duration and exclusivity. This article reviews the evidence related to barriers (prenatal, medical, societal, hospital, and sociocultural) that many mothers face, and explore the known barriers and the impact they have on a woman's ability to breastfeed her infant. Strategies will be discussed to address (and potentially overcome) some of the most common barriers women face along with a list of resources that can be useful in this effort. Gaps in care and areas that need further research will be noted. This article is targeted toward physicians and other healthcare providers who work with women and who can assist with and advocate for the removal of barriers and thereby improve the health of women and children by increasing the rates of breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity in the United States.

ABM Clinical Protocol #18: Use of Antidepressants in Breastfeeding Mothers.

A central goal of The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine is the development of clinical protocols for managing common medical problems that may impact breastfeeding success. These protocols serve only as guidelines for the care of breastfeeding mothers and infants and do not delineate an exclusive course of treatment or serve as standards of medical care. Variations in treatment may be appropriate according to the needs of an individual patient.

The business case for breastfeeding: a successful regional implementation, evaluation, and follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Breastfeeding benefits the health of babies and mothers, but returning to work is a significant barrier for mothers wishing to continue breastfeeding for the recommended 12 months. A resource training kit, The Business Case for Breastfeeding (BC4BF), developed by the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, was implemented in Southeastern Virginia to assist businesses in developing lactation support programs (LSPs) and eliminating breastfeeding barriers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The primary goals of the 1-year project were to educate 20 businesses about breastfeeding support in the workplace, engage 10 businesses to implement the BC4BF, and assess sustainability via documented policy and environmental changes and integration of the LSP into the business infrastructure. The Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change was adapted to assess stage of organizational change. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tool for measuring community-level policy, systems, and environmental change was adapted to assess worksite policy and environmental changes. EVALUATION RESULTS: Over 20 businesses were educated about the BC4BF. Seventeen engaged in the project. Fourteen significantly increased their stage of change, development of LSPs, written policies, and physical and social environment changes (p≤0.001). A brief follow-up study revealed that all 14 employers maintained their programs 8 months after the program ended, with increased stages of change, policy enforcement, and physical environment (p≤0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The BC4BF provided an effective approach to assisting employers in establishing and maintaining LSPs in the workplace across several cities.

Pediatric resident perceptions of public health education: learner-based insights into curriculum design and implementation.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this research was to evaluate a public health curriculum for pediatric residents from the learners' perspective, exploring resident attitudes, insights, and recommendations as to the most effective and learner-centric approaches to curriculum design and implementation in the context of graduate medical education. METHODS: Forty-five of 59 Children's Hospital of The Kings' Daughters (CHKD) residents participated in focus groups and individual interviews. All sessions took place between June and July 2012 and were audiorecorded, transcribed, and coded for major themes using NVivo software. RESULTS: The 5 major themes identified by this study included: 1) perceptions of public health relevance and impact, 2) time and competing priorities, 3) speaker-audience harmonization, 4) the need for practical solutions, and 5) individual tailoring. Study results paint a distinctive picture of residents' ideal public health curriculum-a less structured, more individualized educational opportunity that prioritizes small group discussions, maximizes speaker-audience interactions, and details a wide array of specific community-based programs and resources available to pediatricians and their patients. CONCLUSIONS: The learner needs identified through this research suggest that effective public health training for residents would include protected time for public health instruction, faculty development workshops, linkages with appropriate local organizations, and opportunities for each resident to pursue his or her own projects. Residencies that wish to address learner preferences in the development and realization of public health training would benefit from considering these characteristics in designing their curriculum.