CLEVELAND — Last month, the American Academy of Pediatrics made some changes to its policies on breastfeeding, saying it now supports mothers breastfeeding babies for their first two years.
This caused all the mothers in our newsroom to gasp.
For most mothers, breastfeeding and pumping for the first year is hard enough. But two years?
Don't panic.
In this week's Mom Squad, 3News' Maureen Kyle talks to two experts, a pediatrician and a lactation consultant, who say this isn't a requirement. It's to help support women who want to breastfeed longer.
“I think things like this does help, I think opening up the discussion that a lot of families want to breast feed this long,” says Lauren Lasko, a nurse practitioner and lactation consultant.
“I have a lot of patients who kind of quietly ask me, 'Can I keep nursing if I want to?' Which you absolutely can. I think at the end of the day, it's about choice and I think we need to work together to honor that every family is going to make the best decision possible.”
Lasko also brings up the point that this new language from the AAP could help with federal protections. Right now, mothers who work are only protected for the first year after a baby when it comes to break time at work for pumping.
In the Mom Squad Pod podcast and Mom Squad streaming show on WKYC and YouTube (see below), listen to an in-depth conversation with both Lasko and pediatrician Dr. Lauren Beene with University Hospitals about the health benefits, what to do if you are struggling with breastfeeding and other recommendations.
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