Adopted Baby Breastfeeding

There are many benefits for breast feeding a baby, especially adopted baby.

Reasons to choose adoptive breast feeding

In the ancient years, adoptive breast feeding was a common practice among the women. That is the baby was not fed by their natural mother. Those women who used to feed the babies of other women were then referred as wet nurses or milk mothers. They used to feed their milk to those babies whose mothers were not capable to breast feed their baby due to any kind of deficiency or due to their social status in the society.

Although breast feeding is very much beneficial for the babies, but now days the trend of milk mothers had reduced to a very low extent.

The benefits of adoptive breast feeding include:

• A type of bonding that is very much optimal with the baby.
• This will also result in a kind of emotional attachment with the baby.
• This would also help the immune system of the baby to become stronger.
• The baby is protected from some kind of diseases like asthma, eczema, ear infections or any kind off allergies.
• The child would have low rate of obesity.
• The risk of tooth decay would also reduce.
• It would lead to benefits of health in both the mother as well as the baby.
• Breast feeding is more environments friendly to feed the child.

The possibility of adoptive breast feeding

Some times induced lactation is used as a word for adoptive breast feeding. When women gave birth to the child in general her body would start producing milk. But in the case of adoptive mothers this process of milk producing in the body must be initiated. Due to advancement in the field of medication this process of induced lactation had became possible. It had proved to give extra ordinary results in many of the cases.

Medication

Domperidone and Metoclopramide are the two popularly known medicines to induce lactation in adoptive mothers. The popular brand names of these medicines are Motilium and Reglan respectively. These medicines would initiate the production of milk in the body and would help in maintain the breast milk. These medications should be started at least in 2-3 weeks before the actual nursing is needed. Some kind of irritability may induce in the body as a side effect.

Herbal methods for lactation

In some cases herbal methods has proved them self for initiating the production of the milk in the body. These methods include:

• Milk thistle
• Chamomile
• Fennel
• Motherwort
• Fenugreek
• Asparagus racemosus
• Red raspberry

These herbal methods could also lead to some of the side effects. Before practicing any of these medications or herbal supplements you may always consult to your lactation specialist to avoid any kind of harmful side effects.

Feeding the child more frequently may help you to boost up the milk supply in your body. Breast pump may also prove to be beneficial.