A refresher course for health visitors and school nurses : summarised report of the lectures given at the University, Hull, from 25th August-8th September, 1945 / the Women Public Health Officers' Association.

Date:
[1945?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A refresher course for health visitors and school nurses : summarised report of the lectures given at the University, Hull, from 25th August-8th September, 1945 / the Women Public Health Officers' Association. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    INFANT FEEDING By T. Morton Stewart, Esg., M.B., Ch.B., D.C.H., Honorary Assistant Physician, Victoria Hospital for Sick Children, Hull. N giving a lecture on infant feeding, it is quite impossible to cover the whole subject in the time at my disposal. One of the great problems to-day is the increasing number of women who do not success: fully nurse their infants, and I propose to deal at some length with the problems and difficulties associated with breast-feeding. Before going any further, I would like again to stress the necessity of getting the mother to breast-feed her child. I know all of you are aware of the advantage to both the mother and child, and I know you are all tired of being told them. The only contraindication to breast- feeding is open pulmonary tuberculosis in the mother. - In an article in the B.M.J. in 1942, Professor McNeil of Edinburgh draws attention to the serious waste of breast milk caused by neglect or mismanagement of breast-feeding. The gross amount of breast milk consumed by a baby in six months is about 210 pints. After deducting the infant deaths in 1941, there were 635,062 survivors, and their require- ments for the first six months were 164 million gallons. He considers it a reasonable estimate that one-third of this quantity, namely, 54 million gallons of essential ideal infants’ food, was lost through unnecessary weaning. In a report to the British Pediatric Association by Neale, Ciscie, Braid and Pierce in 1942, on an investigation into breast-feeding in Bir- mingham, the, writers decided that the present influences which are adverse to breast-feeding were :— (1) The doctor, who I am sorry to say was found to be worse than any single factor responsible for weaning babies ; (2) Queuing for shopping ; (3) Emotional disturbances, especially anxiety about husbands ; (4) Part-time work. H. K. Waller, in the “ Lancet” in 1943, presents evidence for the existence of a reflex controlling the outflow of milk from the breast. He suggests that the failure of breast-feeding, so common during the second and third week, is due to frustration of this ‘“ draught ” reflex by over-distension. If this theory is correct, it lays emphasis on the need for putting the baby to the breast early ; for feeding from both breasts at each feed, and for suckling in the early stages at least every three hours. In an article in the B.M.J. early this year A. Witkin draws attention to a fact which he considers of great importance. He advises expressing by hand some of the milk immediately before each feed, and advises the giving of both breasts at each feed. He describes the mammary gland as consisting of several lobes round the nipple, and likens these 192
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