Eastern Virginia Medical School, Pediatrics, Norfolk, Virginia 23507, USA.
J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2011 Dec;20(12):1767-73. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2010.2616. Epub 2011 Oct 3.
Hospital breastfeeding initiation rates (75%) show that most mothers in the United States want to breastfeed and are trying to do so. Even from the very start, however, mothers may not be getting the breastfeeding support they need. Low breastfeeding rates at 3, 6, and 12 months illustrate that women face multiple additional barriers to maintaining breastfeeding. What can we do to help more mothers be more successful? As healthcare providers, we need to be believers that breastfeeding is worth the effort. Perhaps most important for us is to realize that human milk is not simply a food but rather a complex, human infant support system. We can then articulate to families the importance of breastfeeding as a clinical imperative, a preventer of acute and chronic illness and disease. It will take integration, normalization, and mainstreaming of breastfeeding into our culture for acceptance and growth of the practice. Once we assist families in making educated decisions about breastfeeding, we need to provide supportive environments in our hospitals, medical practices, workplaces, and communities that implement the best ways to support breastfeeding. Breast milk is worth the effort, and the time has come to be ardent supporters of mothers and infants and their breastfeeding intentions.
医院母乳喂养起始率（75%）表明，美国大多数母亲都希望母乳喂养并正在努力实现这一目标。然而，从一开始，母亲们可能就无法获得所需的母乳喂养支持。3 个月、6 个月和 12 个月时的低母乳喂养率表明，女性在维持母乳喂养方面面临着更多的障碍。我们能做些什么来帮助更多的母亲更成功地进行母乳喂养呢？作为医疗保健提供者，我们需要相信母乳喂养是值得努力的。也许对我们来说最重要的是要认识到，母乳不仅仅是一种食物，而是一个复杂的、支持人类婴儿的系统。然后，我们可以向家庭强调母乳喂养作为临床必要性的重要性，预防急性和慢性疾病。接受和促进母乳喂养实践需要将母乳喂养融入我们的文化，实现整合、规范化和主流化。一旦我们帮助家庭就母乳喂养做出明智的决策，我们就需要在我们的医院、医疗实践、工作场所和社区中提供支持性的环境，实施支持母乳喂养的最佳方法。母乳是值得努力的，现在是时候成为母亲和婴儿及其母乳喂养意愿的坚定支持者了。
