Moxley S, Sims-Jones N, Vargha A, Chamberlain M
School of Nursing, University of Ottawa.
Can Nurse. 1996 Oct;92(9):34-7.
Breastfeeding advocates say that breastfeeding is health promotion in its purest form. Its considerable health benefits to the infant and the mother are well documented. Recent research has identified breastfeeding as a key factor in the prevention of sudden infant death syndrome and increased cognitive functioning. As a method of feeding, breastfeeding offers immediate economic advantages to the parents and long-term economic savings to society. One author reports that the exclusive breastfeeding of infants for four months could save the Province of Ontario at least $862,000 a year just by reducing the need for the treatment of otitis media. Another researcher calculated the cost of treating 150 bottle-fed babies hospitalized for gastroenteritis at $450,000 Canadian, while reminding us that "hospitalization for gastroenteritis is almost unknown for exclusively breast-fed infants." With all these known benefits, why is breastfeeding not more prevalent among Canadian mothers?
母乳喂养倡导者表示，母乳喂养是最纯粹的健康促进方式。其对婴儿和母亲的诸多健康益处已有充分记录。最近的研究已将母乳喂养确定为预防婴儿猝死综合征和提高认知功能的关键因素。作为一种喂养方式，母乳喂养能为父母带来直接的经济优势，并为社会节省长期的经济成本。一位作者报告称，仅通过减少中耳炎的治疗需求，婴儿纯母乳喂养四个月每年就能为安大略省节省至少86.2万加元。另一位研究人员计算出，治疗150名因肠胃炎住院的人工喂养婴儿的费用为45万加元，同时提醒我们“纯母乳喂养的婴儿几乎不会因肠胃炎住院”。有了所有这些已知的益处，为什么母乳喂养在加拿大母亲中并不更普遍呢？
