statistic on % of women who are physically unable to breastfeed?

[MommytoHHH]

Ok, does anyone have a referenced (from a reputable source) statistic on the percent of women who are physically unable to breastfeed?

I swear there was a discussion thread on this a while back, but I tried like 6 searches and couldn't find it. I've also been through every single BFing book that I have looking for one and haven't come across anything...

Thanks!

[alegna]

I don't think any real research has been done that would give a real good solid number.

-Angela

[dogmom327]

I think a good way to go about it might be to see if you can find a statistic on how many women breastfeed in a country that hasn't been touched (or as touched) by the formula companies. I think I read a statistic on here somewhere (awhile back) that 99% of women breastfeed in countries where formula isn't an option. Sorry I don't remember the exact source.

[ColoradoMama]

I remember reading that the number is something along the lines of 5% of women are physiologically unable to fully sustain an infant with breastmilk. I believe that statistic included when who could make enough milk. I'm sorry, but I don't remember where I saw it. I do know that I read it when I was an LLL leader though. Maybe you could call LLL - or they have an email helpline, too (or they used to anyway). They could probably track it down.

[Limabean1975]

I don't have a source, but 5% is the number I have heard as well.

If there are areas that formula has not touched, I imagine there would be wet nursing, which would have been the solution before formula and it's precursors.

[PatioGardener]

Originally Posted by Limabean1975

I don't have a source, but 5% is the number I have heard as well.

The 5% came out of a small study in Colorado - the study followed 319 women who were highly motivated to breastfeed. They were mainly white, mostly married, mainly college grads, and mainly earned >$35,000/yr in the late 1980s. While the study was interesting (10 % of the women needed help to increase their milk supply, and 5% never could produce enough milk), the numbers were small, and the population studied was not similar to that of the rest of the USA. Because of this the results can't be applied to the rest of the country or a different population.

Unfortunately, the study that would really uncover the percentage of women who are physically unable to breastfeed hasn't been done.

(Study that showed 5% of the 319 Colorado women couldn't produce enough milk was: Neifert et al. 1990. The influence of breast surgery, breast appearance, and pregnancy-induced breast changes on lactation sufficiency as measured by infant weight gain. Birth 17(1): 31-38)

[leila1213]

I just wanted to throw in my two cents that I believe the number of women who "can't" physically breastfeed is higher in our country than others because of poor nutrition and the fact that our mothers were not breastfed (and thus we did not receive the proper gut flora when we were born), we were not breastfed (thus bad gut flora) plus all the abx and vax as well. I have read posts from firefaery and I think uccomama that over and undersupply are the result of gut problems. I totally believe this (just think of the ways that milk production in cows is controlled by farmers). And I think there are other factors attributable to nutrition and physical degeneration that make BFing difficult or impossible - like shallow and cleft palates, and possibly tongue-tie as well. Not a completely developed theory, but these thoughts have changed the way I view women who "can't" breastfeed and the lactivist tendency to think they "just didn't try hard enough". I really think lifestyle has made it increasingly difficult for this generation to BF successfully. JMHO

[MaryJaneLouise]

Crossposted from the low milk supply stickie in BF challenges. As with any statistic, its measurement depends highly on what your definition of "is", is. What is low supply? What is breastfeeding? Do you include supplementers? Do you include exclusive pumpers? Women who had breast reductions, augmentations, or other surgeries? Babies with congenital defects, cleft palates, high "bubble" palates? Preemies? Women with multiples? Etc.

Occasionally people will ask here what the "true" incidence of low milk supply is. I recently found a couple of good studies measuring this.

One thing to remember is that breastfeeding involves both mother AND child(ren) and many factors can affect supply, including infant factors, and pumping and/or WOH.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...RVAbstractPlus

This study estimates that 12% of healthy, singleton, term infants had excess weight loss. This is in a "crunchy" area (Davis, CA) with high educational levels and motivation to breastfeed, and where moms had good access to care with lactation consultants, etc. In other words, in an uncomplicated hospital birth with lots of support, 12% of singleton moms still had low supply problems.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2...ubmed_RVDocSum

This study measured 319 healthy, motivated, first-birth women who were breastfeeding full term, healthy, appropriate for gestational age or large for gestational age infants, and where only 7% had undergone previous breast surgery. It found that

15 percent had persistent milk insufficiency despite intensive intervention.

I personally believe that low milk supply is a much more common than many health professionals recognize, and that it is an important area for ongoing research. Rather than burying our heads in the sand regarding this issue, I think breastfeeding advocates need to get the information out there for women that this is a real problem, and that there ARE some things that can be done to optimize breastmilk production. Off my .

[gcgirl]

Originally Posted by MaryJaneLouise

I personally believe that low milk supply is a much more common than many health professionals recognize, and that it is an important area for ongoing research. Rather than burying our heads in the sand regarding this issue, I think breastfeeding advocates need to get the information out there for women that this is a real problem, and that there ARE some things that can be done to optimize breastmilk production. Off my .

Interesting...I was just coming on here to post a few tidbits from a review of studies by Frank Hytten in which he suggests that as many as 1/3 of women can't produce enough milk (based on his review of various studies). He suggests reasons for this might include the ready availability of other lactating moms in early human societies (regular cross-nursing) and thus less need for EVERY woman to produce enough milk for her offspring, and age (women over 30 produced less milk and milkfat than women under 20). There are other reasons too, like breast augmentation/reduction surgery (I wonder if the surgeons tell women ahead of time that this is a potential side effect).

When I first read Hytten's article, it felt like a slap in the face, but I realized we do have to ask the hard questions, and if the reality is many more women than we expect have trouble producing adequate milk, then like PP said, that needs to be addressed. His article is called "Science and Lactation," and it's reprinted in Infant and Child Nutrition Worldwide: Issues and Perspectives, edited by Frank Falkner. Hytten's is the only piece in there that isn't exclusively pro-breastfeeding. Anyway, I'm not ready to sign on to his conclusions just yet, but I agree more studies need to be done.

And in some of those countries where bfing rates are touted as 99%, that's only at discharge from the hosp/birthing center. Rates at 3 and 6 months were down significantly. Here's a link from kellymom to some bfing rates. http://www.kellymom.com/writings/bf-numbers.html#world

The Swedish study shows bfing down to 72% at 6 months. Interestingly, that's a drop-off of about 1/3. Hmm.

[ErinsJuneBug]

I just wanted to add that every mother CAN breastfeed. I could never produce enough to fully supply for DD (due to tubular breasts, i think) but i STILL breastfed...and continue to now almost 3 years later.

I hate hearing that mothers cant breastfeed - maybe they cant produce enough milk but they can still give their baby SOMETHING.

[MarcyC]

I would like to see a statistic on how much is spent each year on lactation aids - LactAids, SNS's, herbal teas (several companies make them), motherlove products, herbal supplements, etc. I think it would be interesting to get those facts!

[zinemama]

Originally Posted by ErinsJuneBug

I just wanted to add that every mother CAN breastfeed. I could never produce enough to fully supply for DD (due to tubular breasts, i think) but i STILL breastfed...and continue to now almost 3 years later.

I hate hearing that mothers cant breastfeed - maybe they cant produce enough milk but they can still give their baby SOMETHING.

This is a very good point. No one could ever figure out why I didn't produce enough milk for ds#1. And I had support galore. But by the time it was established that I was never going to produce enough for him, of course I wasn't going to stop nursing. (Even though nursing and supplementing is the worst of both worlds)

I'd be interested in knowing how many women who aren't able to exclusively breastfeed their first child go on to succeed with subsequent children. That's what happened to me.

[Sharlla]

It also varies PG to PG and different circumstances involved . I was unable to BF DS1 very long, my milk dried up after 2 weeks but I nursed DS2 for 2 years with no problem.

SIL nursed DS1 for 1 year no problem, hes DD was born 8 weeks early. She pumped/ BF while he DD was in the NICU for 5 weeks. Got her home, nursed a few weeks (even took reglan) and her milk dried up.

[ErinsJuneBug]

Originally Posted by zinemama

I'd be interested in knowing how many women who aren't able to exclusively breastfeed their first child go on to succeed with subsequent children. That's what happened to me.

REALLY? Oh man i hope so. No one could really tell me why i wasnt producing milk - and i tried everything. Sometimes i worry about having #2, should i just start with a SNS from the get-go, or wait until he/she looses weight and isnt peeing again? Was anything different with your 2nd pregnancy and birth? DD was a c-section and i always wonder how much that had to do with our breastfeeding probs.

[Ruthla]

I really have to wonder about all those "breastfeeding exclusively at 6m" statistics. Are they ONLY talking about formula, or are they including solids as well? Technically, any baby who's had a quarter teaspoon of mashed banana at 5.5mo would no longer be "exclusively breastfed at 6mo."

[Limabean1975]

Originally Posted by ErinsJuneBug

I just wanted to add that every mother CAN breastfeed. I could never produce enough to fully supply for DD (due to tubular breasts, i think) but i STILL breastfed...and continue to now almost 3 years later.

I hate hearing that mothers cant breastfeed - maybe they cant produce enough milk but they can still give their baby SOMETHING.

It's nice to hear a positive spin on it like that! My sister, even though she continues to nurse (with SNS), considers herself a breastfeeding failure. I wish she could see that despite great struggles and, as you say, the worst of both worlds, she IS successfully breastfeeding in her own way.

[zinemama]

Originally Posted by ErinsJuneBug

REALLY? Oh man i hope so. No one could really tell me why i wasnt producing milk - and i tried everything. Sometimes i worry about having #2, should i just start with a SNS from the get-go, or wait until he/she looses weight and isnt peeing again? Was anything different with your 2nd pregnancy and birth? DD was a c-section and i always wonder how much that had to do with our breastfeeding probs.

I know exactly how you feel. Nope, nothing different about pregnancy #2. If anything, it was more stressful, because I had a toddler clinging to me while I threw up and I could never flop down on the couch to rest.

Both kids were late. First birth was induced. Pitocin, no painkillers. Second time I went into labor on my own, but got back labor. So really, the two births were just different flavors of excruciating.

Both babies were initially very sleepy, wouldn't wake to nurse. Both snapped out of it at about the same time (2-3 weeks). But everything clicked with ds2. I really don't know why. I don't want to say it was psychological - because what does that say about my experience first time around? But this time I did have a terrific lactation consultant on board from day one and I was ready for problems. First time I was just blindsided.

[momofamiracle]

Originally Posted by ErinsJuneBug

I just wanted to add that every mother CAN breastfeed. I could never produce enough to fully supply for DD (due to tubular breasts, i think) but i STILL breastfed...and continue to now almost 3 years later.

I hate hearing that mothers cant breastfeed - maybe they cant produce enough milk but they can still give their baby SOMETHING.

I think we always need to be careful when we are dealing in absolutes such as always, never, can't, etc....you never know what a particular mother is dealing with in her life.

My best friend is about to have her first child. Long story short she has just recovered from a decade long eating disorder. She is diagnosed bipolar and is finally being managed correctly by her psychiatrist. The meds she is on have had her functioning well for nearly a year.

However, the meds she is on are contraindicated for breastfeeding. So what is her choice? Breastfeed and risk her fragile mental health or formula feed and have a chance at being mentally healthy for her daughter?

I think *most* women can give their babies something, but not all.

[GooeyRN]

I wonder the percentage of babies who can't breastfeed. Whether it be cleft palate, severe tongue tie, unknown reasons for failure to latch, etc.

I also think the percentage of women not being able to produce enough milk is higher than 5%. Just look at all of the women here on mothering with low supply issues. Some women go through great measures and can't produce much. Back in the days before formula, those women probably just brought their babies to women like me with oversupply issues. People don't cross nurse much now a days.

[zinemama]

Of course women may need to take medication that precludes breastfeeding. No one disputes this. But we're talking about women who physically don't produce milk - why and how often this occurs.