"Everybody knows that breast-feeding is good," she said. "But not everybody knows how to help mother succeed."
The federal government's Healthy People 2010 goals and a policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months, Ogburn said. Healthy People 2010 has set a goal for 50 percent of mothers to be nursing when their infants are six months old, compared with the 29 percent reported in 1998.
The benefits of breast-feeding for the child range from fewer upper respiratory infections to better bonding and lower rates of diabetes, Ogburn noted. And the American Academy of Pediatrics says that benefits to the mother include an earlier return to pre-pregnancy weight and a decreased risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
More information
Find out more about breast-feeding at the American Academy of Pediatrics.
