Preterm infant is a baby born prior to 37 completed weeks of gestation. The preterm infant is not just a smaller version of a full-term baby, but it also demonstrates distinct differences in the physiology of almost all body systems. Thus, it goes without saying that such babies need extensive care, starting with breastfeeding.
The preterm infant is born with a very immature immune system and an
increased susceptibility to infections. Breast milk protects the preterm infant who is more prone to infections and the damage caused by inflammatory processes. Breast milk also possesses a unique feature of ‘specificity’ which is just the perfect composition of the right nutrients preemies need. Compared to ‘full-term’ breast milk, ‘pre-term’ breast milk has higher concentrations of protein, fat, energy, sodium, chloride, potassium, calcium, iron and magnesium.
So, if a mother chooses to give only artificial milk to her preterm infant, she is exposing her precious one to problems as such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), diarrhoea and urinary tract infections.
The baby benefits in a wide variety of ways from its mother’s breast milk, some of which are listed below:
Brain development: Preterm infants are born at a stage of rapid brain growth. A baby born at 28 weeks gestation will double its brain weight in eight weeks. This amazing growth makes them particularly sensitive to their early nutrition. Artificially-fed preterm infants experience significant cognitive deficits.
Enhanced mother-infant bonding:
A mother who has delivered a preterm baby has lot of concern for the baby’s health. By giving the baby her breast milk, her body will produce a ‘love hormone’ called oxytocin. Maternal oxytocin levels have been shown to peak after birth, being higher even than their levels during birthing, thereby enhancing her bond with the kid.
Kangaroo mother care (KMC): A positive nenonatal intensive care unit (NICU) culture that encourages maternal participation and skin-to-skin contact with the baby is the foundation of a healthy maternal-infant relationship. Maternal confidence and bonding increases the levels of competence of mothers, especially when it is started early (day one or two).
Mothers prefer skin-to-skin contact with their child because it allows for their infants to be close to them and they feel more at ease, fulfilled, and satisfied by the experience. During stressful situations such as prolonged hospitalisation of their infants, mothers practicing KMC feel more competent than others.
Cost saving: Providing precious breast milk to a preterm baby will also result in significant saving. This practice will cut down on the cost of providing artificial nutrition and will also mean less abdominal radiography, leading to reduced duration of hospitalisation.
So, even if the baby is a preterm one, there’s little reason to worry. The solution, often, lies in the mother’s breast milk.
(The author is lactation counsellor & child birth educator, Fortis Flt. Lt. Ranjan Dhall Hospital, New Delhi)
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