Lactation Consultant
Dr Barto has been helping moms successfully breastfeed for years. The birth process is a hard thing for babies to experience and can impact breastfeeding in a number of ways.
The birth process, whether it be vaginal or via c-section can cause that first subluxation. Misalignments of the skull, jaw and/or cervical spine can interfere with how a baby can latch and coordinate an effective suck and transfer of milk.
During vaginal deliveries, important molding of the cranial bones and activation of neurological pathways occur. When birth happens by c-section, these things don’t happen and can make breastfeeding more difficult.
The quick fix is a different hold, or pumping to bottle feed. The solution is restoring proper alignment and neurological function.
In 2023, Dr Barto became a Professional Lactation Consultant so that moms could better find the help they need in one place.
Why Breastfeeding Your Baby Is One Of The Best Decisions You’ll Ever Make
- Early breast milk is liquid gold – Known as liquid gold, colostrum (
coh -LOSS-trum ) is the thick yellow first breast milk that you make during pregnancy and just after birth. This milk is very rich in nutrients and antibodies to protect your baby. Although your baby only gets a small amount of colostrum at each feeding, it matches the amount his or her tiny stomach can hold. - Your breast milk changes as your baby
grows – Colostrum changes into what is called mature milk. By the third to fifth day after birth, this mature breast milk has just the right amount of fat, sugar, water, and protein to help your baby continue to grow. It is a thinner type of milk than colostrum, but it provides all of the nutrients and antibodies your baby needs. - Breast milk is easier to digest – For most babies — especially premature babies — breast milk is easier to digest than formula. The proteins in formula are made from cow’s milk and it takes time for babies’ stomachs to adjust to digesting them.
- Breast milk fights disease – The cells, hormones, and antibodies in breast milk protect babies from illness. This protection is unique; formula cannot match the chemical makeup of human breast milk. In fact, among formula-fed babies, ear infections and diarrhea are more common. Formula-fed babies also have higher risks of:
* Necrotizing (nek –roh -TEYE-zing) enterocolitis (en-TUR-oh-coh –lyt –iss ), a disease that affects the gastrointestinal tract in preterm infants.
* Lower respiratory infections
* Asthma
* Obesity
* Type 2 diabetes
Some research shows that breastfeeding can also reduce the risk of Type 1 diabetes, childhood leukemia, and atopic dermatitis (a type of skin rash) in babies. Breastfeeding has also been shown to lower the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome).
Mommies Benefit From Breastfeeding, Too
- Life can be easier when you breastfeed – Breastfeeding may take a little more effort than formula feeding at first. But it can make life easier once you and your baby settle into a good routine. Plus, when you breastfeed, there are no bottles and nipples to sterilize. You do not have to buy, measure, and mix formula. And there are no bottles to warm in the middle of the night! You can satisfy your baby’s hunger right away when breastfeeding.
- Breastfeeding can save money – Formula and feeding supplies can cost well over $1,500 each year, depending on how much your baby eats. Breastfed babies are also sick less often, which can lower health care costs.
- Breastfeeding can feel great – Physical contact is important to newborns. It can help them feel more secure, warm, and comforted. Mothers can benefit from this closeness, as well. Breastfeeding requires a mother to take some quiet relaxed time to bond. The skin-to-skin contact can boost the mother’s oxytocin (OKS-ee-TOH-
suhn ) levels. Oxytocin is a hormone that helps milk flow and can calm the mother. - Breastfeeding can be good for the mother’s health, too – Breastfeeding is linked to a lower risk of these health problems in women:
* Type 2 diabetes
* Breast cancer
* Ovarian cancer
* Postpartum depression
Experts are still looking at the effects of breastfeeding on osteoporosis and weight loss after birth. Many studies have reported greater weight loss for breastfeeding mothers than for those who don’t. But more research is needed to understand if a strong link exists.
- Mothers miss less work – Breastfeeding mothers miss fewer days from work because their infants are sick less often.
Difficulty With Breastfeeding (As Written By Dr. Jeanne Ohm, DC)
Modern birthing procedures, even those with seemingly minimal intervention, are known to cause trauma and stress to the infant’s cranium and spine. In a leading pediatric textbook on manual therapy for children, one author tells us, “When considering injuries and dysfunctions of the spine and its associated structures, the significance of birth trauma is often underestimated, and the resulting symptoms frequently misinterpreted.”
In the case of breastfeeding difficulty, as with many childhood disorders, the cause of the problem often traces back to undetected biomechanical injuries to the spine and cranium at birth. The failure to recognize these biomechanical injuries and their relationship to difficulty in breastfeeding leads to incorrect conclusions and therefore, inadequate recommendations and treatments. Without real solutions, mothers become discouraged, successful breastfeeding is not achieved, and women stop trying out of frustration.
Breastfeeding is by far the best choice for infant feeding for numerous reasons. Significant research shows that, from a nutritional, immunological
When infants are presented with any of the indicated difficulties (see below), once evaluated and adjusted accordingly, they respond favorably with chiropractic care. Normal function in the infant is often restored and breastfeeding continued without further complications and hindrances. Among other numerous benefits of chiropractic care for infants, the ability to successfully breastfeed has lifelong consequences for the baby’s future health potential. Including chiropractic care for your newborn may very well be one of the most important choices you make in support of the family wellness lifestyle.
Some of the most common indicators of difficulty with breastfeeding are:
- Babies who cannot latch firmly
- Babies who can latch and not sustain sucking
- Babies who are unable to smoothly coordinate suckling, swallowing, and breathing
- Babies who can feed in only one position
- Babies who seem dissatisfied when nursing or who remain fussy and distressed throughout the day
- Babies who chew and damage the mother’s nipples
- Babies who may not feed any better from other devices
- Babies who have the need to suck 24/7