World Breastfeeding Week: How to keep your baby safe while nursing amidst the COVID-19 pandemic

Here, as we celebrate World Breastfeeding Week, let us see how the current pandemic has an effect on breastfeeding and what a new mom must do to ensure her baby’s safety.

By: Jahnavi Sarma | | Updated: August 1, 2020 9:15 pm

So far, the virus has not been found in breast milk and all mothers are advised to continue breastfeeding. @Shutterstock

If you are a new mom, it is natural for you to be concerned about whether you should breastfeed your baby or not. We live in unprecedented time and the COVID-19 virus behaves in unpredictable ways. But scientists say that it is safe to breastfeed your baby even if you are COVID-19 positive. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) subscribes to this notion. On the occasion of World Breastfeeding Week, this is something that needs to be addressed. Breastfeeding is important for the proper development of a baby. Experts say that the benefits of breastfeeding, like nurturing mother-infant interaction, substantially outweigh the potential risks of transmission of the virus. Also Read - Things that could affect the taste, smell and quantity of breast milk

According to the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS), the main concern is the virus being transmitted from mother to infant through respiratory droplets, not breast milk. They issued guidelines for breastfeeding mothers that says women who choose to breastfeed should wear a face mask, wash their hands and clean their breast area with soap and water before each feeding. Mothers can also pump breast milk, but must ensure they wash their hands and clean all equipment. Frequently touched household surfaces should also be regularly disinfected. It is true that researchers have detected genetic evidence of coronavirus and its antibodies in breast milk. But scientists are not sure whether the virus in the milk could infect a baby. Also Read - Foods new moms should avoid after delivery

Here, as we celebrate World Breastfeeding Week, let us see how the current pandemic has an effect on breastfeeding and what a new mom must do to ensure her baby’s safety. Also Read - World Breastfeeding Week: Introducing solids while nursing

COVID-19 positive moms can breastfeed with the proper precautions

A new study, published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, says that mothers infected with COVID-19 are unlikely to pass the virus to their newborns while breastfeeding if appropriate safety measures are taken. Researchers found that wearing a face mask while breastfeeding and cleaning hands before handling the babies kept the novel coronavirus from spreading from mothers to their infants. They came to this conclusion after observing mothers and their babies at three New York City hospitals between March 22 and May 17. They found no cases of viral transmission among the 120 babies born to COVID-positive mothers, even when both shared a room and the mothers breastfed. The babies remained in enclosed cribs, six feet apart from their mothers, except while breastfeeding. Mothers wore masks when handling their child and followed proper hygiene procedures.

Researchers tested the babies for COVID-19 within 24 hours after birth and conducted follow-up tests. They saw that two weeks after birth, none of the babies tested positive for the virus or had any symptoms of the disease.

Precautions for breastfeeding moms

According to Unicef, breast milk is the best source of nutrition for babies and protects them against illness. Disruption of breastfeeding can lead to a drop in milk supply, refusal by the infant to take the breast, and a decrease in protective immune factors contained in breastmilk. This organisations has come out with a few tips for keeping mothers and babies safe during the COVID-19 crisis. So far, the virus has not been found in breast milk and all mothers are advised to continue breastfeeding, while practicing good hygiene during feeding. These include the 3 Ws.