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Fewer women continue to breast feed upon returning to work

Summer Ray of Hamilton, with her 5-month-old daughter June McLean, wanted to breastfeed her baby for at least six months as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. But after returning to work she was demoted and eventually terminated after getting into a battle with supervisors about needing ample time and space to pump her breast milk. The stress and lack of time eventually led to the loss of her milk and she now bottle feeds her baby.

Staff photo by Samantha Grier Summer Ray of Hamilton, with her 5-month-old daughter June McLean, wanted to breastfeed her baby for at least six months as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. But after returning to work she was demoted and eventually terminated after getting into a battle with supervisors about needing ample time and space to pump her breast milk. The stress and lack of time eventually led to the loss of her milk and she now bottle feeds her baby.

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By Tiffany Y. Latta, Staff Writer 8:32 PM Sunday, April 26, 2009

HAMILTON — Summer Ray said she wanted to give her infant daughter a good start in life and breast feed her for six months.

“I wanted to give her the best thing for her,” the 21-year-old Hamilton woman said. “I wanted to have that special bond I heard so much about and I thought breast feeding was the most maternal way to do it.”

But shortly after returning to work from maternity leave, Ray said her milk dried up after struggling with supervisors at a local grocery store to get ample time and space to use a breast pump to express milk for her baby.

“It got really stressful and uncomfortable,” Ray said. “It got to a point where I started seeing my milk getting less and less to the point that I wasn’t getting any.”

Ray’s story is not uncommon. It illustrates that although most state laws support breast feeding and research overwhelming support its benefits over the bottle, lactating women continue to face obstacles when returning to work.

As a result, the number of women who continue to breast feed through six months — the minimum time recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics — is low.

More than 77 percent of women try breast feeding in the hospital, but only 34 percent continue through six months and just 16 percent nurse for one year, according to a study by released August 2008 by Brigham Young University researchers.

Among the top reasons women don’t attempt breast feeding or stop is because they’re planning to go back to work, said Dr. Laura Viettmann, a 1987 University of Cincinnati Medical School grad and a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics.

“They’re worried that they couldn’t possibly find the time or that the environment won’t support it,” Viettmann said.

Viettmann, a lactation specialist, said women need only 15-20 minutes to pump their milk during a work day.

She said women worried about negative reactions from their employer should contact a breast feeding advocate at a local hospital or in their community.

“Breast feeding advocates who speak to employers usually ask what they do for employees who need a cigarette break,” Viettmann said. “It’s not a huge amount of time and if they can do something for smokers, they can do something for people who are trying to keep themselves healthy and their baby healthy.”

Dr. Kelly Cole, an obstetrician at Fort Hamilton and Seven Hills Women’s Health Centers in Hamilton, said while breast feeding can be difficult, painful, and emotionally and physically taxing for some, more working mothers would stick with it if they had more support.

Cole said both white and blue collar women decide against breast feeding or stop nursing after returning to work, fearing it will interfere or cost them their jobs.

“It’s not a place where they feel they can. They don’t feel they have time,” she said. “And if they have a male boss they don’t feel comfortable asking or if they have a female boss without children they fear they may not be sympathetic.”

In 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set a national goal to increase the proportion of mothers who continue to breast feed their babies through the early months to 75 percent by the year 2010.

But with 71 percent of mothers working and only 22 states with laws relating to breast feeding or lactating mothers in the workplace, the goal seems unlikely, advocates said.

Butler County WIC Program officials train women to nurse their babies and offer clients breast pumps.

To get the breast pumps, though, employers must sign a form agreeing to allow their clients ample time and space to pump their milk at work.

Many companies refuse to sign it, said WIC Program director Cindy Meale and WIC Breast Feeding Specialists Kemberli Coffee.

Both said some of their clients later report being demoted, fired or decide to quit their jobs because of their battle with their employers.

Most, Coffee said, don’t have the money or wherewithal to file a complaint with authorities.

Procter and Gamble and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield provide provisions for lactating women. Anthem Blue Cross offers its employees lactation rooms and a Mothers at Work program that offers:

• Free breastfeeding consultations;

• A free kit loaded with breastfeeding resources;

• Discounted breast pumps with additional savings thanks to a subsidy from WellPoint. Procter and Gamble offers its employees a private lactation rooms. The amenities vary based on the site, but can include breast pumps, refrigerators, televisions, sinks and storage space.

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I have a four month old daughter and i have been exclusively breastfeeding since birth. I also have been back to work full time since she was two months old. I have to admit I am really frustrated with having to pump and miss out on time at work but its worth it for the benefits and the bond my daughter and I have. I think there should be laws in every state supporting breastfeeding, its the natural choice.

Jessica
5:45 AM, 5/15/2009

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I was never worried I'd be fired or demoted for breast feeding at work. I didn't want to lug the equipment and cooler to do so. It was too much of a hassle. I breast fed both children for 3 months and that was enough for me. I never "got" any of the extra "bonding" that supposedly comes with breast feeding. I frankly thought it was a nuisance (not my children but breast feeding). In fact, the majority of women I've spoken with on the subject shared my sentiments.

Lilith
3:05 PM, 4/27/2009

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