A Consultant Obstetrician/Gynaecologist, Dr Henry Laryea, has advised mothers not to use the erroneous impression that their breasts would sag after breastfeeding to deprive their babies of the benefits.
He said scientific research had proved that breastfeeding was not a cause of breast sagging, explaining that the major cause of breast sagging was the natural phenomenon of ageing whereby the tissues of the human body, in general, loses their elasticity and strength, becoming weak and resulting in sagging of the organs they support as they respond to the pulling effects of gravity.
Dr Laryea said in an interview in Accra last Tuesday that some young mothers were afraid of losing their feminity through breast sagging since it was considered that the breast was the most important external feature that defined a woman’s feminity.
Sagging breast is, therefore, associated with negative psychological effects of loss of self-confidence and the feeling of unattractiveness to men. Dr Laryea was contacted for his views following a recent media report that some mothers were refusing to breastfeed their babies because they thought breastfeeding would lead to the sagging of their breasts.
Dr Laryea said the phenomenon of ageing and loss of elasticity and strength was compounded by a significant reduction in the amount of estrogen (the hormone which has a tonic effect on female reproductive organs when the woman entered menopause.
The consultant, who is also the author of the book: Basic Knowledge of Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery said breast sagging was not limited to old age but young mothers also experienced it since other causes such as multiple pregnancies and deliveries, large heavy breasts, extreme weight loss or weight gain, strenuous exercises and smoking were contributory factors.
Dr Laryea was worried and asked what benefit a mother may derive from having a firm attractive breast but deprived her baby of the benefits of breastfeeding.
He explained that breast milk had all the nutrients the baby needed to grow, had a perfect mix of vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, fats and water in a form that made the nutrients easily digestible by the infant than formula feed.
Breast milk also contains antibodies that help boost the immune system of the baby to fight all forms of infectious diseases, thereby reducing visits to the hospital and hospitalisation.
The closeness of the baby to the mother during breastfeeding and the eye-to-eye contact of mother and baby makes the baby feel protected and also helps cement the bond of love between the two.
Dr Laryea said breastfeeding was not a parasitic relationship but a mutually beneficial relationship whereby the hormone, Oxytocin, released from the brain during breastfeeding helped the uterus to contract and reduce the incidence of excessive bleeding after delivery which is the major cause of maternal death in pregnancy.
Breastfeeding burns extra calories and helps the mother to lose weight gained during pregnancy faster.
It also lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancer in the mother.
He emphasised that unless medically advised not to breastfeed (for example in an HIV infected mother to help reduce the incidence of mother to child transmission), breastfeeding is critical for the proper growth of the baby.
He explained that although the sagging breast in most cases could not be fully restored to its original size, shape and volume, there were certain practical measures to prevent and improve the firmness of breast tissues.
These include a balanced diet, drinking enough water to hydrate the tissues of the body, practising good posture by keeping the back of the body straight and shoulders held back, wearing quality and proper fitting bra.
He recommended exercises such as press-ups and swimming to keep the body weight within the limits of height.
The consultant advised mothers to avoid excessive weight loss or gain and said those who were too much concerned about their body image could limit the number of pregnancies through effective family planning methods or go in for plastic surgery to correct the sagging breasts.
Source: BY: By Doreen Hammond
