National Breastfeeding Month: Championing Lactation Support for Moms and Babies

August is National Breastfeeding Month, a time dedicated to celebrating the powerful health benefits of human milk while also working to protect, promote and support lactation practices and policies. As part of Pediatrix® Medical Group's ongoing commitment to this, many of our affiliated neonatologists collaborate with our hospital partners to lead lactation and infant feeding programs in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and newborn nursery.

Jenelle Ferry, M.D.,neonatologist at Pediatrix® Neonatology of Florida and St. Joseph's Women's Hospital in Tampa, serves as director of feeding, nutrition and infant development. In this critical role, Dr. Ferry helps create and modify policies, guidelines and protocols that affect all aspects of infant feeding and development for newborn and NICU babies. A large focus of this is how to best provide breast milk to all infants, prioritizing mom's own milk and providing donor human milk when needed. For the highest risk and tiniest babies, this also includes providing exclusive human milk, including human-derived fortifiers avoiding formula and other cow's milk products, and continually evaluating the best ways to provide human milk.

Dr. Ferry stays up to date on the latest feeding research by following medical journals and attending national and international meetings to network and brainstorm with other human milk leaders.

She also regularly shares her expertise with leading media outlets to help educate parents on a wide variety of breastfeeding related topics. Here's a roundup of some of the top stories:

How often should you pump? In this Parents article, Dr. Ferry guides breastfeeding moms on the ideal pumping frequency as well as how much breast milk should be pumped at once. "If you are pumping exclusively, you should essentially be pumping as frequently as your infant eats," she said. "This means every two to three hours in the newborn period, and after the first month every three to four hours."

How long should you try and breastfeed, according to doctors. In this POPSUGAR article, Dr. Ferry shares recommendations from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Academy of Pediatrics and World Health Organization and discusses the benefits of extended breastfeeding and when (and how) to stop. "Breastfed infants have a stronger immune system to fight bacteria and infection and a lower risk of asthma, ear infection, diabetes and diarrhea-related illness," she said.

Can you mix breast milk from different days? Experts explain. In this Pregnancy & Newborn article, Dr. Ferry discusses how long breast milk can be stored, if breast milk from different days can be mixed and advantages of doing so. "Refrigerated breast milk or frozen breast milk may look or smell different than fresh breast milk, and that's OK," she said. "Thawed breast milk, in particular, may look or smell soapy because of the breakdown of fats; parents can sometimes worry this means the milk has gone bad, but it is, in fact, safe to drink."

Safe handling for breast milk, formula, sippy cups and more: What you need to know. In this Care article, Dr. Ferry discusses how to properly and safely manage breast milk, from storing and refrigerating to preparing bottles and transporting. "Hand washing remains the most important and impactful way to reduce all types of infection," she said. "Always wash your hands before breastfeeding or preparing any bottles."

What is colostrum? In this Parents article, Dr. Ferry discusses all there is to know about baby's first milk, from what it contains and looks like to how long it lasts and how much a newborn needs. "The amount of colostrum that a parent produces/baby gets in the first few days is extremely variable and can differ from baby to baby," she said. "In general, I think it's important to reassure families that very small amounts continue to increase every day."

Learn more about our neonatology services or find care in your area.