All maternity wards were affected by the pandemic in one way or another, from mothers who work outside the home to those who stayed at home with their children, due to social distancing measures to reduce, prevent and avoid contagion and spread of the coronavirus.
Breastfeeding was also one of those aspects that underwent some changes due to the current situation, and we can see this in the LactApp Lactation Report 2020, which collects data on how the pandemic has affected breastfeeding .
A different lactation
As we know, due to this particularly difficult situation that we have experienced in the last year and a half, hospital protocols for deliveries, as well as follow-up consultations during pregnancy and postpartum, had to change for mothers who had a baby during delivery. pandemic .
These changes generally affected the experience of becoming mothers for many, and as we can see in the report ” This is how the pandemic has affected breastfeeding ” from the LactApp lactation application, various problems arose that in another situation would surely have been much smaller.
For example, it was found that during the pandemic, online consultations on breastfeeding increased by 116% compared to those in 2019, due to the closure of support groups and the difficulty of accessing face-to-face consultations.
Among the main doubts that arose in this increase in distance consultations, it is worth mentioning that online questions about breastfeeding techniques , such as breastfeeding positions and correct latching, rose by 103.7%, which are usually resolved during a face-to-face consultation.
Naturally, the lack of support groups and face-to-face care led to an increase in various problems related to breastfeeding, since mastitis consultations increased by 31% and those of low birth weight by 11.6%.
But the consultations that increased the most were those related to relactation , which shot up by 132.8% due to the separations of mothers and babies in the immediate postpartum that took place at the beginning of the pandemic, before knowing that the Infected mothers could breastfeed their baby without problems.
On the other hand, they highlight that the use of telemedicine or remote medical consultations increased: by 153% in Spain, 1,000% in the United States and 136% in the United Kingdom, with similar amounts in other countries.
The report also collects data from some studies related to mental health, which were carried out in other countries and which clearly show an increase in symptoms of depression and anxiety in recent mothers during the pandemic, reminding us of the importance of being present for them.
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