title: Breastfeeding patterns: comparing the effects on infant behavior and maternal satisfaction of using one or two breasts.
abstract: In the Western world advice given by breastfeeding consultants about the use of one or two breasts at each feed has resulted in apparently arbitrary changes over time. This study compared 1-month-old breastfed infants' reactions to single- and two-breast feeds in terms of restlessness, crying, sleeping, and frequency of feeds, wet diapers, and loose stools. Eighty mothers were randomly assigned at the maternity ward, 44 to the single-breast group and 36 to the two-breast group. At one-month follow-up no differences between the groups were seen regarding any infant behavior variables, or in terms of maternal satisfaction, confidence, and mood throughout the full 24-hour observation period or during a 6-hour period in the evening. Compliance with the assigned feeding method was better in the two-breast than in the one-breast group. This may partly be due to tradition, since the two-breast practice has been recommended by child health nurses in Sweden for over 50 years. It seems reasonable that a baby should be allowed to finish the first breast and, if still hungary, be offered the second breast. The baby's appetite is the deciding factor.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Righard
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Flodmark
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lothe
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Jakobsson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001942:Breast Feeding; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D002666:Psychology, Child