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Home › Articles › Overcoming Difficulties › Diabetic Moms

Diabetic Moms

Can They Be Breastfeeding Moms?

By Gwen Morrison

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You want to breastfeed your baby, but as a diabetic mom, you wonder if nursing will worsen your symptoms or somehow harm your baby. Jolene Porter, RNC, IBCLC, from Exeter N.H., relieves those worries by telling moms that they can successfully breastfeed even when they are diabetic.

Diabetes is classified as the body's inability to produce enough insulin. Insulin is required by the body to regulate your blood sugar levels. "Breastfeeding has a positive effect on [Mom's] blood sugars," says Porter. "Some diabetic moms need less insulin while they are nursing." It is beneficial for both Mom and Baby, in most cases.

"My blood sugars remained in check easier," says Andrea Duval of Ann Arbor, Mich., a mother and the co-founder of Moms4Momsmilk, a grassroots organization dedicated to informing others about breastfeeding. "I am still nursing my 3-year-old, and I even pumped."

Clinical research has shown that mother's milk may even lessen the chances of passing on diabetes to babies who are at an increased risk. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C. reports in their Blueprint for Action on Breastfeeding that most recent studies on infant feeding have found lower rates in chronic diseases among children who were breastfed. It also states that recent findings suggest that breastfeeding may reduce the risk of type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

"Babies born to diabetic mothers are at an increased risk for diabetes themselves," says Porter. "These babies need to be breastfed for the added protection that breast milk gives."

As per diabetic protocol at Duval's hospital, right after delivery her daughter was whisked away to the Special Care nursery to be monitored for 24 hours. "I made it clear to the nurses that I didn't want my daughter to have ANY formula, especially since they could control her blood glucose levels with the IV," says Duval. "I also made it clear to the nurses that they were to call me if Heather was hungry."

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