Considering breastfeeding for your baby? Anai Rhoads addresses some common questions ranging from latching issues, benefits, effects on birth control and more!

Breastfeeding is the natural, physiologic way of feeding infants and young children, and human milk is the milk made specifically for human infants. Breastfeeding should be easy and trouble free for most mothers. A good start helps to ensure breastfeeding is a happy experience for both mother and baby.

QUESTION

Dear Lactation Consultant,
I have a question about chances for success at breastfeeding when your first time did not go well.I have a 20 month old son, and the day I had him, I got a fever in the hospital and was put on antibiotics. I was in the hospital a couple extra days hooked up to an IV. My milk did not come in until about the 7th day, and by that time my son had to be given formula to supplement, since he was not gaining weight. I was determined to breastfeed and make it work, and tried pumping and using a nursing supplementer.

The American Academy of Pediatrics currently recommends that "breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months, and thereafter for as long as mutually desired." If you and your baby are still enjoying the nursing experience, why not take a look at some of the advantages of nursing beyond that first year?

The purpose of breast compression is to continue the flow of milk to the baby once the baby no longer drinks ("open mouth wide -- pause -- then close mouth" type of suck) on his own, and thus keep him drinking milk.

You would like to breastfeed your adopted baby, or one born with a surrogate or gestational carrier? Wonderful! It is not only possible, it is fairly easy and the chances are you will produce a significant amount of milk. It is not complicated, but it is different than breastfeeding a baby with whom you have been pregnant for 9 months.

In the past three decades, the number of overweight two-year-olds has doubled. These statistics are alarming and should concern all parents. When your baby reaches 12 months old, you need to focus on some basic nutritional aspects.

Jaundice is due to a buildup in the blood of bilirubin, a yellow pigment that comes from the breakdown of old red blood cells. It is normal for old red blood cells to break down, but the bilirubin formed does not usually cause jaundice because the liver metabolizes it and gets rid of it into the gut.