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Cost
Effectiveness of Breastfeeding
in the United States
If exclusive
breastfeeding was practiced for the first 12 weeks of an
infant’s life:
- $2.16 billion annually would be
saved because of less illness and disease country wide.
- $3.02 billion annually would be
saved from household expenses because of the reduced costs of
formula purchasing, family planning benefits and decreased
health care expenditures country wide.
If an infant is
breastfed for at least 6 months:
- $205 would be saved per infant
by the HMO, representing an almost 10% reduction in health
care cost in the first year of life (for the first year of
life each breastfed infant cost HMO $2,040 vs. non
breastfeeding infants cost $2,245).
- $491,000 would be saved annually
in health care costs by the HMO is 46% vs. the current 26% of
infants breastfed for the first six months of life.
If
working mothers breastmilk feed their infants for 100 work days:
- 27.3% less absenteeism would
take place from work.
- 35.7% less health care claims
would be filed.
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Benefits
of Breastfeeding
While many people are aware
that breastfeeding provides greater immunity for
children against a variety of illnesses and infections (such
as haemophilus influenzae meningitis, asthma and other
respiratory illnesses, diarrheal disease, ear infections (otitis
media), bacteremia, botulism, urinary tract infections, and
necrotizing enterocolitis), there are numerous other
benefits for children, women, families and society.
Children
benefit from:
- Higher
IQ scores and better school performance from increased
cognitive development
- Decreased
risk of obesity later in life
- Reduced
risk of sudden death syndrome (crib death), childhood
cancers, juvenile onset diabetes, ulcerative colitis,
Hodgkin’s disease and other chronic digestive diseases
- Decreased
incidence and severity of allergies
- Enhanced
visual, motor, and oral development
Women
benefit from:
- Reduced
risk of breast, ovarian and uterine cancer, as well as
osteoporosis
- Faster
recovery after childbirth due to decreased postpartum
bleeding, increased uterine involution, less postpartum
depression, and faster return to pre-pregnancy weight
- Highly effective, free
birth control with exclusive breastfeeding for up to the
first 6 months
Families
enjoy:
- Increased
maternal-child bonding, which can lead to better
parenting and may even decrease the incidence of child
abuse
- Longer
birth spacing
- Economic
benefits due to lower costs of medical care, not
purchasing formula, and decreased absenteeism from work,
can save a family $1,000-3,000 per year
Society
benefits because:
- Breastfed
children are healthier, which makes for a more
productive workplace in the future
- Decreased
tax dollars spent to subsidize dairy farming, free
formula, and health care programs
- Potential
for reduced health insurance premiums
- Decreased
social costs of morbidity and mortality
- Reduced
waste of natural resources and water, and decreased
garbage and pollution
Specific references available
upon request. Visit
web site at www.BreastfeedLA.org
for more information.
Use of Breastfeeding Fact
Sheets developed by The Breastfeeding Task Force of Greater
Los Angeles
contact Yvonne:
Yvonne@doulawithlove.com
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DOULA
WITH LOVE