By Karen Miles, IBCLC
Wish you had more maternity leave to look forward to? And dreaming of it being fully paid leave, so that you don’t have to sweat paying bills? You are not alone. Maternity leave in the U.S., at just 12 weeks and unpaid by the national Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), is in stark contrast to many other countries.
Thankfully, some U.S. states, such as Washington state and New York, boast their own paid maternity leave programs to fill in the gap, and some large employers in the U.S. come to the rescue for their employees by paying for some maternity leave time. But not everyone is lucky to live in those states. And not every company can afford to offer a paid maternity leave program to their employees. The result may be worse national breastfeeding rates and other negative health outcomes than what we could achieve with longer, and federally-mandated, paid maternity leave.
A quick browse of the independent website World Population Review shows how we compare in the U.S. alongside other countries when it comes to national maternity leave standards. But be warned: You may start daydreaming of moving to beautiful Croatia, where maternity leave is 58 weeks and paid in full until 6 months postpartum, and then a “flat-rate benefit” after that, according to World Population Review.
If you live in the U.S. and are expecting a little one, you may be able to stash away paid vacation time to tack onto any state-provided and/or company-provided maternity leave. And if you are lucky enough to have paid-in-full or paid-in-part maternity leave, taking advantage of as many days off as you can may yield benefits – not just more snuggle time with your sweet baby, but the following breastfeeding benefits of longer maternity leave:
1. Less likely to stop breastfeeding early postpartum
Research shows that returning to work is one factor contributing to why some breastfeeding mothers stop breastfeeding before six months. Juggling pumping milk, working, and everything in-between puts a lot of pressure on the nursing parent. And the early days postpartum are a key time not only to heal from childbirth, but to learn how to breastfeed, and to establish good milk production by breastfeeding frequently plus spending lots of time with baby skin-to-skin. A study in the journal Pediatrics reported that “Women who returned to work at or after 13 weeks postpartum had higher odds of predominantly breastfeeding beyond 3 months…”, suggesting that longer maternity leave can help with breastfeeding goals.
If you are returning to work outside the home, and without on-site childcare or baby-in-the-workplace privileges for easy breastfeeding access, you may wish to pump in order to supply all the amazing components of breastmilk while you are away and help maintain your milk supply levels. Although a pump is an incredible tool, it can sometimes feel like a pain to lug a pump to and from work, and to clean and sanitize a plethora of pump parts each workday. However, don’t let that scare you away from pumping when and if you do have to go back to work. Watching videos of your baby – or scrolling through precious baby photos on your phone – while pumping can help get your milk flowing. And purchasing extra sets of pump parts (flanges, etc.) can give you a welcome break, when needed, from the pump parts cleaning rotation game. (No need to panic minutes before heading out the door to work if you forgot to wash pump parts the day prior. Simply grab the extra set of pump parts that is clean!)
In addition, partners who take leave can be protective of the breastfeeding relationship. A Swedish research study showed that “Infants whose fathers did not take paternity leave during the infant’s first year were significantly less likely to be breastfed…” at two, four and six months. If you are a single parent, surround yourself with supportive family members and friends who can pitch in occasionally with meals and household tasks after the baby arrives, while encouraging you in your breastfeeding journey. It may be hard to accept help with household tasks if offered to you, but you’ll be glad you did. It will give you more time to get into the rhythm of breastfeeding and bond with your baby.
2. Significant health advantages for mother and baby
The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, which advises physicians in the U.S. on breastfeeding protocols for their medical practices, powerfully sums up the research on health benefits of maternity leave in their Paid Maternity Leave protocol:
“As a shortened time of lifetime lactation is associated with an increased risk of maternal diseases including cancers, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases, women who are deprived of the right to breastfeed due to inability to take paid maternity leave are deprived to the right to health, and their children are also at increased risk for a number of acute and chronic diseases.”
Want to hear more great baby-and-mom health reasons to breastfeed? Check out the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)’s list.
3. For medically fragile babies, improved outcomes
If a baby is born prematurely or needs extra medical care due to a serious medical condition, the hospital where the baby is staying while being treated could be far from the family’s home and work site(s). In such cases, frequent skin-to-skin care, with the baby on the mother’s chest (or on the partner’s chest, if she is not available) is often encouraged by medical providers and made a lot easier when one or both parents do not have to work, or have a reduced work schedule. Also, for the preterm and low birthweight baby, the mother may be advised to express her breast milk frequently, as formula feeding may increase likelihood of the gut disease necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). And expressing milk eight to 12 times a day in the early days postpartum is more challenging when working.
But if work is a necessity for a mother while her baby is still in the hospital, an understanding boss, a readily accessible pump spot at work, and extra sets of pump parts and collection bottles (so that washing pump parts can be postponed until the day’s end), can help tremendously with meeting pumping goals. If you find yourself in these shoes, remember the old adage: It takes a village to raise a child! Don’t hesitate to ask family members and friends to help with meal trains, errands, etc. to ease the load.
4. Bonus: Saves companies money!
Convinced you need a longer leave? And do you want the same benefit for your present or future coworkers who are also expecting? Consider approaching your boss or human resources department with solid reasons to provide you with more time off work, and if possible, paid. Remember: Money talks. So share this statistic, cited by the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine:
“A U.S. analysis showed that organizations pay an average of $6.87 weekly per worker for any paid leave policies, but gain an average of $12.32 weekly per worker from increased productivity and reduced turnover.”
Karen Miles is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and Lactation Content Specialist with Milkify.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or be a substitute for medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider for any questions you may have related to your own health, or your baby’s health.
