Explain about the Lactation Process?
Lactation is a physiologic process which has profound relevance for both the mother and the newborn. It is the period following pregnancy when the woman nourishes a fully developed and a rapidly growing baby with breast milk. A lactating woman secretes about 500 ml milk day in the first month which increases to about 850 ml/day by the fifth month. On an average, a well-nourished lactating woman secretes about 850 day.
We need to understand the establishment and maintenance of lactation, if we want to help mothers with proper and effective lactation management and prevent lactation failure especially in case of inexperienced mothers. During pregnancy, changes occur in the mother's breasts to prepare for milk production and as you have seen, body fat are deposited to ensure that energy is available for lactation. The establishment and maintenance of lactation are determined by several factors including the anatomical structure of the mammary gland and adequate development of the alveoli, ducts and nipples, initiation and maintenance of milk secretion and the ejection of milk from the alveoli to the nipple.