Does a baby's tongue tie cause breastfeeding difficulties?
Do tongue ties cause problems for breastfeeding mothers and their babies? For many Southern Ontario pediatricians/family doctors, it has become a question of faith: Tongue tie does not cause breastfeeding problems: not sore nipples for the mother, not difficulty for the baby latching on, not babies unable to latch on at all, and not babies not getting enough from the breast. And these reasons result in babies receiving supplements, usually of formula, and usually by bottle often on day 1, which then result in more problems.
By definition, a baby with a tongue tie does not latch on well. And if a baby is not latching on well, the mother is also at risk blocked ducts, mastitis and even breast abscess.
Health professionals, especially those who say that tongue tie is rare, will often blame the mother for not trying hard enough, for not accepting that breastfeeding is supposed to hurt (no, it is not supposed to hurt), and will often say to the mother “you wanted to breastfeed, so accept that it is rarely easy or painless”. Or if things are going well, the mother is simply told “you are one of the few lucky ones”.
Mothers are often told that they have to work at making breastfeeding successful. You have to overcome pain, crying babies who want to feed frequently.
Mothers often delay getting tongue ties released because they are told the procedure hurts. So does the injection of vitamin K, but doctors do not tell parents not to get the vitamin K. Tongue tie release does hurt, but in our clinic the baby immediately goes to the breast and the crying stops. But the best time to release a tongue tie is within a day or two of age.
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Instead of tongue ties being released, which we find very frequently results in pain free latching on, babies getting more milk from the breast and being happier, mothers are expected to tough it out and if they cannot manage, then formula is just fine.
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#breastfeeding #tongue tie #nipple pain #difficulty latching on #blocked ducts, #mastitis, #breast abscess.
Expectant & New Parent Coach. Newborn & breastfeeding preparation specialist, educator & speaker. Wholehearted support for your holistic journey towards secure attachment parenthood.
2 年Now, in British Columbia, Canada, midwives are no longer permitted to release tongue ties! This is troubling because it is ideal to do so in the first days of a baby's birth. A mom now has to go to a lactation consultant to get a referral to a physician. Yet, colleagues who are lactation consultants will often send a client to me for a second assessment (intra-oral and full body) to weed out faux-ties. As a craniosacral therapist, with the accreditation to assess tongue-tie, a lot of my referrals come from midwives, doulas, and lactation consultants. My full report of assessments which result in a recommendation for a tongue-tie release now have to be sent to a lactation consultant to write up the referral to a physician to do the tongue-tie release. Before, I was able to give my report to the parents and they would take it back to their midwife or physician and the tongue-tie release was done pronto. The new hoops parents have to go through is so frustrating, especially when the tongue-tie is suspected down the road. So much time by then has passed and mom and baby are struggling unnecessarily. What fires together wires together, so the sooner the procedure happens, the sooner the correct firing and wiring can happen.
Lactation Consultant IBCLC en kraamverzorgster
2 年There is no evidence to support the theory that methylation is a cause of tongue ties. Function is important, if there are no problems with feeding then surgery is not always required. It is also vital that the health provider who treats the tongue tie removes the tie or ties properly. See Dr. Ghaheri's post on posterior tongue tie. Cutting or lasering only what you see is not an adequate removal.Body work is also essential before and after removal of the tie.
Registered Nurse at BC Women's Hospital and Health Centre
2 年Thank you for sharing this! When I had my first (before my healthcare career) it was extremely painful to breastfeed and I asked the nurses and the pediatrician if he was tongue tied and they all said he was fine and breastfeeding was supposed to hurt. For 6 weeks I suffered from bleeding and blistered nipples and my son nursing every 45 minutes because he wasn’t able to effectively remove milk from my breast. It was so painful I would bite down on a washcloth to try not to scream. I was determined to exclusively breastfeed but he wasn’t gaining weight well and so I took him to a public health nurse who agreed that he was tongue tied and referred me to the Vancouver Breastfeeding Clinic where it was confirmed and he had his tongue tie released. It was like night and day afterwards. I started healing and he started gaining weight and I was able to breastfeed him until he was almost 2.
Especialista em Banco de Leite Humano | Assistência em Aleitamento Materno | Educa??o Perinatal | Saúde Materno-infantil
2 年The negative influence of tongue tie, both for the mother and for the baby, is so clear in clinical practice that I do not understand how a professional who provides assistance to women at this stage of life can disregard this fact and still generalize breastfeeding pain as if part of the breastfeeding process and should be supported. Thanks for your positioning and for disseminating such relevant information.
Traditional and Holistic Health Coach and Services. Retreats, Events and Dances
2 年I have been a breastfeeding professional for over 18 years and am the only one in my town that even recognizes as an issue. I see so many of them and am happy to report so much success when they are revised by a trusted specialist.