41 KANGAROO FEEDING POLICY: EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING Breast milk is the best for a preterm baby. Your breast milk is the lifeline for your preterm LBW baby. While breastfeeding is important for all babies, it holds more importance for preterm babies. Preterm breast milk is more nutritious with higher protein and sodium content and fulfills the special needs of the small baby. Each mother’s milk is unique and is designed for her baby, and so mother’s own milk (MOM) is preferred over any other breast milk, like donor milk from a milk bank. No other milk comes close to the magnificence of MOM for a baby. Exclusive breastfeeding Exclusive breastfeeding means providing only breast milk for feeding. No other milk or food or water is given to the baby, except medicines. Small babies need some nutrients such as calcium, phosphorus, multivitamins, and iron which can be given mixed in a small amount of breast milk. Some small babies need “fortifiers”, which need to be added in the breast milk.These will be prescribed by your doctor. Exclusively breastfeed for 6 months and continue breastfeeding for at least one year along with optimal complementary feeds.
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