Dr. Maria Enrica Bettinelli is Lecturer of Pediatrics, University of Milan, Italy School of Medicine. As IBCLC since 2003, her research focuses on how overcoming barriers to implement breastfeeding support in the community and to promote mother and babies well-being in the perinatal period and the first years of life, adopting nurturing care approach. She has authored peer-reviewed publications on baby friendly community, breastfeeding rates in Lombardy, and the maternal and child health effects of lactation.
Her current research includes the clinical management of breastfeeding difficulties and how emotional experiences impact on breastfeeding decision. As Director of Milan Breastfeeding Network in Milan, Dr. Bettinelli leads an interdisciplinary team of clinicians, nurses and midwives that is developing new approaches to management of breastfeeding difficulties and to sharing breastfeeding education. Dr. Bettinelli is a member of the Italian Society of Pediatrics and Italian Society of Neonatology, chairs the Task Group of Education and Conference 2020 of ELACTA Board 2018-2020 and is a member of the ELACTA Board 2018-2020, and since 2012 is a member of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine.
Dr. Bettinelli attended University of Milan School of Medicine where she graduated with her M.D. in 1986. She completed her Residency in Pediatrics in 1989 and in Neonatology in 1991 at University of Milan and went on to complete her medical experience at Mangiagalli Hospital in Milan. Dr. Bettinelli obtained her MSc in Perinatal Mental Health in 2019.
She lives in Milan, Italy with her husband and her daughter.
Breastfeeding, attachment, and perinatal mental disorders share the same neurobiological circuits and neurosciences have shown there are connections acting both in a protective and negative sense. Relational experiences in the early years of life put the basis for future physical and mental health. Avoiding early toxic stress is essential in preventing mental problems later. Maternal depression, and in general perinatal mental disorders of parental figures, especially of the mother, have a well-documented negative effect on infants and children, altering the mechanism of responsive interaction. Depressed mothers do not engage with their children and fail to respond to their signals. Children find this situation stressful, and there may be permanent effects arising from being raised by chronically depressed parents.
According to recent studies, breastfeeding helps reduce early toxic stress, as well as allowing optimal nutrition. The responsive interaction mode is the basis of the relationship established with breastfeeding. So breastfeeding has a significant impact on the mental health of children and adolescents. The way mothers respond to their children's needs is the key to understanding these long-term effects. When mothers respond consistently to the signals of their children, they lay the foundations for the resilience of their children. By understanding that the success of breastfeeding is linked to perinatal maternal mental health, we can create awareness when counseling the breastfeeding mother.
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