Breastfeeding Rooms

Lately, businesses and government offices have been providing “breast-pumping areas” and other spaces where women can feed their babies within public environments. This trend is part of a recent wave of interest in breastfeeding across Korea. Even highway rest areas have been adding breastfeeding rooms to their facilities, making it far easier for mothers to give breast milk to their babies during the current vacation season.

August 1~7 is the 12th annual World Breastfeeding Week, designated by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA). Lee Eun-mi, who heads the Breastfeeding Team of the Korean Committee for UNICEF, said in anticipation of this upcoming event, “In advanced countries, 80~90 percent of mothers breastfeed their babies, but in Korea the figure remains at under 20 percent.” “A large factor,” she explained, “is the impossibility for working mothers to find a space in which to provide breast milk for their infants.”

“Numerous women used to resort to breastfeeding in public bathrooms, but this state of affairs has recently met with signs of an impending change,” she added.

The Move for Change—

Eland, IBM Korea, Samsung, and other companies are operating lounges in which female employees can pump breast milk then later feed it to their babies.

Samsung Electronics, in particular, introduced the “Maternity Haven” in the spring of 2003, as a space where women can relax and find relief from pregnancy-related discomfort, menstrual cramps, etc., as well as pump breast milk whenever necessary. Samsung has since built the same facility in 17 of their buildings. Affiliated companies such as Samsung SDS, Samsung Life Insurance, and Samsung Electro-Mechanics are also coming up with their own breast-pumping areas.

Subway stations and highway rest stops have been keeping pace by installing rooms for breastfeeding. This past January, breastfeeding areas were set up at the Gwanghwamun stop on subway line 5 and at the Express Bus Terminal stop on line 7. Seven or eight additions are scheduled for construction within the near future.

Highway rest areas with their own breastfeeding facilities include the Anseong Rest Area on the southbound route of the Gyeongbu Highway (which became the first to provide such amenities in April of last year), the Haengdam Island Rest Area on the western coastline, the Juam Rest Area on the southbound route of Honam Highway, the Chilgok and Yangsan Rest Areas on the northbound route of Gyeongbu Highway, and the Seonsan Rest Area in the central inland region. In addition, some 50 “powder rooms” are available in other areas for breastfeeding mothers.

The Planned Parenthood Federation of Korea, the Ministry of Health & Welfare, the Ministry of Gender Equality, and the Seoul Songpa-gu District Office also operate breastfeeding rooms, and a substantial number of other public and government offices are preparing to introduce similar facilities.

Breastfeeding Tips—

Working mothers who wish to breastfeed their babies should pump their breasts for 15~20 minutes every 2~3 hours, or whenever they swell up, then store the milk in appropriately-treated packs or containers for refrigeration once they return home. Hand-pumped breast milk keeps for about eight hours at room temperature; machine-pumped milk keeps for a slightly shorter period of time.

Breast milk can be stored for 72 hours in the refrigerator and for about two months in the freezer. Frozen breast milk should be transferred to the refrigerator the evening before you plan to use it, for thawing overnight. When it is no longer frozen solid, melt it over low heat until it becomes lukewarm, then give it to your child. Infants less than four weeks old should be fed from a spoon or a cup, rather than from a bottle.

Just a few years ago, the only breast milk storage packs available were expensive imports, but sterilized disposable packs marked with measurements down the sides have recently begun to be manufactured domestically. Some companies are offering bundle-products combining storage packs and breast-pumps, which are becoming hugely popular as maternity gifts.

If a breastfeeding mother has to be separated from her child during the day, it is recommended that she sleep with her baby to enable constant breastfeeding during the night.

Many women ask if they should go to such lengths just to feed breast milk to their babies, but a comparison between children who were raised on breast milk and those who were raised on “cow milk” shows enormous differences in health and intellectual development. Breastfeeding is in fact a cheaper way to help your child do better at school, without investing in private tutors and after-school study sessions. It’s worth the hassle just to see your baby grow up free from repeated ailments and pesky little health problems.

“The number of breast cancer patients in Korea is increasing dramatically of late, and breastfeeding is an easy way to prevent a wide variety of women’s diseases such as breast cancer and ovarian cancer. Breastfeeding expedites postpartum recovery, so that both baby and mother are healthier in the long run,” says Professor Noh Dong-yeong of Seoul National University Hospital’s Department of General Surgery.

Seong-Ju Lee stein33@donga.com