Health Benefits Of Maternity Leave

America being one the most industrialized nations it is shocking to most to discover that it does not provide a more beneficial maternity leave when compared to its European counterparts. Not only is Europe leading the way for a lengthier leave of absence for new mothers, they also provide financial benefits to those families with newborns, to American society this is not considered a cultural norm, in fact it is even bizarre to some that having a child while in the work force would even be beneficial. Consequently, the difficulty in accessing a reasonable maternity leave in America creates long term effects on a child’s development.

Studies have shown that breastfeeding has numerous benefits for mother and baby, including reducing the risk of common childhood infections. The protective antibodies found in breast milk helps to combat common infections that often leads to missed days from work and translates into lost productivity. In addition, breastfeeding has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of obesity in breastfed children verse children that were not breastfed. Breastfeeding also helps to

Studies show that women who take 12 weeks maternity leave have an improvement of overall mental health. In recent studies women that were given an extended time of paid maternity leave were 18% less likely to suffer from depression in the coming years of their life. In the long run, paid maternity leave may benefit society in many ways. It is up to the government to change the outdated laws from unpaid leave to paid leave.

Maternity leave is a retreat that all mothers should have the opportunity to experience after childbirth. The birth of a child can be exciting, exhausting, and challenging for all new mothers experiencing the joys of parenthood. Unfortunately for some working mothers living in the United States, maternity leave is not always guaranteed. The United States is one of the only developed countries in the world that doesn’t guarantee paid maternity leave. An idea so common in other countries is considered a luxury benefit for hard-working mothers in the United States.

Breastfeeding is one of the best methods for providing infants with a healthy start to life. Breast milk helps the body fight off various bacteria and viruses that one’s child might be at risk for catching. Breastfed babies are thirty-six percent less likely to die from sudden infant death syndrome and are fifty-five percent likely to become obese later in life, compared to babies who are not breastfeed. (Workplace and Public Accommodations for Nursing Mothers, 2016) Not only is the child benefiting from breastfeeding, the mother is as well. Women who breastfeed are more likely to revert to their

My statement for breastfeeding mothers in the workplace is “Supporting breastfeeding mothers in the workplace will increase better health outcome for infants and mothers”. By embracing mothers’ choice to continue breastfeeding after returning to work can further improve the quality of mothers and baby’s optimal health. Breast milk is the only nutrition some babies need for the first six months of their lives. The benefits of breastfeeding are significant enough to want to educate and advocate for mothers to participate. According to Kozhimannil et al., (2016) it has been proven that babies who are breastfed are less likely to develop certain short-term or chronic illnesses, such as respiratory, gastrointestinal tract infections or death

As a person I personally do not mind paying more taxes as long as it actually went to people who are in need of assistance. I understand that there are people in our society struggling and I believe they should have access to programs that could help the better themselves. The system in which people are picked for the program is flawed because it can easily be tricked which is how people who do not need the assistance can get in the programs.

Those opposed to paid maternal and paternal leave believe that it will have a negative effect on our country financially, but recent research rejects this statement. A study found that paid paternal leave reduces infant mortality as much as 10%, and increases the likelihood of infants getting their checkups and vaccinations. Another benefit of paid leave is that mothers will have an opportunity to breastfeed their child for a

Other studies have found that maternity leave increases women’s likelihood of successfully nursing their infants. There is also evidence that children have shorter hospital stays when their parents are able to stay home and care for them. The current evidence on children’s outcomes emphasizes the importance of the early childhood and prenatal environment, so there are likely large long-term benefits of polices that improve infant health. One study found higher educational attainment, lower teen pregnancy rates, higher IQ scores, and higher earnings in adulthood for children whose mothers used maternity leave, suggesting paid leave policies can have long-term benefits as well. Children who do not have adequate parental care are more likely to show up sick to school and infect others. Studies also suggest that those with paid sick leave are more likely to utilize preventative health care such as cancer screening.

We all had a teacher in school who took maternity leave. This standard, dictated by the 1993 federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), applies not only to teachers but to women of all professions and allows mothers to take up to twelve weeks of protected, but unpaid leave (Cohn 9). This period, however, is not long enough for the mother and child to fully recover. Providing longer maternity leaves would also benefit businesses and the American society. Many countries around the world provide significantly longer leaves or even allow fathers to take paid paternity leaves. Making the American workforce a friendly place for women and families through revised maternity leave policies will benefit both the U.S. economy and U.S. families.

According to researchers paid maternity leave is an initiative that enhances health for babies and their mothers. Additionally, it lowers rates of post-delivery depression, childhood immunizations, and infant mortality. Henceforth, paid maternity leave is one of the wits that can improve the nation’s health. However, it is one area in which the U.S. is lagging behind. In fact, the United States of America is one of the three countries in the world that does not mandate paid maternity leave. The other two include Suriname and Papua New Guinea (Goodman 16). In terms of offering maternity leave, even the developing countries

Breastfeeding provides many health benefits even beyond the immense emotional satisfaction that is often felt, mothers will recover from childbirth quickly and with less postpartum bleeding, have reduced chances of having breast cancer later in life, reduced chances of type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and cardiovascular disease and problems. Breastfeeding can also delay the return of the menstrual cycle, which can extend the time between pregnancies, and prevent

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According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, mothers who return to work soon after the birth of a child are more likely to become depressed and are less healthy than mothers who do not, and one third of mothers end up in debt after childbirth due to having unpaid maternity leave. When a woman has access to paid leave after birth they are more

Several studies have shown results that parental leave has positive effects on children’s health, behavior, development, and overall future. First off, the study conducted by Lawrence M. Berger et al. was conducted in the United States and tested how it affected the development of the children, when the mothers’ went back to work within twelve weeks of giving birth. Their outcome showed that the earlier the mothers returned to work the more reductions there were in breastfeeding and immunisations, and the more behavioral problems there are in the children. The results were even stronger when the mothers that worked full-time returned to work within twelve weeks of giving birth (Berger et al.). Breastfeeding and immunisations are essential for children’s health, because breastfeeding provides key nutrients and immunisations provide protection from preventable, but awful,