Authors

1Adela Vidal, 2Françoise Soler

Position

¹Profesora Titular de EUE. Universidad de Barcelona. Comadrona. ²Presidenta de Acodiplan. Barcelona.

Contact address

Apartado de Correos, 9. 17400 Breda, Girona.

Contact email: avidal@bell.ub.es

Abstract

Maternal lactation delays the return to fertility by delaying ovulation. When the breastfeeding child sucks, production of prolactin is stimulated in the pituitary gland and, in many cases, this inhibits the hormones (alteration of the pulsatile excretion of LH), which stimulates the maturing and release of the ova, thus generating amenorrhoea. To completely suppress ovular stimulation, complete or exclusive lactation is required.

Up to 6 months, sucking by the baby day and night at frequent intervals (not greater than 6 hours) without other complements and accompanied by amenorrhoea offers a level of contraceptive safety for women in their postnatal period of 98%. In other words, only 2% of woman who breastfeed exclusively and who are amenorrhoeic enter gestation before starting their menstrual cycle in the first six months after birth. (LAM International Agreement Italy 1988).

The duration of the amenorrhoea during lactation and the return to ovulation depend on several factors among which the following stand out: effect of the lactation: sucking on demand; introduction of food supplements for the baby; maternal idiosyncrasies (there is an individual biological pattern that determines whether menstruation appears following birth which under the same circumstances is repeated for each lactation).

Keywords:

natural family planning; breastfeeding; lactation amenorrhoea method; postnatal infertility; fertilitypostnatal contraception

Versión en Español

Título:

Método de la lactancia amenorreica (MELA/LAM) o la contracepción natural en el postparto