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There are incalculable benefits to prolonged close contact and breastfeeding for a mother and new baby. But that close contact has raised questions about the safety surrounding an infected mother interacting with her newborn. According to a new study published Thursday (July 23) in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, mothers diagnosed with COVID-19 who took the precaution of wearing a surgical mask and washing their hands safely breastfed their babies and did not transmit the virus to them over a two-week period.
The study followed 116 mothers infected with SARS-CoV-2 at the time of delivery. All of the newborns were swabbed and tested for the virus 24 hours after birth, and most were tested two more times, at five to seven days and at two weeks, with a telemedicine checkup at one month. All of the tests came back negative, and none of the babies ...
