Depending on the day the following three reasons swap rank but they are the top three reasons I was so determined to breastfeed.

1) Best for Baby – I didn’t understand all the science and research at the time but I knew enough to know breastmilk was best for my babies. I knew breastmilk carried immunity properties and varying flavors which I hoped would make my children better eaters than most as they grew into solid foods.

2) I could not afford the formula I would have chosen. If I’d had to formula feed, I knew I would not be able to supply the more expensive formula I had researched. I didn’t want to give my babies the cheap, hard to digest formulas so I persevered through some (early) dark days so I wouldn’t have to give them formula.

3) Lowers my risk for breast cancer and ovarian cancer. My mother was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer when I was 14 so the probability of my having breast cancer is always in the back of my mind. I’d try just about anything to reduce my risk and the latest study shows breastfeeding reduces my risk by 59%!

There are many, many reasons to breastfeed. You can view www.promom.org/101 for 101 reasons. Identifying your specific reasons breastfeeding is important to you will help keep you encouraged and motivated if you experience any dark days like I did.

I was working on my book this week (Breastfeeding Preparedness: Helping Expectant Moms Have a Successful Breastfeeding Experience) and was researching one of the benefits of breastfeeding that doesn’t get enough attention is that it is definitely greener than formula feeding. Consider the waste of the formula cans and packaging (at the beginning and end of its cycle), the amount of clean water and energy used to wash and sterilize bottles and the gasoline consumed for shipping formula. Compare that with breastfeeding that requires no packaging, shipping or sterilizing and produces no air pollution or industrial waste and you have yourself a clear choice. Go green. Breastfeed.

One of the most important gifts each woman can give her newborn is the gift of breastfeeding. The benefits of breastfeeding are numerous. For the baby benefits include improved dentition in the baby, reduced risk of obesity and diabetes, and increased intelligence. For the mom benefits include loss of pregnancy weight gain if breastfeeding for a year or more.

In these area we will post Information You Can Use and related links. While we hope to mention many of your questions we realize this may not be satisfy all your needs. To that end you can arrange private live chat sessions for your particular question here.

Welcome! Bienvenidos!

A recent study has found that mild to moderate exercise, even that done within the home, can help stop bone density attrition attributable to lactation.

Bone density increases after weaning.

For more information regarding osteo-health and lactation, click here.

Lately, our almost-seven-year-old daughter has taken to nursing her baby doll at the dinner table.  “She’s hungry,” our daughter proclaims.  “I can feed her even while I’m eating!”

Oh, how many evening meals I spent doing the very same thing.  Good thing I’m ambidextrous when it comes to eating.

Of course the meaning behind this is much more profound:  Ellie witnessed her two younger brothers being breastfed as infants and, I assume, there’s some sort of cellular memory of her own breastfeeding days from her infancy.  She has clearly embedded these experiences into her concept of “normalcy” and is now acting this out with her dolls.  The hope, of course, is that she will grow up to be a breastfeeding mama if, and when, her life takes her down the road of motherhood.

Anyway, you’d have to oblivious as a doorstop in this day and age if you haven’t come to understand the various benefits of breastfeeding for the child:   decreased ear infections; decreased risk of developing: diabetes, asthma, eczema, allergies, obesity…the list goes on and on.  (As a side note, two of our three breast-fed kids have asthma and eczema, respectively.  The breastfeeding protection isn’t necessarily fool proof–likely because there’s a heck of a lot of STUFF in our environment that predisposes kids to things like allergies and asthma.)

Two of the latest findings regarding benefits of breastfeeding for the woman are protection against breast cancer and heart disease–metabolic syndrome, to be exact.  Check out this article on EmpowHer.com.  It does a great job reviewing a study started in 1985 that included 1,400 women and revealed a HUGE drop in heart disease-related illness in the moms who breast fed for greater than nine months.  (The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding a child for a minimum of one year.  The World Health Organizations recommends at least two years.)

Some estimates suggest that nearly 1 in five Americans have metabolic syndrome–or the precursors to it– and, at last count (per the National Cancer Institute) there were 192,370 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed this year…accompanied by over 40,000 deaths by the same disease.  Knowing these statistics, wouldn’t you make any choice you possibly could to lower your risk of these entities?

Thankfully, there are LOTS of folks out there researching, raising money and awareness for things like breast cancer and heart disease-related illnesses.  One such group, in Portland, Oregon, did their part by creating the following video.  Enjoy.

There are a lot of discussion about about whether you should opt for bottle-feeding or stick with breast-feeding.Of course there are alternatives for breast-feeding but you can’t provide the pleasure and satisfaction of breastfeeding by any other means.

Breast milk is the best for babies. It contains the exact amount of nutrients required by babies. It is the perfectly balanced meal for babies, in the initial stages. Breastfeeding is good for mothers too.

Read why you should breastfeed your baby.

There are a lot of discussion about about whether you should opt for bottle-feeding or stick with breast-feeding.Of course there are alternatives for breast-feeding but you can’t provide the pleasure and satisfaction of breastfeeding by any other means.

Breast milk is the best for babies. It contains the exact amount of nutrients required by babies. It is the perfectly balanced meal for babies, in the initial stages. Breastfeeding is good for mothers too.

Read why you should breastfeed your baby.

At this month’s meeting the topic was that perennial parental favorite: sleep!

Everyone was asked to talk about what they do to get to sleep if they can’t sleep. Many moms reported reading while others said taking a bath or watching TV. Typically there are many things that we as adults have learned to do to lull ourselves to sleep when Dreamland seems to be beyond reach.

Babies and small children may have just as much trouble getting into sleep mode as we sometimes do but because their resources are particularly small and undeveloped, they may need help finding ways to settle into sleep mode and help in staying there or getting back there once they go to sleep for the night.

Typically the adult sleep cycle is anywhere from 90 to 110 minutes in length. When moving from deep sleep to the lighter stages, we may briefly rouse, turn over, fluff our pillow or check the clock to see how much time we have left to sleep! Then we might go right back without hardly noticing.

The sleep cycle for newborns, infants and young children is shorter and much less developed. Typically they start with a 45-minute or so cycle of deep sleep before they arouse.

These shorter sleep cycles may be one way of nature helping to keep these littles alive.

While there are many books available to “teach” your baby how to sleep, chances are your baby will learn when his or her little system has matured enough to be able to do so.

One benefit of breastfeeding is learning to nurse your little one while lying down. While there may be a learning curve to it, and while you may not necessarily stay completely asleep, the upside is that Mama gets to at least stay in bed for a little while instead of pacing the floor or breaking out that bottle or even the Boppy.

What are some ways you put yourself to sleep?

What are some techniques you have found to incorporate a little more sleep into your life with a baby or young child who has different sleep patterns?

Happy ZZZs to all and to all a good night!

There are a lot of discussion about about whether you should opt for bottle-feeding or stick with breast-feeding.Of course there are alternatives for breast-feeding but you can’t provide the pleasure and satisfaction of breastfeeding by any other means.

Breast milk is the best for babies. It contains the exact amount of nutrients required by babies. It is the perfectly balanced meal for babies, in the initial stages. Breastfeeding is good for mothers too.

Read why you should breastfeed your baby.

Yes, the two go together!! And, biologically, they are meant to. Believe me, I know there are some women out there who claim that breastfeeding is what got them back into their size 4 jeans again in a week, but in looking at the broad spectrum, I think those are few and far between.

I have never been one of the “lucky ones” to be able to get back into my jeans again within a year–much less a week! After a year is really when I can finally start losing good bits of weight because that’s usually when my babies are taking in more solids than they are nursing. Nature actually produces hormones that keep your muscles from being able to regain their “hardness” (for lack of a better word) to keep your body soft for your baby. I mean, think about it. Doesn’t it seem natural that a baby would prefer a soft, comfortable mommy to lie on and snuggle with. Once again, I know there are those moms out there that don’t keep that weight on. For whatever reason, their bodies must burn calories like crazy–I don’t know. But if you are one of the blessed ones to keep those extra pounds on for a few months extra–remember that you are indeed blessed! Look down at that baby, and that’s all you need to remind you. Years will come when you will have an opportunity to get all that weight off. That’s happened to me now. After seven straight years (literally) of either pregnancy or nursing, I weaned my youngest when she turned 2 in July. It was definitely bittersweet, not knowing if there will be another. But after 7 years, I had really been wanting to do a cleanse for a long time. I knew I couldn’t do that while nursing so I stopped. We were both still enjoying the two nursings a day so I hope I didn’t make the wrong decision, but it’s done now!

What made me think of this today was that I had a postpartum visit with a family and their new baby last night. After 3 weeks, this mom was one of those back in her regular jeans. This was her first baby so that’s a little more understandable, but it certainly never happened to me! She was saying, however, how she certainly didn’t fit the “same way” into them. That is for sure! I have a friend whose child told her, “Mommy, they should use Mommy fat to make pillows.” My kids tell me all the time how squishy (and wonderful) my tummy is. I remember telling my own mom that her tummy felt like jelly, and I could never understand why she didn’t take that as a compliment. But I remember plain and clear in my mind that that was a GOOD thing. So when my children say it, I don’t get offended. I try as hard as I can to take it as a compliment and remember what’s important. After five kids, I’m now about 5 pounds from my pre-pregnancy the first time (at 22 years old) weight. I can tell you that it’s a lot different on a 36 year old body with lots of pregnancies and breastfeedings!! But it’s not my desire to be the best looking mom at the beach or even in the church nursery! My goal is to be healthy enough to enjoy life with my kids. I want to be a good weight for me, and if that has a squishy tummy instead of a hard one to go along with it, well that’s okay! It gives my kids a nice pillow.

My body has been used as one of the most sacred things on earth–a safe, warm, nourishing home for these little ones we’ve been blessed with. And then it was used as their sole source of nourishment outside the body for at least 6 months or more. Our bodies are so amazing. They were fearfully and wonderfully made. I know not everyone has the same success stories with breastfeeding, and other things need to be done. I would encourage anyone who is struggling with breastfeeding to contact a lactation consultant immediately. Do everything you can to continue, but in the end–do what’s best for you and your baby.

I’m not going to go in to all the “normal” benefits of breastfeeding here. I’m sure anyone who’s reading this knows that there’s nothing out there that can beat the miracle of breastmilk. It’s filled with all sorts of immunity boosting, serotonin lifting, antibody filled goodness! It’s truly liquid gold and can be used for much more than just filling your baby’s tummy. If your little one has a clogged tear duct, just rub some breastmilk in there a few times. Within a few hours, it will be cleared up. Actually, you can do this instead of have them use erythromycin in their eyes in the hospital. If you don’t have an STD or group strep B, there’s not a whole lot of reason for them to put that goop in their eyes anyway! Your own breastmilk is much better to clear away any infection they may develop. It’s straight antibiotics coming straight from the body that they just came from!! Natures own packaging!! I usually rub a little my babies eyes after each feeding for the first couple of weeks just to ward off infections. Not only does it work great it baby’s eyes but also in any other little ones you may have that get pink eye or other eye infections. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve put it in my older kids eyes. They’ve never been grossed out by it. I guess because we don’t think breastmilk is a gross thing at our house.

You can also use breastmilk in a dropper to drop into an infected ear. Once again, it’s straight antibiotics. Any cuts or scrapes–yep, put breastmilk on them. Any ailment your baby (or other family member) has can usually be cured with nature’s remedy stored right in your amazing breasts!! That’s another thing–there’s never any worry about it going bad or being the wrong temperature. It’s always available, and you never have to measure enough out or “run out” of it if you gone longer than you think. Some other added benefits are the way it makes you feel. When you nurse, your brain produces serotonin which is the “feel good” hormone. It relaxes your whole body and sometimes makes you fall asleep. Go ahead and fall asleep (if you don’t have any other children running around that need your attention). It will be good for you and your baby!

Nursing in public can be an obstacle that some women (and their husbands) need to get past. You can certainly do this discreetly. It usually takes about 6 weeks with a first baby to really get good and comfortable with doing it at home and feel like you can do it while you’re out. One of the most important things to remember is to be confident in what you are doing. You are doing the best thing for your baby, and your baby has the right to eat in a decent place (not in a bathroom!!) Know the laws of your state. Every state has laws protecting nursing in public. If anyone says anything to you, be prepared with an answer. Don’t cower and quit. But I really believe that if you are confident in what you are doing, no one will say anything. I have nursed in public hundreds of times, and I’ve never had anyone say anything to me. And believe me, there were times I would have welcomed it because I wanted to be able to defend my right. That wasn’t right of me either–I shouldn’t have wanted to be argumentative (but that’s another story.) So be confident, know your rights, practice, practice, practice at home and then go out and feel free to nurse your baby on your soft, pillowy body with the liquid gold that nature gave you in your amazing breasts on your amazing body!!

Welcome to a weekly series on Traveling with Baby, Health Happy Round-Up which focuses on multiple aspects of wholesome living and optimal health for the entire family.  Each weekend, Traveling with Baby will share some insightful news, recipes, and tips to help you consider fresh new perspectives on wholesome and happy health.

Few will argue the benefits of breastfeeding a newborn.  It’s the perfect food with the bionutrients and perfect ratio of fats, protein, and carbohydrates for a newborn to older baby depending on the stage of their development and maturity.  Breast milk fats/protein/carbos ratio actually changes throughout the course of the year to mimic baby’s gut development and digestion needs!

Breastfeeding benefits to baby:

• Increases baby’s immune defense for faster recovery from illness since the mother is able to create antibodies and distribute them through breast milk to baby
• Reduces cavities and need for braces
• Reduces risk of colic, diarrhea, SIDS, obesity, ear infections, respiratory illness, allergies, diaper rash, osteoporosis, diabetes, infantile cancer, and death
• Increases IQ up to 20 points
• Prevents malnutrition
• Increases social and better psychomotor development of baby
• Promotes better growth and satisfies baby’s need for sucking
• Prevents the development of pathogenic germs in the intestines
• Contains lactoferrin that transports iron and increases immune defense

Breastfeeding Benefits to Mom:

• Increases the mother-infant bonding relationship
• Reduces risk of post-partum depression
• Reduces the reappearance of menstruation, thereby allowing more time until the next pregnancy
• Decreases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer
• Reduces puerperal bleeding and fever
• Promotes the education of others in the family to practice breastfeeding
• Helps a woman realize her role as mother
• It’s practical–moms can nurse frequently throughout the night (without washing bottles), when traveling, anytime and anywhere
• It’s a huge psychological benefit to baby, mom, and the entire family
• Saves money and time

Breastfeeding Benefits to the Planet:

• It’s always the perfect temperature and it’s produced it the necessary amount–doesn’t require heating and energy waste
• Doesn’t require a storage container
• Reduces the use of medications, medical procedures, and hospitalizations
• Saves money in health care services
• Does not leave residue or garbage
• Doesn’t pollute the environment
• It’s hygienic and sterile

Sometimes mothers defer to boy-based or dairy-based formula because 1) it’s convenient, 2) although rare, sometimes the baby has a medical condition that prevents the suck reflex, or 3) even rarer, the mother has a glandular deficiency in the breast tissue.

I have dear friends with babies who were born with conditions that prevented nursing at the breast, and I am in awe of them for pumping breast milk around-the-clock to support their babies’ needs.  However, medical conditions in babies are rare.  The inability of mothers to produce enough milk is even rarer.

Often, difficulties with latch-on and sucking enough milk are related to jaw or TMJ or upper neck spinal bone misalignments that can occur through the birth process.   Gentle chiropractic treatment can help babies regain a normal suck reflex by removing nervous system interference.  Read more about how chiropractic care can improve a baby’s suck reflex through the International Chiropractic Pediatrics Association.

For more on breastfeeding, check out Part II, Breastfeeding Support for Moms, and Extended Breastfeeding.

Your Turn:

What are your favorite benefits of breastfeeding?

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A new study entitled “Bottle feeding simulates child loss: Postpartum depression and evolutionary medicine” published in the journal Medical Hypotheses suggests that bottle-feeding (with formula) and hospital practices/procedures that lead to intermittent separation between mothers and infants during the immediate postpartum period simulate (speaking in terms of evolutionary medicine) child loss and therefore increase a mother’s risk for postpartum depression.

The authors write, “For most of human evolution the absence or early cessation of breastfeeding would have been occasioned by the micarriage, loss, or death of a child.  We contend, therefore, that at the level of her basic biology a mother’s decision to bottle feed [with formula] unknowingly simulates child loss.  Consistent with this analysis, there is growing evidence that bottlefeeding is a significant risk factor for postpartum depression.”

The paper’s authors (who work in the Department of Psychology at the University of Albany/ State University of New York, Albany) recently completed a study of over 50 mothers recruited through local pediatric offices at their 4-6 weeks postpartum visit and evaluated them using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression scale.  They found that those who bottle fed their babies scored significantly higher on the scale than those who breastfed, even after they controlled for things such as age, education, income, and the mother’s relationship with her current partner.

The paper also cites four other studies that link bottle feeding [with formula] to an increased risk of postpartum depression and/or breastfeeding’s ability to decrease one’s risk for postpartum depression.

This is a fascinating article to me for a variety of reasons.  First off, it is written by psychologists, not health care professionals and hence, takes a look at this very important topic from a completely different perspective.

Second, it is a study/analysis that focuses “not on the advantages of breastfeeding per se, but rather on the negative psychological consequences of the decision not to breastfeed.”

Thirdly, for mothers who cannot breastfeed (as related to the health of the baby or mother for example) or choose not to breastfeed, this article shows us how important it is as health care professionals to assess these mothers thorougly for signs and symptoms of postpartum depression as well as to educate these mothers and their loved ones about their potentially increased risk for postpartum depression so that they can obtain help and/or counseling if their “baby blues” turn into something more serious.

Forth, it is just yet another reason for me to continue to learn as much as I can about breastfeeding so that I can properly educate all my moms about the benefits of breastfeeding and the hazards of formula feeding.  I look forward to future reserach on this topic.

After all, babies were BORN to BREASTFEED and if a mother and baby are healthy enough to do so it is important for all mothers to know that babies DESERVE breast milk and DESERVE to be breastfed!   I dream of a world where ALL mothers who are willing and able to breastfeed get the support and encouragement and resources they need to do so!

Research on Weaning

According to the research of Smith (1991), many primates wean their offspring when they are erupting their first permanent molars. First permanent molar eruption occurs around 5.5 to 6.0 years in modern humans. It is interesting to note that achievement of adult immune competence in humans also occurs at approximately six years of age, suggesting that throughout our recent evolutionary past, the active immunities provided by breast milk were normally available to the child until about this age (Frederickson).

Our evolutionary past has produced an organism that relies on breastfeeding to provide the context for physical, cognitive and emotional development. The non-human primate data suggest that human children are designed to receive all of the benefits of breast milk and breastfeeding for an absolute minimum of two and a half years, and an apparent upper limit of around seven years. Natural selection has favored those infants with a strong, genetically coded blueprint that programs them to expect nursing to continue for a number of years after birth and results in the urge to suckle remaining strong for the entire period.

From A Time to Wean, Breastfeeding Abstracts, August 1994 by Katherine Dettwyler

I’d like to use this blog as a forum for conducting a survey.
The survey has to do with childbirth experiences and breastfeeding experiences/breast pump usage.  The results of this survey will be made public, with the ultimate goal to place the survey results in a national parenting magazine article.  All comments will remain anaonymous in such a publication.

 Here’s the goal:  gain at least one comment from at least one woman in every state…more comments…more women…even better!

PLEASE FORWARD THE LINK TO THIS POST ONTO EVERY CHILDBEARING WOMAN IN EVERY STATE YOU KNOW…THE MORE SURVEY RESPONSES FROM VARIOUS LOCALES, THE BETTER!  Thank you ~

Please answer the following questions regarding your most recent childbirth birth expereince , which occurred no earlier than January, 2004,  in the “Comments” box below:

1.  Was your labor/birth started for you by the use of medication or having your bag of waters broken?
2.  Did you have your bag of waters broken for you at some point during your labor?
3.  Did you use any type of pain medication (IV, intrathecal, epidural, other) during your labor/birth experience?
4.  Did you receive an episiotomy during your baby’s birth (a cut in the tissue between the opening of the vagina and the rectum)?
5.  Was your baby’s heart rate monitored with the fetal monitor during your labor/birth experience?
6.  How old (weeks of pregnancy) was your baby at the time of his/her birth?
7.  Did you breast feed your baby after the birth experience described above?  (if no, skip to #12)
8.  How long (days, weeks, months or years) did you breastfeed your baby?
9.  Did you use a breast pump as a part of your breastfeeding experience?
10.  When (how many days after birth) did you initiate use of a breast pump?
11.  Did you use any additional breastfeeding aids (nipple shield, SNS tube feeder, syringe or cup feeding)?
12.  In what year did this birth occur?
13.  What state (or country) do you live in?

Welcome Carnival of Breastfeeding Readers!

This blog isn’t intended to be solely about breastfeeding. But it is important to me, and I want to talk about it.

Other moms have written about their breastfeeding experiences as well. Read about them here:

• Amber @ Strocel.com: Hannah’s Weaning
• Laura’s Blog: Weaning a Toddler
• Stepping Off the Spaceship: Life, Death and Nourishment
• so fawned: sticking with it: our breastfeeding story
• Mother News Blog: How Breastfeeding Changed My Life
• all that Sazz: Flying Breast Milk
• Baby Carriers Down Under: Kandy
• Christina @ Massachusetts Friends of Midwives Ben’s Story: The best breastfeeding advice, from the least likely source
• Breastfeeding 1-2-3: The “I Told You So”
• Chronicles of a Nursing Mom: Breastfeeding is not easy but is definitely best for baby
• Sinead @ BreastfeedingMums: Breastfeeding made me the mother I am
• MotherWear.com: They said the latch was fine
• Melodie @ BreastfeedingMomsUnite: Can Early Public Breastfeeding Sightings Shape One’s Future Breastfeeding Practices?
• Zen-Mommy: Celebrating my chest, in honor of breastfeeding
• Lori @ TheTowells.com: For Women in My Situation
• Blacktating: Nursing in Public
• Crystal: A Found Memory

When I was pregnant, I didn’t know that almost every mom should physically be able to breastfeed. I was asked if I planned to breastfeed, and it wasn’t even a question for me. I said as long as both of us were willing and able, I would be breastfeeding. And I only said it like that because the one friend of mine who has a baby wasn’t able to breastfeed. I just thought breastfeeding was natural and was the right way to feed a baby. Plus I wanted the bonding time. During our prenatal class, the instructor was listing off the benefits of breastfeeding, including cost (aka FREE) and ease (aka you don’t need to haul bottles around or sterilize or any of that). To me, that was 2 perfectly good reasons to breastfeed, beyond the fact that I just wanted to.

Well, when Penny was born, I had a pretty bad hemorrhage. I didn’t get to feed her right away because the doctors were busy fixing me up. Apparently my lips were blue, and I actually had to tell Court to go get pictures of Penny. I didn’t even get to hold her until almost an hour after she was born, nevermind feed her. After they eventually got me over to the maternity ward and settled into the bed, they pretty much thrust Penny at me and said “FEED!” That was the start of my problems…

To make a 1789 word story a heck of a lot shorter, over the course of about a month, I had at least 6 different nurses and lactation consultants tell me that my latch was fine, even though I was still in alot of pain.

I signed out books from the library and bought some from Chapters. Reading one of them, a light bulb goes on. When holding your baby in the cross-cradle position, your middle finger should be on their jaw on the bottom side, your hand around the base of their skull and your thumb just under their ear on the top side. Well geez! If someone had said to put my middle finger on Penny’s jaw I bet half of these problems could have been eliminated!

At a follow-up appointment at The Alex Community Health Centre, I tell the doctor about the jaw thing and how it made a world of difference for us. Still not perfect, but I can feel improvement. I get talking to her about positioning and using the breastfeeding pillow. Apparently most moms using the pillow rely on it too much. They actually use it to hold up the baby, rather than using it to support their arms which should be holding baby. That’s exactly what I was doing! My other failing was that I thought you couldn’t move your breast around to help feed the baby, as in move the baby over to where my nipple is, not move the nipple to where baby is. So I was moving Penny so far over to the side that her chin would end up near her chest. BAD! Over the course of the next week, every appointment I had, every book I read, even the videos I watched on YouTube, helped! Each one had one more tidbit that helped perfect what was going on. It still wasn’t perfect, but we could manage. I could feed Penny without being in too much pain, and she could get enough to eat and was gaining weight again. It took almost 3 weeks to get back to her birthweight (the norm is 2 weeks).

After a couple of weeks of not-perfect, but not-too-painful feeding, I got so frustrated with feeding Penny one morning that I just got up and fed her without hunting down my breastfeeding pillow. I just plopped down on the couch with her in the cradle position. And everything clicked into place! Jackpot! I couldn’t feed her with the breastfeeding pillow without having problems. Now that I know that, everything’s gone so much better!

We still have a bit of trouble with Penny squirming and flailing while she’s eating, and I’ve wanted to get into the clinic to ask about that. Last week, I finally attempted to feed Penny while lying down in bed at night. I was so tired that night! I’m sure we don’t have the position perfect, but we found a spot that works for us. And it’s totally hands-off for me (I might put a hand behind her just to keep her from rolling backwards away from me). I immediately noticed a difference with her. Where she’d kick and squirm before, she mostly lies quietly and feeds. Where she’d feed for 10 seconds, pop off, look around, then try feeding again – she latches on and stays there for almost the full feed. She sounds like she’s sucking and swallowing better, and she seems more content while feeding. I’ve now applied this idea to feeding her during the day too. I hold her up on the breastfeeding pillow again, but I don’t use my arms to try and hold her at all. I let her lay how she wants and feed how she wants. It really seems to be working for us!

I was also concerned about weight gain. Penny had her 4-month immunizations last week, and the nurses mentioned that she’s “on the lean side.” She is 24.5″ long and 12 lbs. Birthweight was 7 lbs 14 oz. But on last week’s Carnival I read about increasing my milk supply naturally. What I’ve taken from that is to use good fats for my extra calories – cream in my coffee, olive oil where I can. Between that, and letting Penny feed how she wants so, I think her weight is going to get back on track. I still have an appointment at the clinic on Monday, but I think everything is falling into place. (See the update to the weight gain issue here)

I’m glad breastfeeding is really working out now. I enjoy my bonding time with Penny, and I didn’t realize I would enjoy breastfeeding her this much. I think I’d be rather sad to have this connection and experience taken away from us.

This post naturally follows My Birth Experience

Neat ! I had heard about it before, but it was more like a gossip and I am always afraid of sounding like a breastfeeding freak when I rave about all its advantages. Now a team of German experts has confirmed it in a scientific study published March 3rd in Pediatrics: full or even partial breastfeeding provides a 50% reduction in the incidence of SIDS. Ain’t that an impressive number ? I am amazed. Breastfeeding should soon become a recommendation for parents eager to protect their children from the first cause of death for infants in developed countries. To read the full study, click on this link : http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/123/3/e406

Today I am going to rant. Recently, I have found out a couple scary things about formula. First, I read that powder formula given to preemies IN the hospital is responsible for their deaths or damage to their brains. Then I found out there is something toxic in formula. So I shared this information with some friends. I only sent this link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/chronicle/6132465.html  I didn’t even give my opinion. Somebody took offense. This baffles me. Our bodies go through many changes when we’re pregnant. Making milk is one of those changes. Our bodies know to make milk for our baby. It is geared specifically towards that baby. When the baby is delivered, our milk comes in. Granted it might take a couple days, but it is there.

Putting any health reasons aside… is there any reason NOT to give that beautiful baby the best there is? What mother looks at her child and says, “Eh, I don’t want to breastfeed, so I’m going to give you fake milk with toxins in it.”

Now, I’m sure most of you have heard all the great reasons to breastfeeding, but just in case you forgot, here are just a few of my favorite reasons to breastfeed:

1)      Breast milk is free. You don’t have to pay for it. Think of all the money you’d save if you didn’t have to buy formula.

2)      Many kids react badly to formula. Spit up, tummy problems, allergic reactions are all examples. This usually doesn’t happen with breast milk. It’s easier to digest.

3)      You don’t have to fix it. No bottles, no warming it up, no clean up. You just pull up your shirt and latch. Easy! Especially if you’re out and don’t have hot water nearby or at night when you’re exhausted.

4)      Breastfed babies score slightly higher on IQ tests. Who doesn’t want their child to be smart?

5)      Nursing uses up calories. What a better way to lose weight after pregnancy? Sit comfortably, watch TV and nurse.

6)      When exclusively breastfeeding, it delays your menstrual period!!!!!!!!!!!! Do you need another reason???? Seriously?

7)      Breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

8 )      BONDING!!!!

9)      The best reason: IT’S THE BEST THING FOR YOUR BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Even formula manufacturers say this! Breast is best! It has antibodies in it!!! It protects your baby!

Again, there are many people out there with health issues and they can’t breastfeed. And there are people out there that try and maybe they don’t make enough or maybe it really hurts or for some reason they can’t. At least they tried. There are some that do it for 8 weeks, maybe until they go back to work. At least they did that. But, the people that are just plain lazy, those people are the ones that make my head spin. Here, God gives us milk, He provides us with a free, easy way to feed our babies. And some people choose to buy formula to put into their precious little bellies. Now, we’re finding out that there are toxins in formula. “A safe level” the FDA says. I wonder how many of them are feeding it to their babies?!

What I don’t get is the people who read these articles, they find out that there is a TOXIN in the food they are feeding to their babies and they don’t care!!!!!!!! Let’s give it to them anyway. See if it’s really safe. What if this toxin is causing some Leukemia down the road? Or Autism? Or even “just” asthma? Would you still give it to them? What if they find out in 5 years that children have cancer because of this toxin and YOU knew!!! Wouldn’t you feel like crap? So, why not give your child the BEST for as long as you can! What is stopping you?

So, back to my original problem… all I did was give information. I didn’t give my opinion or go into anything. Just gave the link. Why can’t people be open-minded and talk about things like adults? Have a discussion about it. No judging. No name calling. We’ve all done it before, but this time, someone who was probably feeling guilty got upset.

My youngest loves animal crackers. If someone sent me a link telling me that there was a toxin in animal crackers, I would certainly read it and stop giving them to her and then figure out what to give instead or maybe I’d think the risk of her getting sick from these toxins was minimal and keep giving them to her. But, I would be thankful to have that information, thankful that I could make that decision. And seriously, who in their right mind would keep giving them to their child? I wouldn’t take offense. My response would be “WOW! I didn’t know that. Thank you.” Maybe I’m just weird

BTW, if anyone wonders about my breastfeeding experience… My oldest was breastfed for almost 2 years. My second child was breastfed for 18 months. My third and fourth were breastfed for about 15 months. All self weaned. I did have to supplement my fourth baby for a couple days because my milk didn’t come in until she was 6 days old. Thank you, Fenugreek!!! Reading these articles scares me. I pray that the formula did not hurt her. I just keep telling myself it was only a couple ounces a day and only for a few days…

Breastfeeding Awareness Week, like a lot of the breastfeeding promotion stuff - I wonder whether it’s really only speaking to those who are likely to breastfeed anyway, come what may.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking the excellent work done in raising awareness of the issues surrounding breastfeeding.  For instance, campaigning for women to be able to breastfeed in public without people harassing them (and new legislation means this is the case, not just in Scotland but in England and Wales as well – at last!).  The comments on that article show that this legislation is sadly needed.  And there’s no doubt that more women are beginning to breastfeed now than ten years ago, than twenty years ago.  But the length of time for which women breastfeed exclusively is still all too brief, so something’s going awry between initiation of breastfeeding and first and subsequent formula feeds that needs to be addressed.

We could perhaps begin do this is if we were to move away from talking about the benefits of breastfeeding and start talking about breastfeeding as the default option, the baseline.  To do this, we would necessarily have to talk in terms of the “risks” of formula feeding.  This would be uncomfortable for many women with children of all ages who have had the “choice” to formula feed thrust upon them by poor support from ill-informed and badly-trained healthcare professionals and also the general bottlefeeding culture we have in the UK – we don’t, as a rule, know how to support our friends and family to breastfeed.

One of the ways that formula manufacturers try to limit discussion of risk is by putting the “don’t make women who can’t breastfeed feel guilty” message out there (it’s a key marketing strategy) and I promise, that’s the last thing I want to do.  But I’d like to unpick that statement, if I may.

Why do women feel guilty about formula feeding?
One possible reason is that they wanted desperately to breastfeed, they bought into the list of “benefits” wholeheartedly and they are aware that, whilst their child is likely to thrive on formula (in the West, anyway), it’s not what they wanted to do.  It’s not how they envisaged being a mum.  And the unspoken question is always if “breast is best” then what is formula?

Another reason is that they don’t want to breastfeed at all, yet feel they ought to, or ought to want to.  Some women in this situation might breastfeed for a time, but not really enjoy it and feeling burdened by something you are doing, or feel you should be doing is often a reason to feel guilty about it.  This is especially the case when it comes to children – so much airtime is given to how we’re meant to raise children these days (from Annabel Karmel’s endless reams on “how to make mashed potato interesting by putting faces on it with salad vegetables” to Supernanny’s insistence on “unasseptable behav-yur”) that it’s impossible to have a baby and not know you’re “meant” to want to breastfeed.

Can anything be done about this?
Well, the first group of women, those who wanted to breastfeed and were let down by those who ought to have been helping them – yes, a lot can be done there.  Better-trained staff, a society that accepts breastfeeding, whether in a job centre, in family court, in McDonald’s or in an art gallery - all this would help to ensure a more conducive atmosphere for breastfeeding for any length of time.  I believe that this would address to some extent the second group of women I mention – those who don’t really want to breastfeed.  If it was the default option, more of them would feel comfortable giving it a try and if more women were breastfeeding in wider society, it might not be the isolating experience it can be now for some women.

What about the “can’t”?
This is something I often question when I am told “don’t make women who can’t breastfeed feel guilty”.  There are women who can’t breastfeed, of course there are.  And of course I would hate to make them feel guilty.  But this statement doesn’t mean them – or rather it doesn’t mean just them.  It really means “don’t say anything to make women who could actually have breastfed perfectly well, but were let down by those who were meant to be helping them feel guilty – because otherwise we might have to do something to improve support for them in the future and that’s bound to be expensive”.  I’ve heard this exact statement from an MP, a local councillor and a GP in recent weeks in the context of “it’s all well and good trying to improve breastfeeding support, but it makes women who can’t breastfeed feel guilty”.  Depressing, eh?  The very people who are placed to help – and they’re peddling the line that formula companies use to stifle debate about infant feeding.

So, shouldn’t we be aiming for a situation whereby every woman who wants to breastfeed and can physically do so (and some 98 or 99% of women fall into this category – and yes, I’m well aware that it’s not just physical ability that informs a woman’s feeding decision) actually does breastfeed for as long as she wants?  What would we need in order for that to happen?

We’d need to stop talking about breastfeeding as a “nice to have”, an “optional extra”, something that “adds benefit” – because if we keep referencing it in those terms, we necessarily set formula feeding as the baseline, the “good enough”, the “norm”.  And we sweep any risks or detriments of formula feeding under the carpet, in case we make anyone feel bad.

But I wonder whether, for long-term gain, we need to start thinking in ways that are likely to cause discomfort for some women – by starting to talk more openly about the risks of formula feeding.  Only then will society begin to see that breastfeeding shouldn’t be seen as something you do for a bit, if you must, something that isn’t very important, because formula is the same as breastmilk – or very nearly.  Isn’t it?

Let’s see how we might talk about risk rather than benefit.  Here’s a list of “benefits” of breastfeeding – we can turn them very easily into a list of “risks” of formula feeding – look:

Breastfeeding helps protect your baby against:

• ear infections
• gastro-intestinal infections
• chest infections
• urine infections
• childhood diabetes
• eczema
• obesity
• asthma.

Breastfeeding helps protect mothers against:

• ovarian cancer
• breast cancer
• weak bones later in life.

Women who breastfeed return to their pre-pregnancy figure faster.

Formula feeding increases the risk to your baby of:

• ear infections
• gastro-intestinal infections
• chest infections
• urine infections
• childhood diabetes
• eczema
• obesity
• asthma.

Formula feeding increases the risk to the mother of:

• ovarian cancer
• breast cancer
• weak bones later in life.

Women who formula feed return to their pre-pregnancy figure more slowly.

There are more risks listed here and numerous studies listed here

I appreciate that this is an uncomfortable way to talk about this and I am truly sorry if I’ve upset anybody.  But I do think it’s necessary – or we run the risk of reaching a plateau with breastfeeding rates in this country – initiation will be OK, but numbers will still dwindle and women will still be being let down in the first six weeks. If breastfeeding isn’t viewed as important by those whose jobs it is to change things, if it’s deemed inappropriate to talk about the issues surrounding the risks of formula feeding for fear of upsetting those who have already been let down or made decisions based on half-truths and saccharine facts, nothing will change.

What do you think?  Is it kinder not to talk about risks for fear of upsetting women who’ve already formula fed?  Or is it doing a disservice to those women yet to have babies if we don’t talk about infant feeding in these terms?  Is it, in fact, one of the biggest lies of early motherhood that it doesn’t matter how we feed our babies and women should concentrate on not feeling guilty or making other women feel guilty?  Please don’t regale me with anecdotes of sickly breastfed babies you know and robust toddlers who’ve been formula fed.  I appreciate that both of these exist, but it’s not helpful to get too involved with snapshots of children at a particular point in time.

Should we, in fact, have a Formula Feeding Awareness Week as well, where risks are discussed, rather than benefits?  It would raise more eyebrows than Breastfeeding Awareness Week – but would it achieve anything except anger at “breastfeeding mafia” types?  Because if we look a bit more closely at the women who are supporting breastfeeding, for every one smug idiot type, there must be 100 who get on with it, quietly, intelligently and empathetically.  And the smug idiot types do exist – and I loathe them, as much as you do, if not more – because they make my job considerably harder.  Not only am I trying to compete with the £multimillion spend of the formula manufacturers, I have to also counter the idiotic statements made by boorish fools who think they’re supporting breastfeeding, but they’re in fact just trying to bolster their own self-esteem and mask their own failings by being smug about the one thing they’ve got right in their tiny lives.

When I was pregnant with my first son, discussion of feeding method was fairly limited.

 At 13-week booking appointment:

 Midwife – “How will you be feeding your baby?”

Me – “With the placenta, for some while to come, I hope! Ha-ha-ha!”

Midwife – “Ha-ha, yes, very good.  And after the baby’s born?”

Me (serious again and with the optimism of a first-time mum-to-be) - “I’ll be breastfeeding.”

Midwife (ticks box)

I had one session at a parentcraft class antenatally as well, where we did a bit of myth exploding and talked about latching on and feeding on demand – but it wasn’t massively detailed. 

And that was it.  Nothing else.  Fortunately, I have a cousin who is a breastfeeding counsellor and I talked to her about it a lot – she sent me a book and some leaflets, and I knew she was there if I needed help.  But even after my son was born, there was no support postnatally from NHS staff.

With my second son, I didn’t expect much conversation about breastfeeding antenatally.  I was again asked how I’d be feeding and I said with more actual conviction that I would be breastfeeding (having done it for a fair while with my first son).  Some midwives asked if I’d breastfed before and some were impressed I’d breastfed while pregnant (several friends had been told by healthcare professionals that they couldn’t breastfeed whilst pregnant, so I mentioned it to every HCP I saw in order to do my own mini myth exploding!).  And after my second son was born, as documented elsewhere on here, I had too much interference with initiating breastfeeding (because I’d had gestational diabetes and they wanted to give him formula, even though he was asymptomatic and feeding well).

I know that midwives are busy, maternity units are stretched, there are funding issues throughout maternity services – but this means there’s often not the time to ask women what they want from their midwives; how much information is appropriate and at what stage in the pregnancy.  For instance, is detailed discussion of things such as mastitis really going to be ideal at a booking appointment?  I don’t think so!

So, I’d be grateful if you’d post how much discussion you had with your midwife antenatally and whether you felt you were well informed about the various issues surrounding how you were going to feed your baby.  Specifically, I’d like to know whether you were told about the “benefits of breastfeeding” or the “risks of formula feeding” – or both.  And anything else you feel was noteworthy, either because it was useful to you or because it was utterly useless!

What are some of the scientifically recognized benefits of breastfeeding?

1.  Breastmilk has biological specificity.  No two mothers make the same milk. Your milk is custom designed for your baby.  The specific need for human babies is for brain growth.  God designed human milk to contain nutrients that promote brain growth.  Breastfed infants score an average of 8.3 points higher on IQ tests administered at age seven to 8.5; the studies show that the more human breastmilk they received, the higher the IQ.

2.  Human breastmilk is designed so that the baby’s body can totally utilize it – little is wasted.  Contrast the bowel movements of breastfed and formula-fed infants.   Formula- fed infants expel more smelly, solid waste. Their bodies are not able to fully utilize all the ingredients of the formula.

3.  Protection against disease.  Breastmilk contains white blood cells which destroy harmful bacteria in the baby’s intestines, and antibodies which kill germs and increase the baby’s immunity.  Colostrum, the first milk your baby receives, contains the highest levels of these protectants.

4.  Colostrum protects the baby’s immature digestive tract.  When a baby is born, his digestive tract is sterile.  It contains no bacteria at all, and the walls of the intestines let virtually anything through into the bloodstream. This condition sets the child up for potential allergies, because foreign substances which pass into the bloodstream get targeted by the immune system, and the infant’s body begins to manufacture  antibodies against that substance.  In other words, many of  the ingredients in infant formula which are not present in breastmilk pass directly into the baby’s blood stream and cause him to produce antibodies.  Whenever those substances are introduced into his body again, he will develop an allergic reaction based upon the antibodies in his blood.  Colostrum coats the lining of the intestines, which helps prevent foreign substances from passing through the intestinal walls into the blood stream.

5.  Women who breastfeed have a lower incidence of breast cancer.

6.  Breastfeeding helps Mom get back in shape after pregnancy.  Part of the fat layer which pregnant women put on is specifically for the purpose of supporting lactation after pregnancy.  If you don’t breastfeed, that fat doesn’t come off as easily.

7.  Breastfeeding releases the hormone prolactin into the mother’s system, which is a natural relaxant.

8.  Breastmilk contains epidermal growth factors (EGF) which enhance the growth of these cells in the lining of the intestinal tract.

9.  Breastfed babies are well-disciplined.  According to Dr. William Sears (1993), Pediatrician and attachment parenting  expert, “A baby who is on the receiving end of nature’s best nurturing learns trust, and the right feeling that goes with it.  The mutual sensitivity that both members of the breastfeeding pair have for each other helps both behave better.”

10.  Breastfeeding encourages proper facial and dental development.

11. Mother’s milk contains beta-lactose, which favors the growth of acidophilus and bifidus bacteria, break down carbohydrates,  inhibit growth of yeast, help form natural antibiotics and anti-carcinogins, and produce some of the B vitamins.  Cow’s milk (and cow’s milk formulas), contain alpha-lactose, which does not promote these beneficial effects.

12. Because breastmilk is so easily digested, breastfed babies wake up more frequently at night.  This frequent night waking is extremely beneficial for both health reasons and developmental reasons.  Babies wake up because they are easily aroused from light sleep.  This light sleep state makes it easier to communicate their survival needs.  When baby needs to eat,  needs warmth, or needs you to remove breathing obstructions,  he will be able to easily wake up and let you know something is wrong.  Also, babies’ brains grow rapidly during the first year of life.  During light sleep states, babies’ higher brain functions remain “turned on” whereas during deep sleep they are switched off and only the lower brain functions remain in operation.  The more time a baby spends in light sleep, the better the brain development of higher brain functions should  be.  When babies spend more time in light sleep, or REM, they are also more likely to awaken frequently.  When babies are formula-fed, this alters their sleep behavior so that they do not spend as much time in light sleep.

13. Breastfeeding is easier than bottle-feeding: no water to boil, no bottles to sterilize, no formula to buy, no warming before baby can drink it, no refrigeration required, no need to listen to baby cry while bottle is prepared, no chance that it will be too hot.

There is no human formula that will ever be made that is as healthy as breastmilk.  There is no way of feeding a baby which promotes attachment as well.

Many people cannot understand this statement.  They say, “I don’t know why you say that bottle-feeding isn’t as good as breastfeeding.  The baby doesn’t know the difference.  He only knows he was hungry, and now he’s full.  Even though he doesn’t know the difference between formula and breastmilk, he knows that Mom met his needs.  That’s all that matters.  He’s still being held, still being touched, still looking into the eyes of the person who’s feeding him.  The bottle doesn’t really make that much difference.”

I’m sorry, but I can’t agree with any of the above statements.  First of all, babies definitely know the difference between breastmilk and formula.  They smell differently, taste differently, and babies feel differently after drinking them.  Babies who are formula-fed have more digestive upsets, more constipation, and more ear infections and allergies.  Breastfed babies definitely have more of a feeling of well-being simply because they don’t have these digestive upsets.

Secondly, there is a whole sensory experience that goes along with breastfeeding which is lacking in the bottle-feeding experience.  Babies who breastfeed are skin-to-skin with their mothers, and there are many benefits of skin-to-skin contact and which are desperately needed.   It is a fact that breastfed babies spend more time in mothers’ arms.  How often have I seen babies lying in cribs or infant carriers with bottles propped up on pillows so Mom could do something else while baby eats.  Because breastfed babies are held more, they get more eye contact. When a mother breastfeeds, this is a deeply intimate experience.  She drinks in her baby with her eyes as the baby drinks in her milk.  There is a connection there, as if they are one.  There is a distance between the bottle-fed baby and the mother, one that can’t be avoided.  When I have shown pictures of nursing mothers and bottle-feeding mothers to people and asked them which mother “looks” more nurturing, the majority identify the nursing mother.  When asked why, they say things like, “She’s caressing her child while she feeds it,” “She is cradling the child in a caring way,” “The child seems to be part of her,” and “There is a contentment on both their faces.”  Bottle-feeding mothers hold their babies differently.  The baby lies on the mother’s lap with more space between them and in a more open position.  Baby is able to flail his arms and legs around more in space, and the experience is one of separateness from the one feeding him. The breastfed baby is often held in such a way that his body is wrapped around his mother’s body, and pressed tightly or firmly against it.  His experience is one of closeness, of being part of a whole.  It is often difficult for adults to understand how these subtle differences can be important.  To the infant, every physical experience has an emotional experience attached to it.  Though these experiences may seem insignificant to us, they hold deep meaning for the infant, and if repeated frequently, constitute a kind of conditioning which form the infant’s beliefs about himself and those who care for him.

Sometimes mothers will say to me, “Well, I’m going to bottle-feed my baby, but I’m going to do all the things that breastfeeding mothers do.  I’m going to hold the baby close, look into his eyes, caress him, and then it will be the same.”  If you’re going to do all that, why not just breastfeed? Why this resistance to the actual act of doing it?  Why try to camouflage bottle-feeding and dress it up to look like breastfeeding?  Why not just do the real thing?

Just because there are other options today does not mean that they are best. I hope that you will consider the benefits of breastfeeding and make the choice to give your child the very best.

Judie C. Rall and The Center for Unhindered Living 

Photo by ibu Menyusui