Breastfeeding Weekly Wrap-up: April 24-May 2, 2010

 

By Elita of Blacktating.com for the Best for Babes Foundation ©2010

There were a couple of breastfeeding stories in the news this week that brought me to tears. First was this story of a Chinese nurse, who breastfed her patient’s baby. After the earthquake there earlier this month, the baby’s mom was recovering from  a head injury in the hospital and the tot was refusing all bottles and formula. That’s when the nurse, who was breastfeeding her own four-month-old, stepped up to nurse the baby. Mom says the nurse saved her baby’s life and she is now her honorary second mother!

Courtesy of China Daily

I was also moved to tears after reading this inspirational breastfeeding story, shared with Best for Babes by CBSNews.com Senior Producer MikeWuebben.  Mike and his wife Leslie’s second son was born with Moebius Syndrome and had difficulty nursing due to underdeveloped facial nerves which impaired his ability to suck. Leslie never gave up on trying to get her son to breastfeed and Mike was there supporting her the whole way. Is there anything better than a Dad who lovingly encourages the breastfeeding relationship? All moms would be lucky to have a man like Mike on their side!

In research news, some recent studies have shown that breastfeeding can reduce the risk of asthma for baby and that support really has a big impact on how long a mom breastfeeds.  There has been some debate as to whether or not breastfeeding really decreased an infant’s risk of developing asthma, but this Swedish study found breastfeeding for 4 months decreased the risk by 37%! And are you surprised an Australian study found support was the most important factor in determining whether or not a mom was successful at breastfeeding? Another reason why our credo at Best for Babes is to get full institutional and cultural support for nursing mothers!

A blog post by Carol at Lactivist Leanings this week underscores the Best for Babes Credo of supporting ALL moms whether they breastfeed for 2 weeks, 2 months, 2 years or not at all.  The post raises an important issue: so many moms have to work through feelings of guilt and regret when nursing  doesn’t work out the way they wanted it to.  We have to be mindful of the way we speak so that our message as breastfeeding advocates doesn’t get misinterpreted. We don’t think moms should feel guilty for not breastfeeding and look forward to the day when all moms are able to meet their breastfeeding goals!

The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine has a new blog!

The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine has started their own fantastic blog. This week Dr. Alison Stuebe wondered why there isn’t more research being done on why some moms don’t make milk and how that problem can be solved.  We’ve solved much more difficult medical problems, why isn’t this as important to physicians as solving erectile dysfunction? Great food for thought!

Does the sexualization of breasts explain why some women choose not to breastfeed? This is the question posed by Psychology Today and my answer is a resounding “yes!” Are breasts milk dispensers or sexual accoutrements? Why can’t they be both? Celebrate your sexuality, ladies, even as you use your breasts for their intended purpose!

Have you checked out our Facebook Fan Page yet?  Be sure to “Like” us on Facebook and suggest our page to your friends. Amy is doing a fabulous job keeping the breastfeeding conversation going on Facebook. Here are some of my favorite quotes from our Babes this week:

Andrea Roux Gardner I tandem nurse! My 3 yr old and my 6 month old! My 3 yr old nursed my entire pregnancy and people would give me strange looks when they found out she was nursing still :) I am a bit sad though. She is weaning herself :( She only nurses right before bed. At least I still have the baby :)

Kelli B. Haywood My sister at 15 breastfed her baby. I remembered watching her and realizing how perfect it was. She was the first person I saw breastfeed. I knew at 26 that if she could do it then, I could do it now. I was made to do it.

Susan Betke I love that first nursing session when I come home from work. He is so eager and happy to see me and he smiles the whole time as he greedily gulps down the fresh milk he has been missing throughout the day.



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