Weekly Wrap-Up August 1: World Breastfeeding Week, Hospital switcheroo & IBCLE snafu?

Happy World Breastfeeding Week, everyone! This year’s WBW theme is “Just 10 Steps: Breastfeeding the Baby Friendly Way” and refers to working to eradicate the “booby traps” so many moms face in the hospital. Moms would be more much successful with breastfeeding if hospitals made 10 simple changes, including creating breastfeeding policies, practicing rooming in and not giving bottles and pacifiers to breastfeeding infants. There are also tons of activities going on across the globe to celebrate. Will you be attending an event in your neck of the woods?

In honor of World Breastfeeding Week, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine is offering free access to Breastfeeding Medicine, their official peer-reviewed journal for the entire month of August!

No breastfeeding allowed when trying to become a lactation consultant? That’s what a mom in Italy claims she was told by the International Board of Certified Lactation Examiners when she asked to bring her 3-month-old nursling with her while she sat for the IBCLC exam. Reaction seems to be bemusement at the apparent irony, with many people stating the mom should be given extra time, allowed to bring her baby into the exam room or some other accommodation. In America, IBCLE allows moms of exclusively breastfed infants to take extra breaks to feed their baby outside of the exam room, but doesn’t allow them to make up the time. So what do you think IBCLE should have offered this mom? Is this decision hypocritical or do babies not belong in exam halls?

This week a new study revealed that older and overweight moms are more likely to see a delay in their milk coming in. The research shows that first-time moms over the age of 30 and those who are overweight are more at risk of delayed lactogenosis. This happened to me, with my milk coming in around day 5, rather than day 3. Judy at A Mother’s Boutique had the same issue. This is important to note because it could be a potential “booby trap” if moms are told to supplement until their milk comes in. 98% of women have a full milk supply by day 7.

Although it was funny when it happened on The Office, the report that a woman breastfed the wrong baby at a Virginia hospital is nothing to laugh about. When a new mom agreed to have her baby taken to the nursery so she could rest, she never expected a hospital aide would forget to match up the ID bands and bring her baby to another woman to be breastfed. Fortunately, the woman who nursed her baby has tested negative for HIV and other diseases, but the article warns that no one really knows how often these mix-ups happen, as there is no reporting required as long as there is no serious harm. A lower risk of switcheroos is one of the unexpected benefits of “rooming in,” one of the 10 Steps!

This week on our Facebook page, we asked you why you chose to breastfeed your babies. You had some amazing answers, including:

Cassaundra Blythe: The same reason I “chose” to breathe, or love my husband, or eat or become a mother. It’s a normal thing for women to do.

Ashley Poland: The cost and the reduced instances of SIDS. As a first time mom, I was terrified of it.

Carla Richardson Rush: I love them!

Jamie Moore Lowe: It just makes sense. Good for them, good for me!