Babies are born wanting to drink mother’s milk at the breast. Even if mothers don’t know how to breastfeed or don’t want to breastfeed, the babies know they need to suck and try to get to the breast. In this way, we’re just like other mammals — and we can learn a lot about feeding…
Category: General Info
Nursing in public – the ad (or one of the ads)
Public health departments really really want to promote breastfeeding. While the health risks of articial feeding may seem small for one baby, the overall risks and costs of artificial feeding for the whole population are big. There have been lots of different public health ad campaigns (see our local bus poster ads below!). Some of…
Oxytocin note
Oxytocin is a key hormone in breastfeeding — so important that it gets a chapter all to its self in Hale and Hartmann’s Textbook of Human Lactation. Oxytocin in the hormone that triggers “let-down” or milk ejection. The milk ejection is necessary for babies to get enough milk from their mothers. As we learn more…
Real Recognition?
There’s good evidence that when mothers choose to breastfeed all of our society benefits from lower health costs. What if we could acknowledge this benefit with a tangible reward to mothers for this service? Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, makes this suggestion as part of a…
Breastmilk without a baby…
We’re lucky to live in a time and place where it’s uncommon for new babies to die. It still happens though and is very sad. One thing we don’t usually talk about is the lactation that comes after birth even if there isn’t a baby to nurse. Mothering Magazine has a really nice article about…
National Prematurity Awareness Month
The United States Breastfeeding Committee just put out a press release for National Prematurity Awareness Month. Here are excerpts: Washington, DC–When a baby is born premature, helping the baby survive is usually the first priority for new parents. The benefits of breastfeeding, including protection from many diseases, are especially critical for premature infants. As the…
Too much help
Lipases are a helpful, natural part of breastmilk — they help babies digest the fats in their mothers’ milk (see my last post). When babies are drinking milk at the breast this is always a good thing. Sometimes, though, when mothers are pumping milk for their babies to drink later, lipases can be too much…
Food and more
You know how at some grocery stores you can buy salad at the salad bar and then they give you that little plastic bag with a disposable fork and napkin? They give you the food and then some tools for eating it. Well it turns out that mother’s milk sort of does the same thing….
Refusing Bottles
In a perfect world, we would have on-site workplace child care, long maternity leaves, and bottles for breastfed babies would be optional. We’re not there yet. And while most babies are willing to take bottles when they can’t be with their mamas a few aren’t. That’s really stressful for everyone. So what can families do?…
Community Breastfeeding Promotion Awards
The Madison Breastfeeding Promotion Network and the Wisconsin Well Woman Program are awarding their first annual community breastfeeding promotion awards. Come celebrate with us! The announcement is below. Things start at 2pm, Thursday 10/2/2008 at the Warner Park Community Center. There’ll be refreshments (always a good thing). This year’s awards are to Happy Bambino (Breastfeeding…
Madison Breastfeeding Help 