Posted on 04/05/2010 2:31:01 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
CHICAGO – The lives of nearly 900 babies would be saved each year, along with billions of dollars, if 90 percent of U.S. women fed their babies breast milk only for the first six months of life, a cost analysis says.
Those startling results, published online Monday in the journal Pediatrics, are only an estimate. But several experts who reviewed the analysis said the methods and conclusions seem sound.
"The health care system has got to be aware that breast-feeding makes a profound difference," said Dr. Ruth Lawrence, who heads the American Academy of Pediatrics' breast-feeding section.
The findings suggest that there are hundreds of deaths and many more costly illnesses each year from health problems that breast-feeding may help prevent. These include stomach viruses, ear infections, asthma, juvenile diabetes, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and even childhood leukemia.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Don’t you have some cats to go feed, or something?
I never met any boob nazis but I did get quite a few odd comments from those that didn’t understand why in the world I would want to breastfeed my children. lol I think it’s a pretty sad state of affairs when you have to learn how to breastfeed using a book because you don’t know anyone within the last two generations that did it. But I got a lot of support from my grandmother’s generation. They thought it was great!
Do you eat out of the view of everyone else?
I'm sure that breast milk had a lot to do with it, but there are other factors, as well. How many little bugaboos is the child exposed to ... and the immune systems of the parents (genetics does matter) ... are the two that jump to mind right off the bat.
My son was not breastfed, mostly because it wasn't impressed upon me in the hospital to do so all those years ago, and that kid was so hungry that I don't think I could have filled him with milk in any event. He was eating cereal at 3 weeks because he wouldn't sleep for more than an hour or two because he thought he was hungry. Even though he never had breast milk, he was never sick as an infant and his first illness as a toddler was chicken pox. To this day, he very rarely gets ill.
One of my other DIL's, not the one I referenced above, could not pump enough breast milk to keep her youngest fed, and we had to add formula within days to get the baby satisfied. The lactation specialist assigned to this DIL/baby was equally as bad as the other one I wrote about. She had my DIL convinced that the baby would under-develop without "adequate" breast milk. Today, at 15 months, that child is far above and beyond others her age.
I'm glad that you threw the lactation nazi out of the room when she upset your wife. I know these women have a laudible purpose, but the way that some of them go about it is wrong and it does more harm than good. Evidently, bedside manner is not part of their training.
RSV is pretty serious...especially for preemies and newborns.
Not every woman can pump breastmilk successfully. I had no problem nursing my daughter but when it came to using a breastpump (and I had one of those expensive Medelas), I couldn't "let down" for the machine. So what I had to do was nurse my daughter on one breast and pump the other breast simultaneously and even then, I was only able to get 4oz or so. I could "let down" for my baby but not a machine and from I understand, that's not really uncommon. Fortunately, I didn't need to pump but I thought it would come in handy.
The other thing I wanted to mention is that newborns nurse a lot and they go through growth spurts where they act like they are hungry all the time. In one sense, they are but what nursing mothers need to understand is that by nursing more frequently, their bodies will respond by making MORE breastmilk to keep up with the baby's demands. It just seems really crazy for a few days while this process takes place. Unfortunately, if a mother supplements at this point, her body doesn't get the message that she needs to make more milk and then you get into a pattern where you really aren't making enough milk.
I read a book called, "So That's What They're For" and thank goodness she mentioned these growth spurts and the approximate times when they would occur because I would have probably thought the exact same thing and given up. As a matter of fact, my baby was born on a Tues and my milk didn't fully come in until the following Sunday. It can take up to a week but they get that colustrum in the mean time. My husband got a little mad when I chased him around the room with my new "squirt guns." lol
Well, my oldest was the only one who had a lot of ear infections, and he breastfed for the shortest time and was the only one who used a bottle. I had to stop nursing him because I was pregnant with my second, and I had pre-term labor with my first.
I was fortunate. My Mom bucked the trend and breastfed in the 50s and 60s.
My mom tried but when military hospital’s “lactation consultant” turned out to be a male corpsman she wasn’t all that interested in having him “show” her how to do it. lol
It must be tiresome being you, but I’m not going to let it bother me.
I guess we’ve never had a child with “RSV,” which means ... ?
Thanks for sharing that info, well, all except that TMI squirt gun thingee. LOL! j/k with ya.
Meals on Wheels :-)...I wouldn’t have done it any other way!
I was one of the 12% Both of my girls breastfed till 12 months. Never bought formula. My Pediatrician made a remark once that “we never see you here” LOL....
Bwahahah!!
Respiratory Syncytical Virus (RSV). From WebMD: “Respiratory syncytial virus infection, usually called RSV, is a lot like a bad cold. It causes the same symptoms. And like a cold, it is very common and very contagious. Most children have had it at least once by age 2.
RSV is usually not something to worry about. But it can lead to pneumonia or other problems in some people, especially babies. So it’s important to watch the symptoms and call your doctor if they get worse.”
Men can nurse their children. (learned that at La Leche League.)
If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!
Personally, it was the easiest thing I ever did. I got tired of nursing out of the blue when they were each 22 months old, with a “relapse,” so to nearly their second birthday.
I always tell people I nursed them ‘till they could reason: My oldest, when told the milk was all gone, pointed to the other side and asked, “Water?”
Naaah! Nursing is what those breasts are for. Babies eat when they need to eat. The only place I didn’t nurse was during church services (didn’t think it would be fair to the preacher).
And some of us just don’t produce enough to keep the kid happy.
Tried 4 times. Thank goodness for similac!!!
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