Friday, June 30, 2006
Do the boogie dance of joy
I just spoke with an aide in Senator Creedon's office; the Judiciary Committee has reported out favorably on H-1782, an act permitting breastfeeding in public, ! The bill is still alive and kicking!
URGENT - Calls needed Friday A.M. in Massachusetts
The Judiciary Committee is expect to take action [B]this afternoon [/B]on H-1782, the Breastfeeding In Public Act.
Today would be an ideal day to contact House Chairman Eugene O'Flaherty and Senate Chairman Robert Creedon of the Judiciary Committee and urge a favorable report for the bill.
House Chair Eugene O'Flaherty: 617-722-2396
Senate Chair: 617-722-1200
Get those dialing fingers going - call the chairmen and your own state reps, and save H-1782!!!
Today would be an ideal day to contact House Chairman Eugene O'Flaherty and Senate Chairman Robert Creedon of the Judiciary Committee and urge a favorable report for the bill.
House Chair Eugene O'Flaherty: 617-722-2396
Senate Chair: 617-722-1200
Get those dialing fingers going - call the chairmen and your own state reps, and save H-1782!!!
Breastfeeding mothers to stage protest at Asheville Mall (CITIZEN-TIMES.com)
ASHEVILLE – Breastfeeding mothers are meeting at Victoria’s Secret in Asheville Mall this Saturday at 1 p.m., staging a protest fueled by the two women recently booted from the lingerie shop for nursing their young.
In Racine, WI, two moms have organized a nation-wide “Nurse In” at the popular stores across the country. In two separate incidents and stores, the mothers were trying to nurse their offspring and told to leave.
“I’m doing this because of the two women who were shopping there and told they couldn’t use the dressing rooms or nurse in the store but had to use the bathrooms,” said Tali Branco, 21, of North Asheville, mother of a six-month-old.
click to read more...
In Racine, WI, two moms have organized a nation-wide “Nurse In” at the popular stores across the country. In two separate incidents and stores, the mothers were trying to nurse their offspring and told to leave.
“I’m doing this because of the two women who were shopping there and told they couldn’t use the dressing rooms or nurse in the store but had to use the bathrooms,” said Tali Branco, 21, of North Asheville, mother of a six-month-old.
click to read more...
Mothering Magazine Activism Alert
Pretty Bras and Breastfeeding Belong Together!
On June 21 in Wisconsin and on June 22 in Boston, mothers in Victoria’s Secret stores were directed to bathrooms to nurse their babies. Earlier this year, the lingerie chain was involved in a similar anti-breastfeeding incident in yet another Victoria’s Secret store. At that time, national attention was raised and ultimately, Anthony Hebron, spokesman for the chain's parent, Limited Brands issued the statement that Victoria's Secret has a "long-standing policy to allow nursing in our stores. We are still for and about women." Apparently, as the more recent incidents demonstrate, that policy has not been enacted or enforced in all stores. Rally this Saturday, with lactavists nationwide! Gather at 1:00 p.m. in your time zone, at your nearest Victoria’s Secret store, for a nurse-in. Help this company, whose fortunes are largely breast-related, understand that in being "for and about women" their stores must accommodate breastfeeding. The nurse-in activism is also intended to draw attention to the fact that we need for a federal law protecting a nursing mother's right to feed her baby anywhere that she and her baby would otherwise be allowed to be.
Join MDC lactivists in discussion of the incident and their planned lactivism.
On June 21 in Wisconsin and on June 22 in Boston, mothers in Victoria’s Secret stores were directed to bathrooms to nurse their babies. Earlier this year, the lingerie chain was involved in a similar anti-breastfeeding incident in yet another Victoria’s Secret store. At that time, national attention was raised and ultimately, Anthony Hebron, spokesman for the chain's parent, Limited Brands issued the statement that Victoria's Secret has a "long-standing policy to allow nursing in our stores. We are still for and about women." Apparently, as the more recent incidents demonstrate, that policy has not been enacted or enforced in all stores. Rally this Saturday, with lactavists nationwide! Gather at 1:00 p.m. in your time zone, at your nearest Victoria’s Secret store, for a nurse-in. Help this company, whose fortunes are largely breast-related, understand that in being "for and about women" their stores must accommodate breastfeeding. The nurse-in activism is also intended to draw attention to the fact that we need for a federal law protecting a nursing mother's right to feed her baby anywhere that she and her baby would otherwise be allowed to be.
Join MDC lactivists in discussion of the incident and their planned lactivism.
Whip 'em Out : Breast-feeding Moms Find Victoria's Secret Unsupportive (The Cleveland Free Times)
Not only are breasts a perfect marriage of form and function, but it delights us all that they are the very definition of natural, and even government-approved. Federally mandated, tax-funded health professionals assure us in official documents that breast-feeding is the healthiest way to nourish a child. Which makes it odd that nursing moms in Wisconsin and Massachusetts were recently told by Victoria's Secret staffers that the sight of their breasts might offend other customers, and that they had to use a shopping mall restroom outside the store.
It's especially puzzling that Victoria's Secret — owned by Limited Brands of Ohio — should take offense, since the company advertises its products by showing off as many breasts and as much of them as they can get away with.
click to read more...
It's especially puzzling that Victoria's Secret — owned by Limited Brands of Ohio — should take offense, since the company advertises its products by showing off as many breasts and as much of them as they can get away with.
click to read more...
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Victoria's Secret Target Of A Nationwide Nurse- In
RACINE, Wis. (Wireless Flash) – Victoria’s Secret lingerie stores will be the targets of a nationwide “Nurse-In” being organized by two nursing moms who don’t like how store employees treated women who had to breast feed their kids while shopping there.
click to read more...
click to read more...
Public breastfeeders respond to Victoria's Secret policies (OnMilwaukee.com Scoops)
This Saturday, two moms are organizing a nationwide nurse-in at the popular lingerie store, Victoria’s Secret. Prompted by run-ins with Victoria’s Secret employees, Rebecca Cook, of Burlington, and Jessie Chandler, of Quincy, Mass., have decided to do something about state and federal laws that do not protect nursing mothers.
“A Tale of Two Nursing Moms” seeks a federal law that protects a nursing mother's right to feed her baby anywhere that she and her baby would otherwise be allowed to be. They are urging moms to go to their local Victoria’s Secret on July 1 at 1 p.m. to nurse their babies and be a part of this movement.
click to read more...
“A Tale of Two Nursing Moms” seeks a federal law that protects a nursing mother's right to feed her baby anywhere that she and her baby would otherwise be allowed to be. They are urging moms to go to their local Victoria’s Secret on July 1 at 1 p.m. to nurse their babies and be a part of this movement.
click to read more...
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
the letter I'm sending out far and wide....
Dear Friends,
I'm writing to you because you have previously expressed support for breastfeeding, and I wanted to make you aware of current legislation stalled in Massachusetts.
HB-1782 (http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/house/ht01/ht01782.htm) would protect mothers who breastfeed their children in public. Under current state law, mothers can be charged with indecent exposure or lewd and lascivious behavior.
Why is this important? Well, you may have seen the front page of the Boston Herald this weekend: http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=145238. Jessie Chandler is a friend of mine, and she was reduced to tears by her treatment last week. Please help us make sure this doesn't happen to any other mothers.
How? It's easy, and will take just five minutes of your time. Pick up the phone, and call your state legislators.* Tell the nice person who answers the phone that you want your officials to support HB-1782, the breastfeeding in public act. Easy!
You can also sign the online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/HB1782/petition.html . We're hoping to deliver it to the State House by the end of the week.
And you can also forward this email on to five friends. HB-1782 comes up before the Judicial Committee on June 30th, so time is of the essence!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and for your support. It will appreciated for generations to come. :)
Ali Crehan Feeney, CLC
Quincy, MA
http://lactiferous.blogspot.com
* If you're not sure who your state legislators are, you can visit http://www.mass.gov/ . On the lower left hand side of the page, you'll see a link for local government; select your community, and then click on the link that says "State Legislators."
I'm writing to you because you have previously expressed support for breastfeeding, and I wanted to make you aware of current legislation stalled in Massachusetts.
HB-1782 (http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/house/ht01/ht01782.htm) would protect mothers who breastfeed their children in public. Under current state law, mothers can be charged with indecent exposure or lewd and lascivious behavior.
Why is this important? Well, you may have seen the front page of the Boston Herald this weekend: http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=145238. Jessie Chandler is a friend of mine, and she was reduced to tears by her treatment last week. Please help us make sure this doesn't happen to any other mothers.
How? It's easy, and will take just five minutes of your time. Pick up the phone, and call your state legislators.* Tell the nice person who answers the phone that you want your officials to support HB-1782, the breastfeeding in public act. Easy!
You can also sign the online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/HB1782/petition.html . We're hoping to deliver it to the State House by the end of the week.
And you can also forward this email on to five friends. HB-1782 comes up before the Judicial Committee on June 30th, so time is of the essence!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and for your support. It will appreciated for generations to come. :)
Ali Crehan Feeney, CLC
Quincy, MA
http://lactiferous.blogspot.com
* If you're not sure who your state legislators are, you can visit http://www.mass.gov/ . On the lower left hand side of the page, you'll see a link for local government; select your community, and then click on the link that says "State Legislators."
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Mother Asked To Leave Restaurant Because She Was Breast Feeding (KSLA News)
"Are you flirting," asks Ashley Walsh, glaring into the eyes of her daughter, Emma. "Daddy's going to get to you."
Three month old Emma Walsh is everything to her parents, Travis and Ashley. She brightened their lives not long after they committed theirs to each other. When Ashley gave birth to Emma she vowed to breast feed her. She's part of the "La Leche League," a global group that educates women who want to breast feed.
Recently, they went to the place they love to eat as a family, Applebee's, the place that promotes itself as a "Good Neighbor."
"The waitress came over and took our order. She started getting fussy so I was like, 'Ok I'll just feed her.' I mean, like I said I've done it many time before, in Wal-Mart, other restaurants, the mall. No ones ever noticed it before, but here comes the manager and she says I'm going to need you to either step in the bathroom and do that, or leave. So, we just played for our meal and left," says Ashley.
click to read more...
Three month old Emma Walsh is everything to her parents, Travis and Ashley. She brightened their lives not long after they committed theirs to each other. When Ashley gave birth to Emma she vowed to breast feed her. She's part of the "La Leche League," a global group that educates women who want to breast feed.
Recently, they went to the place they love to eat as a family, Applebee's, the place that promotes itself as a "Good Neighbor."
"The waitress came over and took our order. She started getting fussy so I was like, 'Ok I'll just feed her.' I mean, like I said I've done it many time before, in Wal-Mart, other restaurants, the mall. No ones ever noticed it before, but here comes the manager and she says I'm going to need you to either step in the bathroom and do that, or leave. So, we just played for our meal and left," says Ashley.
click to read more...
Louisiana Law Permitting Mothers To Breast Feed In Public (KSLA News)
A. Legislative findings and declarations.
(1) The Legislature of Louisiana hereby finds that the surgeon general of the United States recommends that babies from birth to one year of age be breastfed, unless medically contraindicated, in order for the babies to attain an optimal healthy start in life, but that despite that recommendation, statistics reveal a declining percentage of mothers who are now choosing to breastfeed their babies, and nearly half of all new mothers are choosing formula over breastfeeding before they even leave the hospital.
(2) The legislature further finds that breast milk provides better nutrition and more immunity to disease, is easier for babies to digest, and may raise a baby's intelligence quotient, but that the social constraints of modern society work against the choice of breastfeeding and lead new mothers with demanding time schedules to opt for formula feeding for reasons such as embarrassment and the fear of social ostracism or criminal prosecution.
(3) The legislature does hereby declare that the promotion of family values and infant health demands that our society put an end to the vicious cycle of embarrassment and ignorance that constricts women and men alike on the subject of breastfeeding, and that in a genuine effort to promote family values, our society should encourage public acceptance of this most basic act of nurture between mother and baby and should take appropriate steps to ensure that no mother is made to feel incriminated or socially ostracized for breastfeeding her baby.
click to read more...
(1) The Legislature of Louisiana hereby finds that the surgeon general of the United States recommends that babies from birth to one year of age be breastfed, unless medically contraindicated, in order for the babies to attain an optimal healthy start in life, but that despite that recommendation, statistics reveal a declining percentage of mothers who are now choosing to breastfeed their babies, and nearly half of all new mothers are choosing formula over breastfeeding before they even leave the hospital.
(2) The legislature further finds that breast milk provides better nutrition and more immunity to disease, is easier for babies to digest, and may raise a baby's intelligence quotient, but that the social constraints of modern society work against the choice of breastfeeding and lead new mothers with demanding time schedules to opt for formula feeding for reasons such as embarrassment and the fear of social ostracism or criminal prosecution.
(3) The legislature does hereby declare that the promotion of family values and infant health demands that our society put an end to the vicious cycle of embarrassment and ignorance that constricts women and men alike on the subject of breastfeeding, and that in a genuine effort to promote family values, our society should encourage public acceptance of this most basic act of nurture between mother and baby and should take appropriate steps to ensure that no mother is made to feel incriminated or socially ostracized for breastfeeding her baby.
click to read more...
Campaign targets bottle feeding (Tennessean.com)
To Irma Paz-Bernstein of east Nashville, breastfeeding is the simplest, most natural thing in the world. It's diaper-changing that's hard.
Her 4-week-old son, Max, started nursing shortly after he was delivered by Caesarean section on May 30.
"It was like he knew exactly what to do," she said. "I believe in breastfeeding. It's the best thing for the child and the mother and society and the environment."
But in the U.S., Paz-Bernstein's experience may not be considered typical. The Office of Women's Health found that American women considered breastfeeding an "ideal" but not the standard. They also didn't see any disadvantages to not breastfeeding. In 2003, 33 percent of American women breastfed their children for six months — well below the 50 percent target of the Healthy People 2010 initiative. At 12 months, 19 percent of American mothers are still nursing, despite many health experts recommendations.
click to read more...
Her 4-week-old son, Max, started nursing shortly after he was delivered by Caesarean section on May 30.
"It was like he knew exactly what to do," she said. "I believe in breastfeeding. It's the best thing for the child and the mother and society and the environment."
But in the U.S., Paz-Bernstein's experience may not be considered typical. The Office of Women's Health found that American women considered breastfeeding an "ideal" but not the standard. They also didn't see any disadvantages to not breastfeeding. In 2003, 33 percent of American women breastfed their children for six months — well below the 50 percent target of the Healthy People 2010 initiative. At 12 months, 19 percent of American mothers are still nursing, despite many health experts recommendations.
click to read more...
Monday, June 26, 2006
Inconvenient truths prevail on helmets, drugs, schools (The Detroit News Online)
...The latest medical research is now so strong supporting the importance of breast feeding, some doctors are actually pushing for warnings/disclaimers on formula packages pointing out the physical (and psychological) benefits of nursing. They want to dissuade women from rejecting what medical research shows is best for mother and child.
Various groups are up in arms over this possibility, saying they will make women who choose not to breast feed feel guilty. Certainly, women who cannotdo it feel bad enough. Besides the real medical/physical challenges some women might face, others just don't want to be bothered. That's their choice. However, that does not change our next inconvenient truth: Babies (and moms) are better off when nursing takes place.
click to read more...
Various groups are up in arms over this possibility, saying they will make women who choose not to breast feed feel guilty. Certainly, women who cannotdo it feel bad enough. Besides the real medical/physical challenges some women might face, others just don't want to be bothered. That's their choice. However, that does not change our next inconvenient truth: Babies (and moms) are better off when nursing takes place.
click to read more...
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Support for HB-1782
Please take a moment to sign the petition to support HB-1782, legislation to permit breastfeeding in public in Massachusetts - and then pass the link on to five friends!
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Coverup charged at Victoria’s stores: Moms reveal bust-up over breast-feeding (BostonHerald.com)
The battle over public breast-feeding has moved to a new front line: Victoria’s Secret stores, where lacy bras are in, but nursing mothers are out, angry moms charge.
A Quincy mother says she was humiliated when an employee of the lingerie franchise’s Faneuil Hall store flatly refused to allow her to breast-feed her daughter, directing her to a public restroom outside.
“I was upset. I was embarrassed. My heart was breaking for my daughter,” said Jessie Chandler, who ended up going home to feed her 9-month-old daughter, Charlotte. “I felt powerless to do anything.”
Anthony Hebron, a spokesman for Victoria’s Secret, apologized yesterday, saying the Boston employee was a new hire. Hebron said it’s store policy to allow women to breast-feed in the store.
But Chandler, 24, and other moms say that policy isn’t trickling down to the employees who work with the public - and they cite instances of similar problems at the chain’s stores in two other states. They are planning a “nurse in” protest July 1.
“I’m sure that they have models in their stores and catalogs that have a lot more breast showing than any woman who’s breast-feeding,” said Anne Merewood, director of the breast-feeding center at Boston Medical Center.
“If they’re going to make their money off of selling things for women’s breasts, they ought to recognize all aspects of the breast,” Merewood said.
click to read more...
A Quincy mother says she was humiliated when an employee of the lingerie franchise’s Faneuil Hall store flatly refused to allow her to breast-feed her daughter, directing her to a public restroom outside.
“I was upset. I was embarrassed. My heart was breaking for my daughter,” said Jessie Chandler, who ended up going home to feed her 9-month-old daughter, Charlotte. “I felt powerless to do anything.”
Anthony Hebron, a spokesman for Victoria’s Secret, apologized yesterday, saying the Boston employee was a new hire. Hebron said it’s store policy to allow women to breast-feed in the store.
But Chandler, 24, and other moms say that policy isn’t trickling down to the employees who work with the public - and they cite instances of similar problems at the chain’s stores in two other states. They are planning a “nurse in” protest July 1.
“I’m sure that they have models in their stores and catalogs that have a lot more breast showing than any woman who’s breast-feeding,” said Anne Merewood, director of the breast-feeding center at Boston Medical Center.
“If they’re going to make their money off of selling things for women’s breasts, they ought to recognize all aspects of the breast,” Merewood said.
click to read more...
Friday, June 23, 2006
Breastfeeding one for the record books (www.stuff.co..z)
Television personality and mother-of-two Petra Bagust is promoting the benefits of breastfeeding.
"It's the most natural thing to do and is nutritionally the best possible start a child has," she says.
The Western Springs resident is backing a Guinness World Record breastfeeding attempt at Auckland Zoo.
"Breast milk is free but doesn't get as much marketing like most of the different baby formula products out there," she says.
"I've breastfed both my children and wanted to promote its benefits."
The August record attempt is being organised by Louise James.
It follows an unsuccessful bid last year when 664 mothers simultaneously breastfed their children.
click to read more...
"It's the most natural thing to do and is nutritionally the best possible start a child has," she says.
The Western Springs resident is backing a Guinness World Record breastfeeding attempt at Auckland Zoo.
"Breast milk is free but doesn't get as much marketing like most of the different baby formula products out there," she says.
"I've breastfed both my children and wanted to promote its benefits."
The August record attempt is being organised by Louise James.
It follows an unsuccessful bid last year when 664 mothers simultaneously breastfed their children.
click to read more...
Cross-Country Nurse-In of Victoria Secret - MotheringDotCommune Forums
A nationwide nurse-in is being planned!
Victoria's Secret has a well-documented history of hostility towards nursing mothers - and the mamas aren't going to take it anymore!
Victoria's Secret has a well-documented history of hostility towards nursing mothers - and the mamas aren't going to take it anymore!
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Masaachusetts Action Alert
Massachusetts Mamas, start gearing up... spread the word on this far and wide...
A friend of mine was refused permission to nurse in Victoria's Secret at Boston's Faneiul Hall. Jessie is mother to a lovely baby girl, Charlotte. She asked the clerk at VS if she could use a changing room for a moment to calm and nurse her little girl, and was told that company policy prohibited breastfeeding because it is unsanitary. Jessie was directed towards a bathroom instead. Jessie says, "During this entire exchange my DD had tears streaming down her face, eyebrows bright read and nuzzling my chest. I tried once more to nurse her outside, but she just wouldn't take to it. It's so hot there and can be very crowded."
If it weren't so despicable, it would be funny - Victoria's Secret is all about breasts, as long as they aren't being used for their intended purposes! Given that this exact same scenario played out last year in South Carolina and resulted in a breastfeeding-in-public law being passed, well, you'd think they'd have learned their lesson, but apparently mamas in Massachusetts are going to have to repeat it for them.
Jessie has been in touch with several local breastfeeding support organizations, will be contacting the media and her elected officials, and a nurse-in is sure to follow as well. I will keep you posted on the details via this blog as well. Feel free to leave a comment, email or IM me. I am posting this story with Jessie's permission.
A friend of mine was refused permission to nurse in Victoria's Secret at Boston's Faneiul Hall. Jessie is mother to a lovely baby girl, Charlotte. She asked the clerk at VS if she could use a changing room for a moment to calm and nurse her little girl, and was told that company policy prohibited breastfeeding because it is unsanitary. Jessie was directed towards a bathroom instead. Jessie says, "During this entire exchange my DD had tears streaming down her face, eyebrows bright read and nuzzling my chest. I tried once more to nurse her outside, but she just wouldn't take to it. It's so hot there and can be very crowded."
If it weren't so despicable, it would be funny - Victoria's Secret is all about breasts, as long as they aren't being used for their intended purposes! Given that this exact same scenario played out last year in South Carolina and resulted in a breastfeeding-in-public law being passed, well, you'd think they'd have learned their lesson, but apparently mamas in Massachusetts are going to have to repeat it for them.
Jessie has been in touch with several local breastfeeding support organizations, will be contacting the media and her elected officials, and a nurse-in is sure to follow as well. I will keep you posted on the details via this blog as well. Feel free to leave a comment, email or IM me. I am posting this story with Jessie's permission.
Moms' decision to breast-feed faces obstacles (MiamiHerald.com)
The benefits of breast-feeding are well documented in magazines, newspapers and scientific journals. However, the barriers to successful breast-feeding are less well known. And, according to a recent commentary published in the Journal of Pediatrics, these barriers can be especially challenging for working women.
In the workplace, nursing mothers may experience a lack of privacy to nurse or express milk, difficulty finding quality child care at or near the workplace, and reluctance on the part of employers to allow adequate time to express milk.
In fact, according to published reports, returning to work is commonly identified as a primary cause of early termination of breast-feeding or feeding with expressed milk.
But even among stay-at-home moms, the road to successful nursing can be rocky.
click to read more...
In the workplace, nursing mothers may experience a lack of privacy to nurse or express milk, difficulty finding quality child care at or near the workplace, and reluctance on the part of employers to allow adequate time to express milk.
In fact, according to published reports, returning to work is commonly identified as a primary cause of early termination of breast-feeding or feeding with expressed milk.
But even among stay-at-home moms, the road to successful nursing can be rocky.
click to read more...
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Memories, and a bit about me, or another Rare Ramble
It's funny, isn't it, how we end up on some of the paths we travel down? I recently was talking with a friend about the current media breastfeeding brouhaha, and about mothers and the options they have available and the choices they must make, and I suddenly recalled one of those key exchanges that helped push me along my own journey.
Backing up a bit, to put this all in context...
I am the mother of a three-and-a-half year old daughter who is - along with the love of my life, my amazing husband - the greatest gift I have ever been given. I am also a certified lactation counselor, and work for a governmental agency providing support to mothers; I also am a volunteer counselor with my local nursing mothers' council. (And here's my standard disclaimer - any opinions I express here in my blog or in other personal spaces or forums are mine and mine alone.) It is my intent to obtain both my RN and my IBCLC in the future.
I became a breastfeeding counselor because of my own personal experiences. I had always had an interest in women's health issues, knew I somehow wanted to be involved in the field, and was exploring possible career options with that in mind. But I had not yet - for a lack of a better phrase - found my calling.
I knew I wanted to breastfeed my daughter, but when she was born, we had a lot of trouble. And I mean a lot of trouble. I rarely speak of this at length, even with close friends... but it's important to not minimize our experiences, so I'm going to speak of it here and now.
The Peanut would not latch on, although I had a great supply and was determined to make it work. I will always remember the sheer panic of knowing that we would soon be sent home and that I could not feed my child. She had latched very poorly a few times, then opted out of the whole process. I swear to you, every single nurse in that hospital handled my breasts during our stay. My husband cup-fed her my pumped milk while I wept.
We received so much conflicting advice, from both the nurses and the IBCLCs. It was terrifying and overwhelming and stressful. But my husband and I were determined to make breastfeeding work; god love that man, he worked just as hard at the process and was a rock, never faltering or questioning the decision that we made together - our daughter would be breastfed.
The day before we were sent home, an IBCLC looked at my desperate face, and then came back with a nipple shield in her hand. We talked about the pros and cons, the conditions of its use and the importance of follow-up lactation care - and then we gave it a try. And my daughter nursed.
What followed were eight-plus long weeks of a love-hate relationship with the nipple shield, a strange little silicon device that came between my daughter and I and yet brought us together. There were countless visits to breastfeeding support group, hours and hours of research, lots of learning and lots of crying. I have extremely mixed feelings about nipple shields because they are so often improperly used - but I will always be grateful for its existence, and for the IBCLC who first handed us one, because it saved our nursing relationship and allowed us to breastfeed.
After weeks of patient (and not-so patient) attempts, we finally weaned the Peanut off of the shield, and at ten weeks of age, she was nursing like a champ, unassisted and intervention-free. The first time we made it a whole day without once needing the shield, I bawled. The whole process was gut-wrenching and life-changing. There were plenty of times I was ready to give up, but between my husband and the lactation support people (IBCLCs and LLLLs and other angels) I hung in there and stuck it out. I'm stubborn that way. And three-and-a-half years later, I am now the mother of a beautiful, sensitive, brilliant little nursling who on a daily basis makes it abundantly clear how much she values our breastfeeding relationship, and validates our decision to stick it out through all the grief and pain.
I still get teary when I think about that time. There were many other unfair burdens and demands placed upon us during that winter as well, and we were under a great deal of pressure and stress. But our daughter came first and foremost, in spite of it all, and we made it through to the other side.
You see, it's because of all this trouble that I had that I have gone on to become a certified lactation counselor. Because it was so hard for me, and if I can help just one mama to have a better experience, it means everything to me. The number one reason women stop breastfeeding is because they do not have adequate support. So I aim to provide a little of that missing support. Upon encouragement from my favorite IBCLC, I started taking formal classes... and so it began, and so it goes on.
Anyway, back to that exchange I mentioned...
My daughter was probably about twelve weeks old or so, and our nursing issues were quite recent and the emotional wounds were still quite fresh. I had some friends and some friends-of-friends come over for a girl's night, and our conversation touched on many subjects. I was the only mother in the group, and I alluded briefly to the struggle we had with breastfeeding, and what a relief it was that we were on track now.
One of the attendees was heavily pregnant with her first child. She was one of those 'friend-of-a-friends' and I did not really know her at all. And she remarked, "Well, I don't see how anyone can have any trouble with breastfeeding - those babies seem to want to latch onto everything and anything! All they want to do is suck, so I don't see what the big deal is."
I recall very well the sting of those thoughtless words. I know they were said without malice and came from ignorance, but they hurt. From my perspective, this woman was sitting on my sofa eating the food I had cooked for her and was criticizing me for not being good at something that should be instinctual and easy, and it felt like being kicked in the stomach. She was just being stupid and dumb, but she really hurt me.
So yeah, I've looked at clouds from both sides. I know about the struggle and the hurt and the sting of being made to feel inadequate. And I know about how fiercely proud I am to have nursed my child, and I want every baby in the world to be breastfed. But I also have friends who couldn't make it work, and I will not tolerate people slapping them for things they could not control, whether it's because it flat out wasn't possible or because they weren't given the support they needed to succeed. And it's also why it makes me so angry when women are made to feel guilty over an issue like this.
You just can't look at it from one side. To paraphrase the schmaltzy song, it's the clouds' illusions you should recall.
Backing up a bit, to put this all in context...
I am the mother of a three-and-a-half year old daughter who is - along with the love of my life, my amazing husband - the greatest gift I have ever been given. I am also a certified lactation counselor, and work for a governmental agency providing support to mothers; I also am a volunteer counselor with my local nursing mothers' council. (And here's my standard disclaimer - any opinions I express here in my blog or in other personal spaces or forums are mine and mine alone.) It is my intent to obtain both my RN and my IBCLC in the future.
I became a breastfeeding counselor because of my own personal experiences. I had always had an interest in women's health issues, knew I somehow wanted to be involved in the field, and was exploring possible career options with that in mind. But I had not yet - for a lack of a better phrase - found my calling.
I knew I wanted to breastfeed my daughter, but when she was born, we had a lot of trouble. And I mean a lot of trouble. I rarely speak of this at length, even with close friends... but it's important to not minimize our experiences, so I'm going to speak of it here and now.
The Peanut would not latch on, although I had a great supply and was determined to make it work. I will always remember the sheer panic of knowing that we would soon be sent home and that I could not feed my child. She had latched very poorly a few times, then opted out of the whole process. I swear to you, every single nurse in that hospital handled my breasts during our stay. My husband cup-fed her my pumped milk while I wept.
We received so much conflicting advice, from both the nurses and the IBCLCs. It was terrifying and overwhelming and stressful. But my husband and I were determined to make breastfeeding work; god love that man, he worked just as hard at the process and was a rock, never faltering or questioning the decision that we made together - our daughter would be breastfed.
The day before we were sent home, an IBCLC looked at my desperate face, and then came back with a nipple shield in her hand. We talked about the pros and cons, the conditions of its use and the importance of follow-up lactation care - and then we gave it a try. And my daughter nursed.
What followed were eight-plus long weeks of a love-hate relationship with the nipple shield, a strange little silicon device that came between my daughter and I and yet brought us together. There were countless visits to breastfeeding support group, hours and hours of research, lots of learning and lots of crying. I have extremely mixed feelings about nipple shields because they are so often improperly used - but I will always be grateful for its existence, and for the IBCLC who first handed us one, because it saved our nursing relationship and allowed us to breastfeed.
After weeks of patient (and not-so patient) attempts, we finally weaned the Peanut off of the shield, and at ten weeks of age, she was nursing like a champ, unassisted and intervention-free. The first time we made it a whole day without once needing the shield, I bawled. The whole process was gut-wrenching and life-changing. There were plenty of times I was ready to give up, but between my husband and the lactation support people (IBCLCs and LLLLs and other angels) I hung in there and stuck it out. I'm stubborn that way. And three-and-a-half years later, I am now the mother of a beautiful, sensitive, brilliant little nursling who on a daily basis makes it abundantly clear how much she values our breastfeeding relationship, and validates our decision to stick it out through all the grief and pain.
I still get teary when I think about that time. There were many other unfair burdens and demands placed upon us during that winter as well, and we were under a great deal of pressure and stress. But our daughter came first and foremost, in spite of it all, and we made it through to the other side.
You see, it's because of all this trouble that I had that I have gone on to become a certified lactation counselor. Because it was so hard for me, and if I can help just one mama to have a better experience, it means everything to me. The number one reason women stop breastfeeding is because they do not have adequate support. So I aim to provide a little of that missing support. Upon encouragement from my favorite IBCLC, I started taking formal classes... and so it began, and so it goes on.
Anyway, back to that exchange I mentioned...
My daughter was probably about twelve weeks old or so, and our nursing issues were quite recent and the emotional wounds were still quite fresh. I had some friends and some friends-of-friends come over for a girl's night, and our conversation touched on many subjects. I was the only mother in the group, and I alluded briefly to the struggle we had with breastfeeding, and what a relief it was that we were on track now.
One of the attendees was heavily pregnant with her first child. She was one of those 'friend-of-a-friends' and I did not really know her at all. And she remarked, "Well, I don't see how anyone can have any trouble with breastfeeding - those babies seem to want to latch onto everything and anything! All they want to do is suck, so I don't see what the big deal is."
I recall very well the sting of those thoughtless words. I know they were said without malice and came from ignorance, but they hurt. From my perspective, this woman was sitting on my sofa eating the food I had cooked for her and was criticizing me for not being good at something that should be instinctual and easy, and it felt like being kicked in the stomach. She was just being stupid and dumb, but she really hurt me.
So yeah, I've looked at clouds from both sides. I know about the struggle and the hurt and the sting of being made to feel inadequate. And I know about how fiercely proud I am to have nursed my child, and I want every baby in the world to be breastfed. But I also have friends who couldn't make it work, and I will not tolerate people slapping them for things they could not control, whether it's because it flat out wasn't possible or because they weren't given the support they needed to succeed. And it's also why it makes me so angry when women are made to feel guilty over an issue like this.
You just can't look at it from one side. To paraphrase the schmaltzy song, it's the clouds' illusions you should recall.
Blog site bans pro-baby breastfeeding support group's images (Index on Censorship)
The popular weblog hosting site LiveJournal barred images of breastfeeding mothers posted by a campaign group working to promote natural breastfeeding for babies - after its Abuse Team deemed the pictures "inappropriate".
click to read more...
click to read more...
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Breast milk eases addicted newborns' withdrawal (PediatricHealthOnline)
Jun 12 (Reuters Health) - Babies of drug-dependent mothers are born with the same addiction, and have to go through withdrawal. The severity of symptoms is reduced, Australian researchers have found, when such infants are breast fed or given milk expressed by their mothers.
"Promoting the idea of breast-feeding in drug-using women before birth may improve outcome, both medically and socially," Dr. Julee Oei from University of New South Wales, Kensington, told Reuters Health.
The team explains in the journal Pediatrics that addictive drugs are passed into breast milk, "but the quantity of transferred drug is so low that breast-feeding is considered unlikely to prevent neonatal abstinence syndrome," as infant withdrawal is called. There's some evidence, however, that breast-feeding reduces the severity of withdrawal symptoms.
click to read more...
"Promoting the idea of breast-feeding in drug-using women before birth may improve outcome, both medically and socially," Dr. Julee Oei from University of New South Wales, Kensington, told Reuters Health.
The team explains in the journal Pediatrics that addictive drugs are passed into breast milk, "but the quantity of transferred drug is so low that breast-feeding is considered unlikely to prevent neonatal abstinence syndrome," as infant withdrawal is called. There's some evidence, however, that breast-feeding reduces the severity of withdrawal symptoms.
click to read more...
A rare ramble
And here is a blog I've just added to my feeds, because it is well worth reading and keeping up with.
On a side note... I rarely speak my own mind here, and tend to keep my babbling on my personal blog, and journal. I feel that I am still so much a student, and very often in the blogosphere people are assumed to be 'experts' in their field, right or wrong, and this is not a role I have been comfortable taking on in this particular media, where so much can be misinterpreted or taken out of contaxt. I have very much taken the 'research-based evidence' admonition to heart; I hope to become an IBCLC one day, and strive to follow that code of ethics now in anticipation of that time. So I tend to stick to the facts here rather than bore everyone with my opinions.
I find that I must say something, however brief, about the recent flurry of articles on the national breastfeeding campaign.
I think that many of the women who are saying, "But I wanted to breastfeed! And I couldn't!" have every right to be angry and upset when they are told how important breastfeeding really is. I cry foul, however, when that guilt card starts popping up.
BE angry. Be upset. Your government tells you all about the benefits of breastfeeding your child, but makes it incredibly difficult for you to do so, because we have horrific maternity leave policies and our healthcare system is a joke, and you are denied the access to the tools you need in order to succeed.
BE angry. Be outraged. The ad campaign is honest and tells you that you put your child at risk by formula feeding, but if you dare to put your child to the breast in public you will be chastised and harrassed and there is no federal legislation that will protect you.
BE angry. Be furious. There is an overwhelming body of evidence which demonstrates that formula-fed babies are sicklier and at higher risks for serious diseases through their lives, but your doctor doesn't have the training to help you and and so he tells you to go ahead and give up and that your child will turn out just fine.
BE angry. Be incensed. You can submit expenses for reimbursement to your flex plans for contact lens solution, cough syrup and band aids, but you can't submit the cost of a breastpump because your government doesn't consider it a necessary expense.
Go ahead, be angry. You really ought to be. But don't feel guilty - because you're not the one responsible for this failure. Don't take on that burden for them - you're not the one whose feet should be in the fire. You are guilty of nothing. You are doing the best you can with what you've been handed. Don't let them hand you this load of bull, too.
On a side note... I rarely speak my own mind here, and tend to keep my babbling on my personal blog, and journal. I feel that I am still so much a student, and very often in the blogosphere people are assumed to be 'experts' in their field, right or wrong, and this is not a role I have been comfortable taking on in this particular media, where so much can be misinterpreted or taken out of contaxt. I have very much taken the 'research-based evidence' admonition to heart; I hope to become an IBCLC one day, and strive to follow that code of ethics now in anticipation of that time. So I tend to stick to the facts here rather than bore everyone with my opinions.
I find that I must say something, however brief, about the recent flurry of articles on the national breastfeeding campaign.
I think that many of the women who are saying, "But I wanted to breastfeed! And I couldn't!" have every right to be angry and upset when they are told how important breastfeeding really is. I cry foul, however, when that guilt card starts popping up.
BE angry. Be upset. Your government tells you all about the benefits of breastfeeding your child, but makes it incredibly difficult for you to do so, because we have horrific maternity leave policies and our healthcare system is a joke, and you are denied the access to the tools you need in order to succeed.
BE angry. Be outraged. The ad campaign is honest and tells you that you put your child at risk by formula feeding, but if you dare to put your child to the breast in public you will be chastised and harrassed and there is no federal legislation that will protect you.
BE angry. Be furious. There is an overwhelming body of evidence which demonstrates that formula-fed babies are sicklier and at higher risks for serious diseases through their lives, but your doctor doesn't have the training to help you and and so he tells you to go ahead and give up and that your child will turn out just fine.
BE angry. Be incensed. You can submit expenses for reimbursement to your flex plans for contact lens solution, cough syrup and band aids, but you can't submit the cost of a breastpump because your government doesn't consider it a necessary expense.
Go ahead, be angry. You really ought to be. But don't feel guilty - because you're not the one responsible for this failure. Don't take on that burden for them - you're not the one whose feet should be in the fire. You are guilty of nothing. You are doing the best you can with what you've been handed. Don't let them hand you this load of bull, too.
Breast is best, and tasty, too! (Dunstable News - Bedford Today)
Special cake marks awareness week
This specially made cake, complete with bra, provided food for thought about breastfeeding. It was served up at a playgroup in Dunstable, to help promote Breastfeeding Awareness Week.
The cake was on show at the weekly playgroup run by the Dunstable and District branch of the National Childbirth Trust.
They marked the awareness week with a stand at the playgroup, which is called Bumps, Babies and Bundles of Fun, with advice, information and leaflets on hand.
click to read more...
This specially made cake, complete with bra, provided food for thought about breastfeeding. It was served up at a playgroup in Dunstable, to help promote Breastfeeding Awareness Week.
The cake was on show at the weekly playgroup run by the Dunstable and District branch of the National Childbirth Trust.
They marked the awareness week with a stand at the playgroup, which is called Bumps, Babies and Bundles of Fun, with advice, information and leaflets on hand.
click to read more...
Infant Formula, Parkinson's Tie Probed (WebMD)
June 15, 2006 -- Early research in mice shows that being fed iron-fortified formula in infancy may increase the risk of developing Parkinson's diseaseParkinson's disease late in life.
In the study, newborn mice exposed to dietary iron levels similar to those found in infant formula showed evidence of Parkinson's-like neurological degeneration as they aged, the researchers say.
click to read more...
In the study, newborn mice exposed to dietary iron levels similar to those found in infant formula showed evidence of Parkinson's-like neurological degeneration as they aged, the researchers say.
click to read more...
Lack of breast-feeding caused Nepal royal family's downfall? (India News)
Kathmandu - A Nepali writer has come up with a different cause for the downfall of Nepal’s King Gyanendra and the Shah dynasty that ruled the kingdom for over 200 years - the lack of breast-feeding by the Shah queens.
Peter J. Karthak, author and columnist, attributes the disintegration of Nepal’s royals and their growing unpopularity to the royal babies’ never knowing ‘the comfy zones of their mothers’ bucket-seat laps and pillow-like soft bosoms’.
Karthak, who was educated in North Point school in Darjeeling, India, where the current king and his two brothers also studied around the same time, wrote in his column in the Kathmandu Post daily Sunday that the lack of breast-feeding, symbolising the meagre role mothers played in royal childrens’ lives, caused the ‘male brats’ to grow up as ‘drunkies (sic), junkies, spoilers, wastrels and mean murderers’.
click to read more...
Peter J. Karthak, author and columnist, attributes the disintegration of Nepal’s royals and their growing unpopularity to the royal babies’ never knowing ‘the comfy zones of their mothers’ bucket-seat laps and pillow-like soft bosoms’.
Karthak, who was educated in North Point school in Darjeeling, India, where the current king and his two brothers also studied around the same time, wrote in his column in the Kathmandu Post daily Sunday that the lack of breast-feeding, symbolising the meagre role mothers played in royal childrens’ lives, caused the ‘male brats’ to grow up as ‘drunkies (sic), junkies, spoilers, wastrels and mean murderers’.
click to read more...
It's time to promote breastfeeding (MetroWestDailyNews.com)
Mitt Romney has succeeded in making sure that baby formula companies can continue to give new parents free samples as they check out of the hospital. We shouldn't be surprised; babies aren't known for big campaign contributions.
Romney claims that political considerations aren't an issue. According to him, it's about depriving "women of the right to decide whether they want to breastfeed their babies or give them formula."
Makes sense -- after all, if hospitals didn't give out free formula, a new parent would have to go shopping, look at the high price of formula, and make a conscious decision to spend around $1,000 in the next year on artificial food that has zero immune system benefits and is nutritionally inferior to mothers' milk.
If mothers understood that breastfeeding gives babies stronger immune systems; lowers their risk of developing diabetes, cancer, and numerous other diseases; and provides a free and easy way to keep them content, mothers might actually decide to breastfeed, hurting formula companies' profits.
But maybe Mitt really does care about personal freedom. So, here are some more ideas for hospital freebies. Let's have hospitals give free cigarettes to lung cancer patients after chemotherapy. We should also hand out free wine after AA meetings.
click to read more....
Romney claims that political considerations aren't an issue. According to him, it's about depriving "women of the right to decide whether they want to breastfeed their babies or give them formula."
Makes sense -- after all, if hospitals didn't give out free formula, a new parent would have to go shopping, look at the high price of formula, and make a conscious decision to spend around $1,000 in the next year on artificial food that has zero immune system benefits and is nutritionally inferior to mothers' milk.
If mothers understood that breastfeeding gives babies stronger immune systems; lowers their risk of developing diabetes, cancer, and numerous other diseases; and provides a free and easy way to keep them content, mothers might actually decide to breastfeed, hurting formula companies' profits.
But maybe Mitt really does care about personal freedom. So, here are some more ideas for hospital freebies. Let's have hospitals give free cigarettes to lung cancer patients after chemotherapy. We should also hand out free wine after AA meetings.
click to read more....
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Suckle This (Gothamist)
If milk does a body good, mother's milk seems to do worlds of it. Yesterday, the NY Times explored the science of breast-feeding, from its ability to strengthen the mother-baby bond to strengthening the baby's immune system. The benefits of suckling at the teat have been kicked around for years. Other gains to be made include reducing a baby's risk of developing obesity, asthma, diabetes, and even cancers later in life, including leukemia and lymphoma. Kids who are breast fed also tend to score higher on IQ tests, avoid some autoimmune disease and can dodge certain infections thanks to antibodies passed along in the milk that mommy has herself been building up all her life.
And there's good news for moms too: breast-feeding can keep one from ovulating which (in addition to obvious immediate benefits) is associated with a decreased risk of breast and ovarian cancer. This is thought to result from decreased estrogen levels during lactation.
The trouble is, despite this growing pile of evidence in favor of the practice, PC thugs are a little worried because a campaign to encourage breast-feeding may make women who are unable to do so feel inadequate and guilty. We wonder if they would also hold back on advising people to eat healthier or hit the gym out of fear of making people feel bad that they can't afford either. Breast feeding rates apparently increase with education, income, and age. Black women do it less frequently than most while Hispanics breast-feed often.
click to read more...
And there's good news for moms too: breast-feeding can keep one from ovulating which (in addition to obvious immediate benefits) is associated with a decreased risk of breast and ovarian cancer. This is thought to result from decreased estrogen levels during lactation.
The trouble is, despite this growing pile of evidence in favor of the practice, PC thugs are a little worried because a campaign to encourage breast-feeding may make women who are unable to do so feel inadequate and guilty. We wonder if they would also hold back on advising people to eat healthier or hit the gym out of fear of making people feel bad that they can't afford either. Breast feeding rates apparently increase with education, income, and age. Black women do it less frequently than most while Hispanics breast-feed often.
click to read more...
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Breast-Fed Babies May Have a Leg Up in the Battle Against Childhood Obesity (New York Times)
Exercise. Cut down on television. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Oh, and make sure your children are breast-fed.
That is the latest prescription for preventing childhood obesity, as written by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, based on studies that have found that children who were breast-fed extensively as babies were less likely to put on weight later in life.
click to read more....
That is the latest prescription for preventing childhood obesity, as written by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, based on studies that have found that children who were breast-fed extensively as babies were less likely to put on weight later in life.
click to read more....
Breast-Feed or Else (New York Times)
Warning: Public health officials have determined that not breast-feeding may be hazardous to your baby's health.
There is no black-box label like that affixed to cans of infant formula or tucked into the corner of magazine advertisements, at least not yet. But that is the unambiguous message of a controversial government public health campaign encouraging new mothers to breast-feed for six months to protect their babies from colds, flu, ear infections, diarrhea and even obesity. In April, the World Health Organization, setting new international bench marks for children's growth, for the first time referred to breast-feeding as the biological norm.
"Just like it's risky to smoke during pregnancy, it's risky not to breast-feed after," said Suzanne Haynes, senior scientific adviser to the Office on Women's Health in the Department of Health and Human Services. "The whole notion of talking about risk is new in this field, but it's the only field of public health, except perhaps physical activity, where there is never talk about the risk."
click to read more...
There is no black-box label like that affixed to cans of infant formula or tucked into the corner of magazine advertisements, at least not yet. But that is the unambiguous message of a controversial government public health campaign encouraging new mothers to breast-feed for six months to protect their babies from colds, flu, ear infections, diarrhea and even obesity. In April, the World Health Organization, setting new international bench marks for children's growth, for the first time referred to breast-feeding as the biological norm.
"Just like it's risky to smoke during pregnancy, it's risky not to breast-feed after," said Suzanne Haynes, senior scientific adviser to the Office on Women's Health in the Department of Health and Human Services. "The whole notion of talking about risk is new in this field, but it's the only field of public health, except perhaps physical activity, where there is never talk about the risk."
click to read more...
Study shows introducing solid foods at the right age can stave off allergies (JournalStar.com)
Feed solid foods to your infant and she’ll sleep through the night.
That’s the advice given to exhausted new mothers.
Feed them solid foods between 4 months and 6 months — never before 4 months. That’s the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Nutrition talking.
Give nothing but breast milk for the first 6 months, says advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Breastfeeding. It points to studies that find infants who get solids too early have a greater chance of developing food allergies.
Childhood allergies sometimes grow into adult allergies. Sometimes there’s a grouping of allergies, eczema and asthma. Some allergies, like to nuts, are dangerous.
Now comes a study in the June issue of Pediatrics suggesting maybe it’s best to feed infants solids after four months rather than six.
click to read more...
That’s the advice given to exhausted new mothers.
Feed them solid foods between 4 months and 6 months — never before 4 months. That’s the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Nutrition talking.
Give nothing but breast milk for the first 6 months, says advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Breastfeeding. It points to studies that find infants who get solids too early have a greater chance of developing food allergies.
Childhood allergies sometimes grow into adult allergies. Sometimes there’s a grouping of allergies, eczema and asthma. Some allergies, like to nuts, are dangerous.
Now comes a study in the June issue of Pediatrics suggesting maybe it’s best to feed infants solids after four months rather than six.
click to read more...
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Killed bills would have protected moms, kids (The Arizona Republic)
As the state Legislature winds down, bills start flying through the process.
As that happens, you should compare some bills that were sent to the governor with two bills killed by two dads from Gilbert in the Legislature that would have protected mothers and children.
Sometimes the public process functions well. Amy Milliron went from ordinary mom to successful activist overnight. advertisement
Last summer she was breast-feeding her infant son at a public pool in Chandler when she was asked by a lifeguard to do her feeding in the bathroom in the future.
click to read more...
As that happens, you should compare some bills that were sent to the governor with two bills killed by two dads from Gilbert in the Legislature that would have protected mothers and children.
Sometimes the public process functions well. Amy Milliron went from ordinary mom to successful activist overnight. advertisement
Last summer she was breast-feeding her infant son at a public pool in Chandler when she was asked by a lifeguard to do her feeding in the bathroom in the future.
click to read more...
KDHE Educates Public About a Mother's Right to Breastfeed (Kansas City infoZine News)
The Kansas Legislature passed a law this session that allows a woman to breastfeed her baby anywhere she has the right to be.
click to read more..
click to read more..
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Target apology (suburbanchicagonews.com)
Minneapolis-based Target on Thursday issued an apology, saying it was wrong for employees at the Naperville store to tell a customer she could no longer nurse her baby in a fitting room.
click to read more...
click to read more...
Stores Apology Over Breastfeed Refusal (from Blackburn Citizen)
CLOTHING giant Next has apologised to an East Lancashire mum after staff refused to allow her to breastfeed her baby in their shop.
Stephanie Prior, 33, was shopping for holiday clothes at Blackburn's Townsmoor retail park when five-month-old tot Luci began to cry from hunger.
Mrs Prior said she approached staff in the store at about 11.30am and asked permission to take the baby into a changing room to breastfeed her in private.
But she claims that staff refused, forcing her to abandon the clothes she had planned to buy and seek help at the Boots store next door, which let her use an office.
click to read more...
Stephanie Prior, 33, was shopping for holiday clothes at Blackburn's Townsmoor retail park when five-month-old tot Luci began to cry from hunger.
Mrs Prior said she approached staff in the store at about 11.30am and asked permission to take the baby into a changing room to breastfeed her in private.
But she claims that staff refused, forcing her to abandon the clothes she had planned to buy and seek help at the Boots store next door, which let her use an office.
click to read more...
When is a baby too fat? New guidelines lower the bar (statesman.com)
Parents are notoriously obsessive over how their babies stack up on the growth charts pediatricians use. Now, new guidelines from the World Health Organization are prompting a debate over how big a healthy baby should be.
WHO, the United Nations' health agency, is urging every country to adopt its growth charts, which aim to show how children ideally grow in their first five years of life. The guidelines also include for the first time measurements for body mass index, or BMI, for babies younger than 2 — a weight and height calculation used to determine whether people are overweight or underweight. (Currently, BMI doesn't appear on U.S. growth charts before age 2.)
But the charts — and particularly the new BMI standards — are raising concerns that worries about obesity will be pushed into infancy, a time when adequate nutrition is crucial for brain development and other important growth. Pediatricians and health officials in the U.S. say they aren't sure whether the WHO guidelines should be adopted in this country.
One reason is that the WHO growth curves are based on babies who were breast-fed for at least a year, while the American charts are based on children who were primarily formula-fed after the first few weeks. Formula-fed children tend to be bigger than breast-fed children in late infancy. Another difference: The WHO charts are based on children from affluent, educated families in six countries. The U.S. charts are based on a broader sample of U.S. children.
click to read more...
WHO, the United Nations' health agency, is urging every country to adopt its growth charts, which aim to show how children ideally grow in their first five years of life. The guidelines also include for the first time measurements for body mass index, or BMI, for babies younger than 2 — a weight and height calculation used to determine whether people are overweight or underweight. (Currently, BMI doesn't appear on U.S. growth charts before age 2.)
But the charts — and particularly the new BMI standards — are raising concerns that worries about obesity will be pushed into infancy, a time when adequate nutrition is crucial for brain development and other important growth. Pediatricians and health officials in the U.S. say they aren't sure whether the WHO guidelines should be adopted in this country.
One reason is that the WHO growth curves are based on babies who were breast-fed for at least a year, while the American charts are based on children who were primarily formula-fed after the first few weeks. Formula-fed children tend to be bigger than breast-fed children in late infancy. Another difference: The WHO charts are based on children from affluent, educated families in six countries. The U.S. charts are based on a broader sample of U.S. children.
click to read more...
Nursing a healthy practice (Wisconsin State Journal)
For Fran Weintraub, breast-feeding her babies makes sense from every point of view.
As a physician, she knows the statistics that show breast-fed babies are healthier.
As a volunteer who helps other mothers, she knows that practical tips can help.
And as a mother, she wants the best for her 10-month-old daughter, Rena.
"Why would you not breast-feed when you know that you want to do the best for your baby? And it's so wonderful to do this with your baby, and so convenient," she said. She also nursed Rena's brothers, who are 3 and nearly 6 years old.
click to read more...
As a physician, she knows the statistics that show breast-fed babies are healthier.
As a volunteer who helps other mothers, she knows that practical tips can help.
And as a mother, she wants the best for her 10-month-old daughter, Rena.
"Why would you not breast-feed when you know that you want to do the best for your baby? And it's so wonderful to do this with your baby, and so convenient," she said. She also nursed Rena's brothers, who are 3 and nearly 6 years old.
click to read more...
Friday, June 02, 2006
Popular Blogging Site Restricts Use of Breastfeeding Photos (SF Indymedia)
Popular Blogging Site Restricts Use of Breastfeeding Photos:
LiveJournal cites images as 'inappropriate' and sends mothers to the virtual restroom.
Wednesday, May 31st, 2006 - Women on the popular blog site LiveJournal are calling foul at the company’s decision to brand images of breastfeeding as ‘inappropriate.’ Many users of the site have joined together to urge LiveJournal’s parent company SixApart to address their concerns and reevaluate the policy.
Small "userpics" of no more than 100 by 100 pixels represent LiveJournal members throughout the site. Users can define one of these icons as "default icon" which plugs it into the user's public profile. These default icons were originally not permitted to be ‘sexually explicit or graphically violent.’ Recently, icons which depicted breastfeeding were cited as being ‘inappropriate’ by the LiveJournal abuse team, a group of volunteers who monitor complaints on the site. After clarification was requested, LiveJournal changed their FAQ to reflect a no nudity rule and is claiming that icons with visible areola or nipple are not permitted. Whether or not areola is visible in a photograph is dependent on a number of factors, including skin tone of the mother and physical changes during pregnancy.
Claimed Live Journal Abuse Staffer 'Erin' in a post on the site, "That's really a matter for the FCC to decide. LiveJournal's policies on this mirror what would be allowed on primetime TV or in a PG-13 movie." However, this is not true. The FCC does not consider the act of breastfeeding on television to fall under the definitions of indecency or obscenity.
click to read more...
LiveJournal cites images as 'inappropriate' and sends mothers to the virtual restroom.
Wednesday, May 31st, 2006 - Women on the popular blog site LiveJournal are calling foul at the company’s decision to brand images of breastfeeding as ‘inappropriate.’ Many users of the site have joined together to urge LiveJournal’s parent company SixApart to address their concerns and reevaluate the policy.
Small "userpics" of no more than 100 by 100 pixels represent LiveJournal members throughout the site. Users can define one of these icons as "default icon" which plugs it into the user's public profile. These default icons were originally not permitted to be ‘sexually explicit or graphically violent.’ Recently, icons which depicted breastfeeding were cited as being ‘inappropriate’ by the LiveJournal abuse team, a group of volunteers who monitor complaints on the site. After clarification was requested, LiveJournal changed their FAQ to reflect a no nudity rule and is claiming that icons with visible areola or nipple are not permitted. Whether or not areola is visible in a photograph is dependent on a number of factors, including skin tone of the mother and physical changes during pregnancy.
Claimed Live Journal Abuse Staffer 'Erin' in a post on the site, "That's really a matter for the FCC to decide. LiveJournal's policies on this mirror what would be allowed on primetime TV or in a PG-13 movie." However, this is not true. The FCC does not consider the act of breastfeeding on television to fall under the definitions of indecency or obscenity.
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Dr. Mom talks breast feeding to several area professionals (Fort Morgan Times)
An educational opportunity for health care professionals to learn more about the overall importance of breast feeding for women took place Tuesday at the County Steak-Out.
Marianne Neifert, M.D., also known by many as Dr. Mom, held a public discussion to explain how to implement prenatal hospital routines that promote breast feeding to more than 20 area doctors, physicians and health care professionals.
Neifert, who is an expert in lactation management and co-founder of the Lactation Program at Rese Medical Center in Denver, said that while she is proud of breast feeding's success rate in Colorado, it has been the rural areas where fewer women are practicing the procedure.
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Marianne Neifert, M.D., also known by many as Dr. Mom, held a public discussion to explain how to implement prenatal hospital routines that promote breast feeding to more than 20 area doctors, physicians and health care professionals.
Neifert, who is an expert in lactation management and co-founder of the Lactation Program at Rese Medical Center in Denver, said that while she is proud of breast feeding's success rate in Colorado, it has been the rural areas where fewer women are practicing the procedure.
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Target Employee Challenges Nursing Mom (NBC5.com)
CHICAGO -- A Montgomery, Ill., woman who was breast feeding her baby in a fitting room at a suburban Target store was told to go into a bathroom stall instead, stirring up controversey over an activity that is protected by state law.
NBC5's Alex Perez said Wednesday that when 3-month-old Kendall gets hungary, she does what most babies do. She cries.
So when the baby began crying last week while she and her mom Jenny Dover were at a Naperville Target store on Route 59, Dover went into the fitting room, closed the door and began breast feeding her baby.
Dover said that a few minutes later the attendant knocked on the door.
"(She) asked if I was OK, and I said I was fine: 'I'm breast feeding the baby,'" she said.
She continued breast feeding Kendall until she was done. When she left the fitting room, the employee approached her again.
"She said, 'There's the bathroom or you should feed her before you come,'" Dover recalled.
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NBC5's Alex Perez said Wednesday that when 3-month-old Kendall gets hungary, she does what most babies do. She cries.
So when the baby began crying last week while she and her mom Jenny Dover were at a Naperville Target store on Route 59, Dover went into the fitting room, closed the door and began breast feeding her baby.
Dover said that a few minutes later the attendant knocked on the door.
"(She) asked if I was OK, and I said I was fine: 'I'm breast feeding the baby,'" she said.
She continued breast feeding Kendall until she was done. When she left the fitting room, the employee approached her again.
"She said, 'There's the bathroom or you should feed her before you come,'" Dover recalled.
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Store hassles nursing mom (The Beacon News)
A Montgomery mother plans to do her shopping elsewhere, after being told by employees of the Target Naperville store that she should not breast-feed her baby in a fitting room.
Two employees of the Target on Route 59 told Jenny Dover that she should not breast-feed in the fitting room, even though, under Illinois law, she could have nursed in the middle of an aisle if she wanted to.
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Two employees of the Target on Route 59 told Jenny Dover that she should not breast-feed in the fitting room, even though, under Illinois law, she could have nursed in the middle of an aisle if she wanted to.
click to read more...
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