La Leche League: http://www.llli.org/
They have breastfeeding forums, where to attend breastfeeding support groups with other moms in your area & tons of helpful info!

KellyMom: www.kellymom.com
Lots & lots of tips, tricks & answers to all kinds of obstacles we face breastfeeding

ILCA: www.ilca.org
Find a Board Certified Laction Consultant in your area

Normal Fed: www.normalfed.com
Inspiring essays and articles plus helpful information provided by the esteemed Diane Weissinger

The Lighter Side: www.thecowgoddess.com & www.mama-is.com
Heather Cushman-Dowdee’s website and clever, “makes you think” points of view on breastfeeding, birth and mothering

When I mention “lack of education” I mean breastfeeding education.

When I say this is “whats in formula” I mean this is literally whats in formula. Not my personal opinion but the truth. A surprisingly large number of health care professionals and parents ( I was one of them ) do not know that formula is just these base liquids, modified by water, sugars, oils, vitamins, and other trace substances.

When I say “lack of support” I mean lack of support whether that is family, significant other, society or the workplace.

When I give reasons as to why women stop breastfeeding, I give reasons that come from surveys, statistics & scientific studies. This says to me that these needs must be addressed.

I intend on continuing to write the way I am because its a matter of public health.

The World Health Org. ranks formula as forth in the list of preferred foods for newborns.

• First choice: Mother’s own milk, directly from the breast
• Second choice: Mother’s own milk, pumped and fed to her baby
• Third choice: Banked Breastmilk - from a reliable milk bank
• Fourth choice: Infant Formula

Formula feeding is to Breastfeeding as Neonatal Intensive Care Units are to most babies. I’m glad it is there for the real emergencies but it isn’t an equivalent choice and shouldn’t be so commonly used.

The only way we are going to be able to make milk banks and donor milk widely avilable on a mass scale is to INCREASE breastfeeding rates.

If we continue to use formula instead we will continue to see the marked rise in adult parkinsons, ear infections, bacterial meningitis, respiratory infections and viruses, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), asthma, allergies (nasal and skin), urinary tract infections, gastrointestinal infections, diarrhea, lymphomas, leukemia and Hodgkin’s disease, autoimmune thyroid disease, type 1 and type 2 diabetes, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, necrotizing enterocolitis, multiple sclerosis, obesity, bacteremia, celiac disease, botulism, pneumonia, lung disease, high blood pressure, anxiety/stress, bed-wetting, nearsightedness, childhood cancers and the list goes on.

When a mother does not breastfeed she increases her risk of breast, uterine & ovarian cancers, thyroid cancer, Type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, lupus, rheumatoid arthiritis & obesity to name a few.

If you couldn’t breastfeed and you had the choice of donor milk or formula could you truly pick formula?

WE NEED TO MAKE A CHANGE!!
 

“The truth is, breastfeeding is nothing more than normal. Artificial feeding, which is neither the same nor superior, is therefore deficient, incomplete, and inferior. These are difficult words, but they have an appropriate place in our vocabulary.”

“Best possible, ideal, optimal, perfect. Are you the best possible parent? Is your home life ideal? Do you provide optimal meals? Of course not. Those are admirable goals, not minimum standards. Let’s rephrase. Is your parenting inadequate? Is your home life subnormal? Do you provide deficient meals? Now it hurts. You may not expect to be far above normal, but you certainly don’t want to be below normal. “

“Advantages. When we talk about the advantages of breastfeeding–the “lower rates” of cancer, the “reduced risk” of allergies, the “enhanced” bonding, the “stronger” immune system–we reinforce bottlefeeding yet again as the accepted, acceptable norm. “

“Health comparisons use a biological, not cultural, norm, whether the deviation is harmful or helpful. Smokers have higher rates of illness; increasing prenatal folic acid may reduce fetal defects. Because breastfeeding is the biological norm, breastfed babies are not “healthier;” artificially-fed babies are ill more often and more seriously. Breastfed babies do not “smell better;” artificial feeding results in an abnormal and unpleasant odor that reflects problems in an infant’s gut. We cannot expect to create a breastfeeding culture if we do not insist on a breastfeeding model of health in both our language and our literature. “

“We must not let inverted phrasing by the media and by our peers go unchallenged. When we fail to describe the hazards of artificial feeding, we deprive mothers of crucial decision-making information. The mother having difficulty with breastfeeding may not seek help just to achieve a “special bonus;” but she may clamor for help if she knows how much she and her baby stand to lose. She is less likely to use artificial milk just “to get him used to a bottle” if she knows that the contents of that bottle cause harm.”

“Special. “Breastfeeding is a special relationship.” “Set up a special nursing corner.” In or family, special meals take extra time. Special occasions mean extra work. Special is nice, but it is complicated, it is not an ongoing part of life, and it is not something we want to do very often. For most women, nursing must fit easily into a busy life–and, of course, it does. “Special” is weaning advice, not breastfeeding advice.”

“The mother who opts not to breastfeed, or who does not do so as long as she planned, is doing the best she can with the resources at hand. She may have had the standard “breast is best” spiel ……and she may have seen a few mothers nursing at the mall ….. That is clearly not enough information or training. But she may still feel guilty. She’s female.”

“Women …told me they would feel angry, betrayed, cheated. They would wish they could do it over with better information. They would feel regret for opportunities lost. Some of the women said they would feel guilty for not having sought out more opinions, for not having persevered in the absence of information and support. But gender-engendered guilt aside, we do not feel guilty about having been deprived of a pleasure. The mother who does not breastfeed impairs her own health, increases the difficulty and expense of infant and child rearing, an dismisses one of life’s most delightful relationships. She has lost something basic to her own well-being. What image of the satisfactions of breastfeeding do we convey when we use the word “guilt”?”

“Let’s rephrase, using the words women themselves gave me: “We don’t want to make bottlefeeding mothers feel angry. We don’t want to make them feel betrayed. We don’t want to make them feel cheated.” Peel back the layered implications of “we don’t want to make them feel guilty,” and you will find a system trying to cover its own tracks. It is not trying to protect her. It is trying to protect itself. Let’s level with mothers, support them when breastfeeding doesn’t work, and help them move beyond this inaccurate and ineffective word.”

 ”Pros and cons, advantages and disadvantages. Breastfeeding is a straight-forward health issue, not one of two equivlent choices. “One disadvantage of not smoking is that you are more likely to find secondhand smoke annoying. One advantage of smoking is that it can contribute to weight loss.” The real issue is differential morbidity and mortality. The rest–whether we are talking about tobacco or commercial baby milks–is just smoke.”

“It is the parents’ choice to make. True. But deliberately stepping out of the process implies that the “balanced” list was accurate. In a recent issue of Parenting magazine, a pediatrician comments, “When I first visit a new mother in the hospital, I ask, ‘Are you breastfeeding or bottlefeeding?’ If she says she is going to bottlefeed, I nod and move on to my next questions. Supporting new parents means supporting them in whatever choices they make; you don’t march in postpartum and tell someone she’s making a terrible mistake, depriving herself and her child.”

“Yet if a woman announced to her doctor, midway through a routine physical examination, that she took up smoking a few days earlier, the physician would make sure she understood the hazards, reasoning that now was the easiest time for her to change her mind. It is hypocritical and irresponsible to take a clear position on smoking and “let parents decide” about breastfeeding without first making sure of their information base. Life choices are always the individual’s to make. That does not mean his or her information sources should be mute, nor that the parents who opt for bottlefeeding should be denied information that might prompt a different decision with a subsequent child.”

As mothers I am surprised that we aren’t demanding change from the medical field to have provided us with adequate help & resources that may have salvaged a majority of our breastfeeding relationships. Instead we are at odds with each other split in to two groups: breastfeeding & bottle feeding. Each side never feeling validated and constantly fighting society which subsequently includes formula companies who contnue to stand to make billions off of our ignorance and non chalant acceptance of formula as a way to feed our babies.

We can only do so much with the information & support we have.

After what I have been through I cannot sit and be afraid to offend mothers who formula feed their babies. This is not about who is a better mother, it never should have been. 

I believe breastfeeding is the most feminist thing a women can do! Taking the right to feed their babies their OWN breastmilk, the most healthy, enviornmentally friendly, cost effective, emotionally bonding food available and keeping the right to nourish their babies away from a formula corporation who is literally only in it for the money.

Women do not fail to breastfeed. Health professionals, health agencies and governments fail to educate and support women who want to breastfeed.

Without support, many women will give up when they encounter even small difficulties. And yet, according to Mary Renfrew, ‘Giving up breastfeeding is not something that women do lightly. They don’t just stop breastfeeding and walk away from it. Many of them fight very hard to continue it and they fight with no support. These women are fighting society – a society that is not just bottle-friendly, but is deeply breastfeeding-unfriendly.’

To end this trend, governments all over the world must begin to take seriously the responsibility of ensuring the good health of future generations. To do this requires deep and profound social change. We must stop harassing mothers with simplistic ‘breast is best’ messages and put time, energy and money into reeducating health professionals and society at large.

Breastmilk vs. Formula is a Black & White Issue. I’m appalled there is even a debate! Breastmilk is a ‘live’ food that contains living cells, hormones, active enzymes, antibodies and at least 400 other unique components. It is a dynamic substance, the composition of which changes from the beginning to the end of the feed and according to the age and needs of the baby. Because it also provides active immunity, every time a baby breastfeeds it also receives protection from disease.

Compared to this miraculous substance, the artificial milk sold as infant formula is little more than junk food. It is also the only manufactured food that humans are encouraged to consume exclusively for a period of months, even though we know that no human body can be expected to stay healthy and thrive on a steady diet of processed food.

For all of these reasons, formula cannot be considered even ‘second best’ compared with breastmilk.

Officially, the World Health Organization (WHO) designates formula milk as the last choice in infant-feeding: Its first choice is breastmilk from the mother; second choice is the mother’s own milk given via cup or bottle; third choice is breastmilk from a milk bank or wet nurse and, finally, in fourth place, formula milk.

Currently milk banks are a scarcity themselves in the US, one major reason because of the extrememly low breastfeeding rates we have  resulting in little & expensive milk and usually reserved for premature babies where breastmilk is superior to any medicine offered in the NICU.

Our society is setting us up for failure! The laissez-faire and general ignorance of health professionals, mothers and the public at large. I was one of those mothers!!! I get riled up and angry when I see other women knocked down and losing out when the situation could have been fixed!

As a result, in the absence of communities of women talking to each other about pregnancy, birthing and mothering, women’s choices today are more directly influenced by commercial leaflets, booklets and advertising than almost anything else.
 

With encouragement, support and help, almost all women are willing to initiate breastfeeding, but the drop-off rates are alarming: 90% of women who give up in the first 6 weeks say that they would like to have continued. And it seems highly likely that long-term exclusive breastfeeding rates can be improved if consistent support were available, and if approval within the family and the wider community for breastfeeding, both at home and in public, were more obvious and widespread.

Clearly, this social support isn’t there, and the bigger picture of breastfeeding vs bottlefeeding suggests that there is, in addition, a confluence of complex factors – medical, socioeconomic, cultural  and political – that regularly undermine women’s confidence, while reinforcing the notion that feeding their children artificially is about lifestyle rather than health, and that the modern woman’s body is simply not up to the task of producing enough milk for its offspring. Which is simply a blatant untruth.

It has only been in the last 60 years or so that we have begun to so non chalantly without hesitation given our babies the HIGHLY processed convenience food we call formula. Health consequences include twice the risk of death in the first 6 weeks of life, 5 times the risk of gastroeteritis, twice the risk of developing eczema and diabetes and up to 8 times the risk of developing lymphatic cancer.

Infant formulas were never intended to be consumed on the widespread basis that they are today. They were conceived in the late 1800s as a means of providing necessary sustenance for foundlings and orphans who would otherwise have starved. In this narrow context – where no other food was available – formula was a lifesaver.

For years, it was believed that the risks of illness and death from bottlefeeding were largely confined to children in developing  countries, where the clean water necessary to make up formula is sometimes scarceand where poverty-stricken mothers may feel obliged to dilute formula to make it stretch further, thus risking waterborne illnesses such as diarrhoea and cholera as well as malnutrition in their babies. But newer data from the West clearly show that babies in otherwise affluent societies are also falling ill and dying due to an early diet of infant convenience food. Because it is not nutritionally complete, because it does not contain the immune-boosting properties of breastmilk and because it is being consumed by growing babies with vast, ever-changing nutritional needs – and not meeting those needs – the health effects of sucking down formula day after day early in life can be devastating in both the short and long term.

Before bottles became the norm, breastfeeding was an activity of daily living based on mimicry, and learning within the family and community. Women became their own experts through the trial and error of the experience itself. But today, what should come more or less naturally has become extraordinarily complicated – the focus of global marketing strategies and politics, lawmaking, lobbying support groups, activists and the interference of a wellintentioned, but occasionally ineffective, cult of experts.

I think we are too focused on “taking sides” and quick to create “cliques” where we pit breastfeeding mothers against formula feeding mothers, arguing over accusing each other about bad parenting because babies are formula fed and  mothers who become racked with guilt when they feel they have no other options.

What we need to do is throw that to the side and once again form a sisterhood, bond together and provide help, support, assistance when it come to solving our breastfeeding issues. The common reasons as to why women quit & give up can more often than not be solved if identified and treated early avoiding the frustration of a prolonged and worsening issue.

Its a sad fact that our culture isn’t breastfeeding friendly enough. Until we can put aside the conflict and risk of making mothers feel guilty we cannot fix the true issues at hand that end up making women feel resentful and resistant towards attempting to breastfeed again.

Unfortunetly feeding our babies formula has become the norm,  no questions asked. Moms typically give up breastfeeding (if it was initiated in the first place) when they return to work or after encountering a road block and using formula as the solution because we have no “sisterhood” or “village” to turn to with a lifetime of breastfeeding experience under their belts. No second thoughts. I have to admit I didn’t see anything wrong with it either. I mean I was formula fed and turned out ok. Now I know better.

I advise you to keep an open mind when learning what formula is all about and what’s in it especially if you have formula fed in the past. No parent wants to admit they are openly putting their babies at risk but the reality is nothing is without risk, there is an acceptable rate of contamination in all the food we eat formula being no exception. We also have to accept as a society the frank truth that when we are physiologically made to consume breastmilk and yet give our bodies (growing at an exponetial rate) a man made food there are going to be consequences. Whether they be acute or chronic illness or never appear at all. We are CHOOSING to take those risks.

Breastmilk is also free. A womens time is not but after the intial investment of that time to establish a successful breastfeeding relationship breastfeeding can be as natural and simple as changing a diaper or giving baby a bath. When we have children our lives are going to change drastically whether we would like it to or not and being forever tethered to our babes’ in one way or another isn’t going to change. All selfishness goes out the window. The billion-dollar formula industry-two million dollars a day-is about money, not public health.

As mothers we are willing to give our life for our children. To breastfeed is to literally continue to give life to our children.

Back to the topic lol, I won’t include everything in the variety of formulas for the sake of keeping it short & due to the variety of formulas, but I will include what I can,

Milk-Based Formula: The obvious base for this formula is good old cows milk, interestingly enough cows milk is NOT the most similar to human milk, horse milk is. Unlike cows, horses have only two teats and a 1,400 lb. mare will produce less than a quart of the precious liquid each day. Therefore cows which have 4 teats and produce quite alot more milk are used. Cows milk proteins are one of the most common allergens among infants and small children. Whey, one of the main ingredients in almost all formulas, is a waste by-product of producing certain dairy products, particularly cheeses. Palm, coconut and safflower oils are some of the least expensive oils, and so are used in many snack foods, and such things as movie theatre popcorn, also processed using high temperatures and chemicals, bleached and deodorized. Likely to be rancid. Carrageenan  which is extremely hard to digest. In most ready-mixed formulas, carrageenan is one of the main causes of digestive disorders in formula-fed infants, not lactose-intolerance. it caused liver problems and retarded growth in rats. There are also synthetic vitamins which often have the opposite effect of vitamins naturally occurring in food. Free Glutamic Acid (MSG) and Aspartic Acid; neurotoxins formed during processing of milk and soy protein powders. Levels are especially high in hypoallergenic formulas.

Hypoallergenic or Hydrolisate Formula: Expensive, taste even worse than regular formula and still a health risk. Basically a “pre-digested” formula with similar ingredients meant for babies who have trouble or cannot break down the bovine (cow) protein themselves. Uses corn syrup instead of lactose, ( Lactose is a natural sugar in milk that provides a source of energy and contributes to the development of your baby’s brain and central nervous system. Because lactose releases its energy at a slow, steady pace, it doesn’t contribute to the highs and lows in blood sugar normally associated with sucrose, which is the sugar that is often added to formula. Human milk contains 50 percent more lactose than cow’s milk.), therefore a SIGNIFICANT drawback for longterm use.

Low-Iron Formula: Makes the most sense to use with a baby who is breastfeed part-time. Breastmilk will provide for most of babies’ iron needs, not the case for primarly formula fed babies. Again similar ingredients to the milk based formulas. Since iron is poorly absorbed through babies’ system quite a bit needs to be added which can than in turn be hard on babies’ system. Iron is necessary so it cannot just be left out unless your baby shows intolerance to a higher iron formula this shouldn’t be used.

Powdered Formula: If presented with the choice, I recommend ALWAYS use liquid or ready to feed. Powdered formula can never be sterilized and is therefore never sterile something to consider since formula fed babies’ lack the immune system of breastfed babies. Life-threatening cases of bacterial meningitis in babies up to a year old have resulted in the feeding of powdered formula that was contaminated in the factory. Besides the acceptable rate of contamination in anything we consume, whats a few rats hairs in a couple cans of formula right? The most severe cases of bacterial infection involve babies exposed to a bacteria called Enterobacter Sakazakii or E-sak. The Center for Disease Control notes e-sak can lead to raging infections, severe brain damage and ultimately death. Water is called to be heated for formula to make it safer and formula unfinished by baby should be thrown away and not left out due to the culmination of bacteria that can make your baby extremely sick. The lining of both liquid and powder cans contain BPA. (Low doses of bisphenol A can mimic the body’s own hormones possibly causing negative health effects. There is thus concern that long term low dose exposure to bisphenol A may induce chronic toxicity in  humans right now.)

ADA/DHA Enriched Formulas: ADA & DHA are polyunsaturated omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids important components of the human brain and eyes and are naturally present in human breast milk. The ADA/DHA Enriched Formulas are becoming increasingly popular due to their risky marketing, but there is no solid research to say they do ANYTHING more than increase the cost & digestive upsets to baby. Infant formulas containing DHA- and ARA- oils are novel foods—extracted from laboratory-grown fermented algae and fungus and processed utilizing a neurotoxic chemical, hexane. These algal and fungal oils provide DHA and ARA in forms that are structurally different from those naturally found in human milk. A quote from a Martek (company that produces the DHA/ARA) investment promotion from 1996, which reads as follows: “Even if [the DHA/ARA blend] has no benefit, we think it would be widely incorporated into formulas, as a marketing tool and to allow companies to promote their formula as ‘closest to human milk’  Some studies have reported unexpected deaths among infants who consumed formula supplemented with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. These unexpected deaths were attributed to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sepsis or necrotizing enterocolitis.

Soy Formulas: Not milk and should not be first choice. Contain no lactose (again crucial to babies’ brain development), Highly processed, contains phytoestrogens that can adversely affect baby’s hormonal development and depress thyroid function. Does NOT have FDA GRAS (generally recognized as safe) status. It is known that the thymus (very important part of our childhood immune system) is significantly smaller in infants raised on soy based formula. The main ingredient in soy infant formula is soy protein isolate, a powder extracted from soybeans through a process that involves not only high temperatures but also caustic chemicals. The alkaline soaking solution produces a carcinogen, lysinealine, and reduces the cystine content, which is already low in the soybean. Other carcinogens called nitrosamines are formed during high temperature spray drying.

Homemade formulas are never a good idea since baby can only consume what ever we feed them. If it is not a complete food that you are further risking your babies’ health, things like too many minerals can cause kidney damage. Organic Formulas are relatively new and may focus more on being organic than balance the right ingredients.

There is no formula that does a good job imitating breastmilk. The less formula used the less risk. Pumping may not be the most enjoyable task but neither is changing diapers or going without sleep. Breastmilk is a life long gift of health to your baby and they deserve it!

I was in for a rude awakening!

My last day of work at the ever popular Hooters was on a Saturday. Yes, I know what you’re thinking. I worked there until I was ready to pop! Luckily it was when the Super Bowl was in AZ 2008 and apparently East Coast men LOVE pregnant women. Ironic that I went from using my breasts to sell wings to advocating breastfeeding. Back to my point, I went in to labor on the following Monday morning, my contractions woke me and I thought wow if this is labor its definetly not that bad! Going to the hospital that day the nurses confirmed I was in labor and it could take anywhere from a couple of hours to a whole week! Greeeeeeaaaat I thought this baby better come quick! The pain was worsening to those similar to extreme cramping during your “time of the month” but still something I could handle with banshee like moans lol.

Then the start of my quest towards breastfeeding activism began, unbeknowst to me at the time through the problems I would be dealt in having my daughter in a “western” hospital.

When asked what I would be using to manage my pain I told the nurses that I would be having a natural birth. The response I received was insulting and rude. Middle aged women talking to me as if I didn’t know any better. I quote, “I don’t think you’re ready to have a natural labor.”

I couldn’t believe how rude she was. It didn’t stop there. 

When I asked the nurse if I was 4 cm yet she shook her head no and walked out of the room without telling me where I was in my progress. She walked back in asked me if I was ready for my epidural. I was in the most vulnerable state of my life with the lingering contractions now making me feel as if I needed to vomit, my husband who had just started a new job was on his way and couldn’t be there to remind me of my decision we had researched of having a natural birth. My mother just held my hand and I figured well if I’m still only at 3 cm and it feels this way already than fine. I gave in.

As the anesthsiologist was inserting the line in my back he was chatting with the nurse about how this was not your typical epidural because I was so far dilated, lost in my pain I thought he couldn’t be talking about me. Than he said yes, she is already 9 cm dilated.

I flipped out. I was so close! I filed a complaint with the hospital after that for the nurse misleading me and not disclosing how many cm’s I was actually dilated.

So needless to say my progress than became delayed. My babies’ heart rate slowed, she expelled meconium in the birth canal and thankfully did not have to be rushed to the NICU. When she was born none of those feel good hormones rushed through my body. I was numb. The epidural had crushed any natural process that my body should have experience in the birth of my daughter. Therefore leading to the delay in effective breastfeeding.

I changed my pediatrician and got myself informed. My eyes were opened to the breastmilk vs formula debate, the cons & risks associated wth formula and how to successfully breastfeed.

Here I am today nursing my 13 mo old and advocating breastfeeding over formula.