Go to Dr Jay Gordon's website (below) and click on the 20/20 story (scroll down a bit on the right side) about the Pro-Breastfeeding TV ads that were pulled off the air. C-R-A-Z-Y
What is wrong with these people?????????????????????????????????????? SO WHAT if the formula companies are going to lose money....GOOD FOR THEM.
ARG......
http://www.drjaygordon.com/development/index.asp#
Friday, July 14, 2006
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Dr Phil
I rarely watch TV....and even more rare is me watching a Dr Phil show or an Oprah show....however, it seems that when I do have a lazy afternoon and I flip on the TV and watch one of those shows I am BLOWN AWAY by the stupidity of people! It is so sad to me how awful people can act and treat others and it be considered "okay".
SO today Dr Phil had a guy on his show that was protesting his being forced into fatherhood and all that entails ($500 per month in child support). This guy (I hesitate to use the word Dad or Father) was in a law suit over the fact that he, as a man, is not given the same choices a woman is given when she does not want to become a parent. He says he should not be forced into caring for a child he "accidentally" created and does not want. Do I even need to go into this subject? I mean PLEASE....if you have sex, there is ALWAYS the possibility of conceiving a child. I have done numerous births for moms who have been VERY careful and VERY protected and yet they are pushing out a baby. (ummm....isn't God in control of that anyway?????????). So for him to say he did not make that choice is insane. He says that the mom could have aborted the child, put the child up for adoption or abandoned the child and society would have been fine with that.....but he as the biological father has no choice as to what to do with the child and if he wants to support that child or not. Well, shall we break this down? Okay! :)
God did not intend for us to have sex outside of the marriage relationship. If they had obeyed the rules they would not ever have to worry about having a baby.
Birth control is NEVER 100%. This particular mom was on the Pill. As stated before, I have done births for moms who have been on the pill, used a prophylactic, had an IUD, been on depo, had their tubes tied, had a hubby with a vasectomy.....etc. If you are having sex you are saying you are willing to have a child.
Just because the law states that something is okay does NOT mean that in the eyes of the Lord it is okay. A woman's "choice"of having an abortion is not a choice, it is murder. Just because she technically can lawfully decided to have her child sucked down a sink does not make it right. SO her ability of being able to dispose of a baby does not make it okay for him (the dad) to not take care of the baby he has helped create. (that is this mans argument)
So later in the broadcast I saw a dad who is wanting to have more kids even though the mom is NOT wanting anymore...and a dad who is on strike (on his roof) till his wife gives in and gets the baby out of their room (no kidding). WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE GUYS? It sounds to me like they are being extremely selfish and really only care about themselves and what THEY want. The heart of this issue is pride, arrogance and selfishness. Not that all the moms are 100% correct (except in the baby in the bed thing....HELLOOOOOO....it is proven to be better for the baby to be with mom in the early months than in his/her own crib alone). It sounds to me like these couples have an underling problem here that effects the parenting relationship.....and they need to get that taken care of before anything else going to get any better.
So does this mean that everyday on every Dr Phil show they have some idiot on there who is a jerk...and Dr Phil has to try and sort it out? Poor Dr Phil.
SO today Dr Phil had a guy on his show that was protesting his being forced into fatherhood and all that entails ($500 per month in child support). This guy (I hesitate to use the word Dad or Father) was in a law suit over the fact that he, as a man, is not given the same choices a woman is given when she does not want to become a parent. He says he should not be forced into caring for a child he "accidentally" created and does not want. Do I even need to go into this subject? I mean PLEASE....if you have sex, there is ALWAYS the possibility of conceiving a child. I have done numerous births for moms who have been VERY careful and VERY protected and yet they are pushing out a baby. (ummm....isn't God in control of that anyway?????????). So for him to say he did not make that choice is insane. He says that the mom could have aborted the child, put the child up for adoption or abandoned the child and society would have been fine with that.....but he as the biological father has no choice as to what to do with the child and if he wants to support that child or not. Well, shall we break this down? Okay! :)
God did not intend for us to have sex outside of the marriage relationship. If they had obeyed the rules they would not ever have to worry about having a baby.
Birth control is NEVER 100%. This particular mom was on the Pill. As stated before, I have done births for moms who have been on the pill, used a prophylactic, had an IUD, been on depo, had their tubes tied, had a hubby with a vasectomy.....etc. If you are having sex you are saying you are willing to have a child.
Just because the law states that something is okay does NOT mean that in the eyes of the Lord it is okay. A woman's "choice"of having an abortion is not a choice, it is murder. Just because she technically can lawfully decided to have her child sucked down a sink does not make it right. SO her ability of being able to dispose of a baby does not make it okay for him (the dad) to not take care of the baby he has helped create. (that is this mans argument)
So later in the broadcast I saw a dad who is wanting to have more kids even though the mom is NOT wanting anymore...and a dad who is on strike (on his roof) till his wife gives in and gets the baby out of their room (no kidding). WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE GUYS? It sounds to me like they are being extremely selfish and really only care about themselves and what THEY want. The heart of this issue is pride, arrogance and selfishness. Not that all the moms are 100% correct (except in the baby in the bed thing....HELLOOOOOO....it is proven to be better for the baby to be with mom in the early months than in his/her own crib alone). It sounds to me like these couples have an underling problem here that effects the parenting relationship.....and they need to get that taken care of before anything else going to get any better.
So does this mean that everyday on every Dr Phil show they have some idiot on there who is a jerk...and Dr Phil has to try and sort it out? Poor Dr Phil.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
A priest, a Pentecostal preacher and a rabbi
A priest, a Pentecostal preacher and a rabbi all served as chaplains to students of a university. They would get together two or three times a week for coffee and to talk shop.
One day, someone made the comment that preaching to people isn't really all that hard. A real challenge would be to preach to a bear and convert it to their faith. One thing led to another and they decided to do an experiment.
They would all go out into the woods where each would find a bear, preach to it, and attempt to convert it.
Seven days later, they're all together in the hospital to discuss their experiences. Father Flannery, who has his arm in a sling, is on crutches, and has various bandages, goes first."Well," he says, "I went into the woods to find me a bear. And when I found him I began to read to him from the Catechism. Well, that bear wanted nothing to do with me and began to slap me around. So I quickly grabbed my holy water, sprinkled him and, Holy Mary Mother of God, he became as gentle as a lamb. The bishop is coming out next week to give him first communion and confirmation."
Reverend Billy Bob spoke next. He was in a wheelchair, with an arm and both legs in casts, and had an IV drip. In his best fire and brimstone oratory he claimed, "WELL brothers, you KNOW that we don't sprinkle! I went out and I FOUND me a bear. And then I began to read to my bear from God's HOLY WORD! But that bear wanted nothing to do with me. So I took HOLD of him and we began to wrestle. We wrestled down one hill, UP another and DOWN another until we came to a creek. So I quick DUNKED him and BAPTIZED his hairy soul. And just like you said, he became as gentle as a lamb. We spent the rest of the day praising Jesus."
They both looked down at the rabbi, who was lying in a hospital bed. He was in a body cast and traction with IV's and monitors running in and out of him. He was in bad shape. The rabbi looks up and says, "Looking back on it, circumcision may not have been the best way to start."
One day, someone made the comment that preaching to people isn't really all that hard. A real challenge would be to preach to a bear and convert it to their faith. One thing led to another and they decided to do an experiment.
They would all go out into the woods where each would find a bear, preach to it, and attempt to convert it.
Seven days later, they're all together in the hospital to discuss their experiences. Father Flannery, who has his arm in a sling, is on crutches, and has various bandages, goes first."Well," he says, "I went into the woods to find me a bear. And when I found him I began to read to him from the Catechism. Well, that bear wanted nothing to do with me and began to slap me around. So I quickly grabbed my holy water, sprinkled him and, Holy Mary Mother of God, he became as gentle as a lamb. The bishop is coming out next week to give him first communion and confirmation."
Reverend Billy Bob spoke next. He was in a wheelchair, with an arm and both legs in casts, and had an IV drip. In his best fire and brimstone oratory he claimed, "WELL brothers, you KNOW that we don't sprinkle! I went out and I FOUND me a bear. And then I began to read to my bear from God's HOLY WORD! But that bear wanted nothing to do with me. So I took HOLD of him and we began to wrestle. We wrestled down one hill, UP another and DOWN another until we came to a creek. So I quick DUNKED him and BAPTIZED his hairy soul. And just like you said, he became as gentle as a lamb. We spent the rest of the day praising Jesus."
They both looked down at the rabbi, who was lying in a hospital bed. He was in a body cast and traction with IV's and monitors running in and out of him. He was in bad shape. The rabbi looks up and says, "Looking back on it, circumcision may not have been the best way to start."
Breast-Feed or Else
In today's New York Times.
Breast-Feed or Else
By RONI RABIN
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."
A two-year national breast-feeding awareness campaign that culminated this spring ran television announcements showing a pregnant woman clutching her belly as she was thrown off a mechanical bull during ladies' night at a bar — and compared the behavior to failing to breast-feed.
"You wouldn't take risks before your baby's born," the advertisement says. "Why start after?"
Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has proposed requiring warning labels, on cans of infant formula and in advertisements, similar to the those on cigarettes. They would say that the Department of Health and Human services has determined that "breast-feeding is the ideal method of feeding and nurturing infants" or that "breast milk is more beneficial to infants than infant formula."
Child-rearing experts have long pointed to the benefits of breast-feeding. But critics say the new campaign has taken things too far and will make mothers who cannot breast-feed, or choose not to, feel guilty and inadequate.
"I desperately wanted to breast-feed," said Karen Petrone, an associate professor of history at University of Kentucky in Lexington.
When her two babies failed to gain weight and her pediatrician insisted that she supplement her breast milk with formula, Ms. Petrone said, "I felt so guilty."
"I thought I was doing something wrong," she added. "Nobody ever told me that some women just can't produce enough milk."
Moreover, urging women to breast-feed exclusively is a tall order in a country where more than 60 percent of mothers of very young children work, federal law requires large companies to provide only 12 weeks' unpaid maternity leave and lactation leave is unheard of. Only a third of large companies provide a private, secure area where women can express breast milk during the workday, and only 7 percent offer on-site or near-site child care, according to a 2005 national study of employers by the nonprofit Families and Work Institute.
"I'm concerned about the guilt that mothers will feel," said Ellen Galinsky, president of the center. "It's hard enough going back to work."
Public health leaders say the weight of the scientific evidence for breast-feeding has grown so overwhelming that it is appropriate to recast their message to make clear that it is risky not to breast-feed. Ample scientific evidence supports the contention that breast-fed babies are less vulnerable to acute infectious diseases, including respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, experts say. Some studies also suggest that breast-fed babies are at lower risk for sudden infant death syndrome and serious chronic diseases later in life, including asthma, diabetes, leukemia and some forms of lymphoma, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Research on premature babies has even found that those given breast milk scored higher on I.Q. tests than those who were bottle-fed.
The goal of a government health initiative called Healthy People 2010 is to get half of all mothers to continue at least some breast-feeding until a baby is 6 months old. Though about 70 percent of new mothers start breast-feeding right after childbirth, just over a third are breast-feeding at 6 months and fewer than 20 percent are exclusively breast-feeding by that time, according to the 2004 National Immunization Survey. Breast-feeding increases with education, income and age; black women are less likely to breast-feed, while Hispanics have higher breast-feeding rates.
For women, breast-feeding can be an emotionally charged issue, and a very personal one. Even its most ardent supporters acknowledge that they have made sacrifices.
"It's a whole lifestyle," said Kymberlie Stefanski, a 34-year-old mother of three from Villa Park, Ill., who has not been apart from her children except for one night when she gave birth. "My life revolves around my kids, basically." Ms. Stefanski quit working when her first child was born almost six years ago, nursed that child until she was 4 years old, and is nursing an infant now.
She said she wanted to reduce the risk of breast cancer for herself and for her three daughters, referring to research indicating that extended breast-feeding may reduce the risk for both mother and daughters.
Scientists who study breast milk almost all speak of it in superlatives. Even the International Formula Council, a trade association, acknowledges that breast-feeding "offers specific child and maternal health benefits" and is the "preferred" method of infant feeding. The American Academy of Pediatrics states in its breast-feeding policy that human breast milk is "uniquely superior for infant feeding."
Dr. Haynes, of the Health and Human Services Department, said, "Our message is that breast milk is the gold standard, and anything less than that is inferior."
Formula "is not equivalent," she went on, adding, "Formula is not the gold standard. It's so far from it, it's not even close."
Formula manufacturers say infant formula is modeled on breast milk and emphasize that it is the only safe alternative recommended by pediatricians for mothers who cannot, or choose not to, breast-feed.
But while formula tastes the same way at every feeding, advocates of breast-feeding say, the smells and flavors of human breast milk change from day to day, from morning to evening, influenced by the mother's diet. Many nutritionists believe that exposing an infant to this bouquet of flavors early on may make for less fussy eaters who are more flexible about trying new foods and more likely to eat a healthy, varied diet.
"I think of human milk not just as food, but as a sophisticated and intricate infant support system that has evolved over millions of years to provide the infant with nutrition, protection and components of information," said Dr. E. Stephen Buescher, a professor of pediatrics at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, who heads the inflammation section in the school's Center for Pediatric Research.
"It isn't just calories," Dr. Buescher said.
The protection that breast-feeding provides against acute infectious diseases — including meningitis, upper and lower respiratory infections, pneumonia, bowel infections, diarrhea and ear infections — has been among the most extensively studied of its benefits and is well documented, said Dr. Lawrence M. Gartner, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics' breast-feeding section.
Breast-fed babies have 50 percent to 95 percent fewer infections than other babies, Dr. Gartner said, adding, "It's pretty dramatic."
One reason for the reduction in the incidence and the severity of infections is the antibodies contained in the mother's milk. "A lot of this has to do with the mother and baby interacting," he explained. "Whatever the baby is exposed to, the mother is exposed to, and the mother will make antibodies within three to four days." The baby absorbs them through breast milk.
Breast milk also protects the baby through other mechanisms. For example, it contains agents that prevent bacteria and viruses from attaching to cells in the baby's body, so the foreign agents are expelled in the stool, Dr. Gartner said.
The protection is not ironclad, so breast-fed babies will often get a mild infection that does not make the baby sick but acts almost like a vaccine. "What we think is that human milk creates an environment where you get your immunity without the cost of an infection, the vomiting and the diarrhea," Dr. Buescher said. "That's a bargain."
Neonatologists are urging the mothers of their tiniest patients to express breast milk because premature and low-birth-weight babies are particularly vulnerable to infections. Studies have found that premature babies who get breast milk are discharged earlier from the hospital and are less likely to develop necrotizing enterocolitis, a potentially deadly disease. Breast milk has also been shown to lift the cognitive development of premature babies, presumably because it contains certain fatty acids that aid brain development.
Experts say it is possible that human breast milk produces permanent changes in the immune system, in a sense "educating" the baby's immune system, Dr. Gartner suggested. That may explain why children who were breast-fed appear to be at lower risk for autoimmune diseases like Crohn's, asthma and juvenile diabetes. Several studies also indicate that breast-fed children are at reduced risk for the cancers lymphoma and leukemia.
Officials with the International Formula Council say there is not enough evidence to prove a relationship between early feeding and serious chronic diseases.
Dr. Myron Peterson, director of medical affairs for Cato Research, a private independent research organization which reviewed the literature on breast-feeding for the council, said that studies have found a link between nursing and health benefits but that they do not prove a causal relationship. "It's like the old statement about the rooster crowing making the sun come up," he said. "If you did an observational study on that, what would you say?" An unpublished report the council commissioned from Cato says "it is not scientifically correct to conclude the lack of exclusive breast-feeding plays a causative role in the development of these diseases."
But scientists are so intrigued about the potential to protect children from juvenile diabetes that a large 10-year multinational study called Trigr (for Trial to Reduce Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the Genetically at Risk) is under way to find out whether breast-feeding protects at-risk children from developing the disease.
And public health officials, excited about mounting evidence suggesting that children who were breast-fed are at lower risk of being obese, have been promoting breast-feeding as a strategy to combat alarming rates of childhood obesity.
The health benefits of breast-feeding may extend to mothers as well. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, extended breast-feeding reduces the risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer. New studies have also found that women who breast-feed face a lower risk of adult-onset or Type 2 diabetes, and they seem to be at lower risk for osteoporosis later in life.
Immediately after childbirth, nursing accelerates healing by reducing the amount of bleeding and causing the uterus to contract more rapidly back to its normal size. Making milk burns up to 500 extra calories a day, so nursing mothers get help shedding extra pounds from pregnancy, experts say, especially if they nurse for an extended period.
Experts say lactation also seems to have a calming effect on the mother, which may be an adaptive mechanism to ease the transition to life with a new baby. Every time a mother nurses, she gets a spike in oxytocin, which may have an antianxiety effect and help promote bonding with the new baby, said Kathryn G. Dewey, a professor of nutrition at the University of California, Davis, and an expert on breast-feeding.
Nursing may even produce a euphoric feeling, she said.
Dr. Michael Kramer, a professor of pediatrics and of epidemiology and biostatistics at McGill University's medical school in Montreal who has been studying the health effects of breast-feeding among infants in Belarus, found a strong protective effect against gastrointestinal illnesses and a lesser protective effect against respiratory infections. Dr. Kramer is still analyzing data on obesity, I.Q., behavior and blood pressure.
"It can't do all of the things that are being claimed for it," Dr. Kramer said, injecting a note of caution into the debate. "But it probably does some of them."
Breast-Feed or Else
By RONI RABIN
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."
A two-year national breast-feeding awareness campaign that culminated this spring ran television announcements showing a pregnant woman clutching her belly as she was thrown off a mechanical bull during ladies' night at a bar — and compared the behavior to failing to breast-feed.
"You wouldn't take risks before your baby's born," the advertisement says. "Why start after?"
Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has proposed requiring warning labels, on cans of infant formula and in advertisements, similar to the those on cigarettes. They would say that the Department of Health and Human services has determined that "breast-feeding is the ideal method of feeding and nurturing infants" or that "breast milk is more beneficial to infants than infant formula."
Child-rearing experts have long pointed to the benefits of breast-feeding. But critics say the new campaign has taken things too far and will make mothers who cannot breast-feed, or choose not to, feel guilty and inadequate.
"I desperately wanted to breast-feed," said Karen Petrone, an associate professor of history at University of Kentucky in Lexington.
When her two babies failed to gain weight and her pediatrician insisted that she supplement her breast milk with formula, Ms. Petrone said, "I felt so guilty."
"I thought I was doing something wrong," she added. "Nobody ever told me that some women just can't produce enough milk."
Moreover, urging women to breast-feed exclusively is a tall order in a country where more than 60 percent of mothers of very young children work, federal law requires large companies to provide only 12 weeks' unpaid maternity leave and lactation leave is unheard of. Only a third of large companies provide a private, secure area where women can express breast milk during the workday, and only 7 percent offer on-site or near-site child care, according to a 2005 national study of employers by the nonprofit Families and Work Institute.
"I'm concerned about the guilt that mothers will feel," said Ellen Galinsky, president of the center. "It's hard enough going back to work."
Public health leaders say the weight of the scientific evidence for breast-feeding has grown so overwhelming that it is appropriate to recast their message to make clear that it is risky not to breast-feed. Ample scientific evidence supports the contention that breast-fed babies are less vulnerable to acute infectious diseases, including respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, experts say. Some studies also suggest that breast-fed babies are at lower risk for sudden infant death syndrome and serious chronic diseases later in life, including asthma, diabetes, leukemia and some forms of lymphoma, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Research on premature babies has even found that those given breast milk scored higher on I.Q. tests than those who were bottle-fed.
The goal of a government health initiative called Healthy People 2010 is to get half of all mothers to continue at least some breast-feeding until a baby is 6 months old. Though about 70 percent of new mothers start breast-feeding right after childbirth, just over a third are breast-feeding at 6 months and fewer than 20 percent are exclusively breast-feeding by that time, according to the 2004 National Immunization Survey. Breast-feeding increases with education, income and age; black women are less likely to breast-feed, while Hispanics have higher breast-feeding rates.
For women, breast-feeding can be an emotionally charged issue, and a very personal one. Even its most ardent supporters acknowledge that they have made sacrifices.
"It's a whole lifestyle," said Kymberlie Stefanski, a 34-year-old mother of three from Villa Park, Ill., who has not been apart from her children except for one night when she gave birth. "My life revolves around my kids, basically." Ms. Stefanski quit working when her first child was born almost six years ago, nursed that child until she was 4 years old, and is nursing an infant now.
She said she wanted to reduce the risk of breast cancer for herself and for her three daughters, referring to research indicating that extended breast-feeding may reduce the risk for both mother and daughters.
Scientists who study breast milk almost all speak of it in superlatives. Even the International Formula Council, a trade association, acknowledges that breast-feeding "offers specific child and maternal health benefits" and is the "preferred" method of infant feeding. The American Academy of Pediatrics states in its breast-feeding policy that human breast milk is "uniquely superior for infant feeding."
Dr. Haynes, of the Health and Human Services Department, said, "Our message is that breast milk is the gold standard, and anything less than that is inferior."
Formula "is not equivalent," she went on, adding, "Formula is not the gold standard. It's so far from it, it's not even close."
Formula manufacturers say infant formula is modeled on breast milk and emphasize that it is the only safe alternative recommended by pediatricians for mothers who cannot, or choose not to, breast-feed.
But while formula tastes the same way at every feeding, advocates of breast-feeding say, the smells and flavors of human breast milk change from day to day, from morning to evening, influenced by the mother's diet. Many nutritionists believe that exposing an infant to this bouquet of flavors early on may make for less fussy eaters who are more flexible about trying new foods and more likely to eat a healthy, varied diet.
"I think of human milk not just as food, but as a sophisticated and intricate infant support system that has evolved over millions of years to provide the infant with nutrition, protection and components of information," said Dr. E. Stephen Buescher, a professor of pediatrics at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, who heads the inflammation section in the school's Center for Pediatric Research.
"It isn't just calories," Dr. Buescher said.
The protection that breast-feeding provides against acute infectious diseases — including meningitis, upper and lower respiratory infections, pneumonia, bowel infections, diarrhea and ear infections — has been among the most extensively studied of its benefits and is well documented, said Dr. Lawrence M. Gartner, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics' breast-feeding section.
Breast-fed babies have 50 percent to 95 percent fewer infections than other babies, Dr. Gartner said, adding, "It's pretty dramatic."
One reason for the reduction in the incidence and the severity of infections is the antibodies contained in the mother's milk. "A lot of this has to do with the mother and baby interacting," he explained. "Whatever the baby is exposed to, the mother is exposed to, and the mother will make antibodies within three to four days." The baby absorbs them through breast milk.
Breast milk also protects the baby through other mechanisms. For example, it contains agents that prevent bacteria and viruses from attaching to cells in the baby's body, so the foreign agents are expelled in the stool, Dr. Gartner said.
The protection is not ironclad, so breast-fed babies will often get a mild infection that does not make the baby sick but acts almost like a vaccine. "What we think is that human milk creates an environment where you get your immunity without the cost of an infection, the vomiting and the diarrhea," Dr. Buescher said. "That's a bargain."
Neonatologists are urging the mothers of their tiniest patients to express breast milk because premature and low-birth-weight babies are particularly vulnerable to infections. Studies have found that premature babies who get breast milk are discharged earlier from the hospital and are less likely to develop necrotizing enterocolitis, a potentially deadly disease. Breast milk has also been shown to lift the cognitive development of premature babies, presumably because it contains certain fatty acids that aid brain development.
Experts say it is possible that human breast milk produces permanent changes in the immune system, in a sense "educating" the baby's immune system, Dr. Gartner suggested. That may explain why children who were breast-fed appear to be at lower risk for autoimmune diseases like Crohn's, asthma and juvenile diabetes. Several studies also indicate that breast-fed children are at reduced risk for the cancers lymphoma and leukemia.
Officials with the International Formula Council say there is not enough evidence to prove a relationship between early feeding and serious chronic diseases.
Dr. Myron Peterson, director of medical affairs for Cato Research, a private independent research organization which reviewed the literature on breast-feeding for the council, said that studies have found a link between nursing and health benefits but that they do not prove a causal relationship. "It's like the old statement about the rooster crowing making the sun come up," he said. "If you did an observational study on that, what would you say?" An unpublished report the council commissioned from Cato says "it is not scientifically correct to conclude the lack of exclusive breast-feeding plays a causative role in the development of these diseases."
But scientists are so intrigued about the potential to protect children from juvenile diabetes that a large 10-year multinational study called Trigr (for Trial to Reduce Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the Genetically at Risk) is under way to find out whether breast-feeding protects at-risk children from developing the disease.
And public health officials, excited about mounting evidence suggesting that children who were breast-fed are at lower risk of being obese, have been promoting breast-feeding as a strategy to combat alarming rates of childhood obesity.
The health benefits of breast-feeding may extend to mothers as well. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, extended breast-feeding reduces the risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer. New studies have also found that women who breast-feed face a lower risk of adult-onset or Type 2 diabetes, and they seem to be at lower risk for osteoporosis later in life.
Immediately after childbirth, nursing accelerates healing by reducing the amount of bleeding and causing the uterus to contract more rapidly back to its normal size. Making milk burns up to 500 extra calories a day, so nursing mothers get help shedding extra pounds from pregnancy, experts say, especially if they nurse for an extended period.
Experts say lactation also seems to have a calming effect on the mother, which may be an adaptive mechanism to ease the transition to life with a new baby. Every time a mother nurses, she gets a spike in oxytocin, which may have an antianxiety effect and help promote bonding with the new baby, said Kathryn G. Dewey, a professor of nutrition at the University of California, Davis, and an expert on breast-feeding.
Nursing may even produce a euphoric feeling, she said.
Dr. Michael Kramer, a professor of pediatrics and of epidemiology and biostatistics at McGill University's medical school in Montreal who has been studying the health effects of breast-feeding among infants in Belarus, found a strong protective effect against gastrointestinal illnesses and a lesser protective effect against respiratory infections. Dr. Kramer is still analyzing data on obesity, I.Q., behavior and blood pressure.
"It can't do all of the things that are being claimed for it," Dr. Kramer said, injecting a note of caution into the debate. "But it probably does some of them."
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Tarin's Birthday!!!!!!!!
Today is my sweet Tarin's birthday! Enjoy his birth story! :) Pictures of his party will follow....after we have the party this afternoon!
Kellen was about 6 1/2 months old when I found out I was expecting another baby! Ethan was 3 so it was kinda overwhelming to realize I would have 3 kids under 3 years old. However, Josiah and I were very excited and felt quite blessed by the Lord for such a wonderful gift.
Tarin's pregnancy was....different than my others. First, I had no real due date. I had not had any cycle since before I had Kellen so there was little to go by in that respect. We declined an ultrasound because of the medical problems it can cause with the baby (another post for another day!)....so we decided to wing it altogether. The best we could determine....mid May.
Second............my two older boys both got purtussis (whopping cough) when I was about 12 weeks along with Tarin; so I was obviously concerned with passing it to the baby. The doc assured me that would not happen, but I was still wary. (the whopping cough was LOOOOONG gone by the time Tarin was born....so the doc was right!).
I nursed Kell through the pregnancy (I am a big extended nursing fan so I did not want Kell to miss out on the awesome benefits of nursing even if I was preg again). He did wean himself around month 7 of being pregnant....when he turned 1 year. I remember being at a friends home (Kerri!) at some point in May....chasing Kell around her house and watching Ethan play and thinking...."oh my gosh. HOW will I do this with a little newborn?!" Kell and the new baby would be about 15 months apart. Kell was barely walking, not potty trained and a wild little guy. :) Lord, help me!
The other funny thing about Tarin's pregnancy was that I was 100%....no....150% positive that the baby was a girl. No reason other than my intuition (which we all now know is...faulty). In fact, at his birth, all I had prepared was purple blankets and floral hats for the baby right after the birth. I was just certain "it" was a girl.
Mid may came..................and went. Nothing. Nada. LOTS of contractions.....none that progressed into labor.
Family and friends starting commenting on the massive size I had become. My belly measured 5 cm LARGER that I should have measured. Strangers asked if I was carrying twins. (and after I hit them I SAT on them)....just kidding. :)
I was beginning to feel that "I will be pregnant forever" feeling......and it lasted for 3 more weeks!
Had I been planning a hospital birth I would have been induced around middle of May, just based on my belly measurements alone. (had that happened I would have birthed a 3 week premature baby). Thankfully, my midwife has enough knowledge, experience and wisdom to monitor the baby and just wait and see.
My Grandparents drove over from Texas for the birth....stayed almost 2 weeks...and drove home! AH! This baby was never coming out!
Oh, but he waaaasssssss. God had a plan. He knit Tarin in my womb....He has numbered Tarins' days and knows EXACTLY when Tarin should be born.
My water staring a small leak in the night of the 6th (really, the morning of the 7th) about 2 a.m. As Tarin now says, "Yeah Baby! That's what I talkin about!" I got up and showered then tried to go back to bed. I knew I had a job to do and I wanted all the rest I could get. Later that morning my mom came over and got Ethan and Kellen. We set up the birth pool then Josiah and I went out.....to eat! Roadhouse Grill, baby! It is amazing the FAST service you get when the waitress knows your in labor and is afraid she will deliver that baby on the table. Ummm.....I had a delicious salad, chicken and some of their very high-fat bread....and a ton of water. After lunch we walked around Old Navy....looking at baby clothes (girl, of course). My contraction were sporadic and not intense at all. About 10 minutes apart and painless.
The rest of the day is kinda a blurrrrrr.....I think we went and ate at moms' house for dinner and then Josiah and I went back home. We had a few hours to ourselves before mom brought the boys home and put them to bed.....so we turned on Natalie Cole and danced in the living room. The candlelight and music made it so romantic! I really enjoyed that time I had with Josiah.
Around 11p.m. Claudia came by to se how things were going. My contractions had picked up a bit, but I knew I still had a while to go. Claudia listened to the baby...took vitals and then sat with us to chat. I ate an organic peach yogurt and remember thinking how delicious it was. I had to convince Claudia to go home and I would call when things got more serious. Heck, I was talking and laughing! I still had a while. Reluctantly, Claudia went home to get some sleep. I decided that I should lay down while I still could (I hate laying down in labor....but it was not to intense yet, so I could still be comfortable in bed). Josiah and I went upstairs and I got to sleep in between contractions. After a few hours I noticed that the contractions were getting much closer together and lasting over a minute. I was happy that things were finally picking up! I think it was around 2:30 a.m. or 3:00 a.m. that Josiah called Claudia to come back over. Debbie, her midwife partner, came with her. We also had invited my friend Tracy to video and Kerri to take pictures. My mom was there as well for the kids (who were sound asleep) and pool upkeep as well as moral support. I came downstairs and Claudia checked the baby and then me....I was 7 cm! Woo Hoo! I still felt like I had a while to go....for some reason I "knew" it would be a while longer before we saw this baby. I turned on 3rd Day Worship Album and settled into a pattern of labordancing, squatting, sitting on the birth ball and walking through contractions. I ate an entire apple (I needed the energy for stamina) and drank SO much water.
This went on for hours and hours and hours. The CD I had on repeated itself SO may times! I finally turned it off. My candles were burning out....and daylight was peaking through the windows. I had gotten in the pool at some point to get a little rest but I got out again a little while later. (the birthpool was in my living room floor).
At around 6:50 a.m. Claudia checked and I was still 7-8 cm. I was really tired and just wanted the kid OUT. Up till then labor had been enjoyable and fun, but now I was ready to call it a day and go to sleep! Claudia asked me if I was ready to birth. I said, OF COURSE I was. I could not pull the wool over her eyes...she knew I was mentally not "there" yet. I was stressed about many things....finances, 3 kids under 3 years, WHERE the baby would sleep....etc. I was holding onto "easiness" for as long as I could! I took a few minutes and decided that I was indeed ready to face life...and I was ready to have a new baby. About 2 contractions later I began pushing. At first I laid on the couch to push (why? no idea. I HATED it) and while I ate my banana I decided I wanted to jump in the pool. I got in the water and it was SOOOO nice. I relaxed and allowed my body to push my baby down. I remember that in between pushing contractions all I wanted was COLD water...and lots of it. At some point I drank all the water in my water bottle and it irritated me that "they" could not even keep my water bottle full! I was having a baby! How hard is it to keep water there for me?! I threw my water bottle across the room and demanded more NOW. Needless to say, the baby came very soon after that. :)
I pushed a total of 11 minutes. Josiah was not able to catch the baby this time because he had poison ivy all down his arms. :( He sat behind me, though, holding me up in a flowing/squat in the pool. I remember when Claudia said, "Tiff, the head is born." I was amazed! I reached down and felt his soft little head...his ears, his eyes, nose and mouth. Oh how sweet! Oh how precious! He was so soft! I also realized as I was touching his head that he did not rotate in the manner most babies rotate to allow the shoulders to be born. (by this time I had done over 100 births and knew what was going on). I mentioned this to Claudia (as if she did not already know!) and she told me that it was fine, just stay very loose on my next push and hold my squat. So, the next push, I stayed very loose and she reached a finger under his shoulder and he flew out!
(Remember, at this point I still think this is a girl).
I cried with thankfulness to the Lord and kept saying, "Thank you Jesus for my baby!" He was so very cute! He did not cry much....he just looked around at Josiah and I. I sat in the pool for several minutes talking to the baby before I thought to even look and see what kind of baby we had. I peaked under the towel and started laughing hysterically. It was a boy!!!!!!!!!! I was shocked and so surprised....it was a wonderful moment in my life that I will never forget. What a blessing! We now had 3 sons!
After a few hours just relaxing with our new son I decided I wanted some food and a shower. After that was accomplished Claudia and Debbie did the newborn exam. This baby was a chunk....10 pounds and 8 ounces!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And that was the beginning of a beautiful relationship we have with our Tarin Josiah.
Thank you Lord for blessing our family with such a sweet, sensitive, independent, funny, beautiful little boy :)
Did I mention that I felt so good the next day that I was up cleaning the bathroom? Yes, I got yelled at for that one :)
Kellen was about 6 1/2 months old when I found out I was expecting another baby! Ethan was 3 so it was kinda overwhelming to realize I would have 3 kids under 3 years old. However, Josiah and I were very excited and felt quite blessed by the Lord for such a wonderful gift.
Tarin's pregnancy was....different than my others. First, I had no real due date. I had not had any cycle since before I had Kellen so there was little to go by in that respect. We declined an ultrasound because of the medical problems it can cause with the baby (another post for another day!)....so we decided to wing it altogether. The best we could determine....mid May.
Second............my two older boys both got purtussis (whopping cough) when I was about 12 weeks along with Tarin; so I was obviously concerned with passing it to the baby. The doc assured me that would not happen, but I was still wary. (the whopping cough was LOOOOONG gone by the time Tarin was born....so the doc was right!).
I nursed Kell through the pregnancy (I am a big extended nursing fan so I did not want Kell to miss out on the awesome benefits of nursing even if I was preg again). He did wean himself around month 7 of being pregnant....when he turned 1 year. I remember being at a friends home (Kerri!) at some point in May....chasing Kell around her house and watching Ethan play and thinking...."oh my gosh. HOW will I do this with a little newborn?!" Kell and the new baby would be about 15 months apart. Kell was barely walking, not potty trained and a wild little guy. :) Lord, help me!
The other funny thing about Tarin's pregnancy was that I was 100%....no....150% positive that the baby was a girl. No reason other than my intuition (which we all now know is...faulty). In fact, at his birth, all I had prepared was purple blankets and floral hats for the baby right after the birth. I was just certain "it" was a girl.
Mid may came..................and went. Nothing. Nada. LOTS of contractions.....none that progressed into labor.
Family and friends starting commenting on the massive size I had become. My belly measured 5 cm LARGER that I should have measured. Strangers asked if I was carrying twins. (and after I hit them I SAT on them)....just kidding. :)
I was beginning to feel that "I will be pregnant forever" feeling......and it lasted for 3 more weeks!
Had I been planning a hospital birth I would have been induced around middle of May, just based on my belly measurements alone. (had that happened I would have birthed a 3 week premature baby). Thankfully, my midwife has enough knowledge, experience and wisdom to monitor the baby and just wait and see.
My Grandparents drove over from Texas for the birth....stayed almost 2 weeks...and drove home! AH! This baby was never coming out!
Oh, but he waaaasssssss. God had a plan. He knit Tarin in my womb....He has numbered Tarins' days and knows EXACTLY when Tarin should be born.
My water staring a small leak in the night of the 6th (really, the morning of the 7th) about 2 a.m. As Tarin now says, "Yeah Baby! That's what I talkin about!" I got up and showered then tried to go back to bed. I knew I had a job to do and I wanted all the rest I could get. Later that morning my mom came over and got Ethan and Kellen. We set up the birth pool then Josiah and I went out.....to eat! Roadhouse Grill, baby! It is amazing the FAST service you get when the waitress knows your in labor and is afraid she will deliver that baby on the table. Ummm.....I had a delicious salad, chicken and some of their very high-fat bread....and a ton of water. After lunch we walked around Old Navy....looking at baby clothes (girl, of course). My contraction were sporadic and not intense at all. About 10 minutes apart and painless.
The rest of the day is kinda a blurrrrrr.....I think we went and ate at moms' house for dinner and then Josiah and I went back home. We had a few hours to ourselves before mom brought the boys home and put them to bed.....so we turned on Natalie Cole and danced in the living room. The candlelight and music made it so romantic! I really enjoyed that time I had with Josiah.
Around 11p.m. Claudia came by to se how things were going. My contractions had picked up a bit, but I knew I still had a while to go. Claudia listened to the baby...took vitals and then sat with us to chat. I ate an organic peach yogurt and remember thinking how delicious it was. I had to convince Claudia to go home and I would call when things got more serious. Heck, I was talking and laughing! I still had a while. Reluctantly, Claudia went home to get some sleep. I decided that I should lay down while I still could (I hate laying down in labor....but it was not to intense yet, so I could still be comfortable in bed). Josiah and I went upstairs and I got to sleep in between contractions. After a few hours I noticed that the contractions were getting much closer together and lasting over a minute. I was happy that things were finally picking up! I think it was around 2:30 a.m. or 3:00 a.m. that Josiah called Claudia to come back over. Debbie, her midwife partner, came with her. We also had invited my friend Tracy to video and Kerri to take pictures. My mom was there as well for the kids (who were sound asleep) and pool upkeep as well as moral support. I came downstairs and Claudia checked the baby and then me....I was 7 cm! Woo Hoo! I still felt like I had a while to go....for some reason I "knew" it would be a while longer before we saw this baby. I turned on 3rd Day Worship Album and settled into a pattern of labordancing, squatting, sitting on the birth ball and walking through contractions. I ate an entire apple (I needed the energy for stamina) and drank SO much water.
This went on for hours and hours and hours. The CD I had on repeated itself SO may times! I finally turned it off. My candles were burning out....and daylight was peaking through the windows. I had gotten in the pool at some point to get a little rest but I got out again a little while later. (the birthpool was in my living room floor).
At around 6:50 a.m. Claudia checked and I was still 7-8 cm. I was really tired and just wanted the kid OUT. Up till then labor had been enjoyable and fun, but now I was ready to call it a day and go to sleep! Claudia asked me if I was ready to birth. I said, OF COURSE I was. I could not pull the wool over her eyes...she knew I was mentally not "there" yet. I was stressed about many things....finances, 3 kids under 3 years, WHERE the baby would sleep....etc. I was holding onto "easiness" for as long as I could! I took a few minutes and decided that I was indeed ready to face life...and I was ready to have a new baby. About 2 contractions later I began pushing. At first I laid on the couch to push (why? no idea. I HATED it) and while I ate my banana I decided I wanted to jump in the pool. I got in the water and it was SOOOO nice. I relaxed and allowed my body to push my baby down. I remember that in between pushing contractions all I wanted was COLD water...and lots of it. At some point I drank all the water in my water bottle and it irritated me that "they" could not even keep my water bottle full! I was having a baby! How hard is it to keep water there for me?! I threw my water bottle across the room and demanded more NOW. Needless to say, the baby came very soon after that. :)
I pushed a total of 11 minutes. Josiah was not able to catch the baby this time because he had poison ivy all down his arms. :( He sat behind me, though, holding me up in a flowing/squat in the pool. I remember when Claudia said, "Tiff, the head is born." I was amazed! I reached down and felt his soft little head...his ears, his eyes, nose and mouth. Oh how sweet! Oh how precious! He was so soft! I also realized as I was touching his head that he did not rotate in the manner most babies rotate to allow the shoulders to be born. (by this time I had done over 100 births and knew what was going on). I mentioned this to Claudia (as if she did not already know!) and she told me that it was fine, just stay very loose on my next push and hold my squat. So, the next push, I stayed very loose and she reached a finger under his shoulder and he flew out!
(Remember, at this point I still think this is a girl).
I cried with thankfulness to the Lord and kept saying, "Thank you Jesus for my baby!" He was so very cute! He did not cry much....he just looked around at Josiah and I. I sat in the pool for several minutes talking to the baby before I thought to even look and see what kind of baby we had. I peaked under the towel and started laughing hysterically. It was a boy!!!!!!!!!! I was shocked and so surprised....it was a wonderful moment in my life that I will never forget. What a blessing! We now had 3 sons!
After a few hours just relaxing with our new son I decided I wanted some food and a shower. After that was accomplished Claudia and Debbie did the newborn exam. This baby was a chunk....10 pounds and 8 ounces!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And that was the beginning of a beautiful relationship we have with our Tarin Josiah.
Thank you Lord for blessing our family with such a sweet, sensitive, independent, funny, beautiful little boy :)
Did I mention that I felt so good the next day that I was up cleaning the bathroom? Yes, I got yelled at for that one :)
Thursday, May 11, 2006
C Section artwork
Below is a link to a site made by a mom who had 2 C sections...the last one she is very upset about a realizes her mistake. The artwork on the site is quite graphic yet very powerful....she is able to convey thoughts/feelings that other moms have told me about but I never did "grasp" until I saw these pictures. Click on the first picture to enter the site.
Anyway, not something the kiddies will enjoy...and have your tissues ready.
I cannot help but think of my mom when I see these.....she also had 2 C sections and hated it....especially the 2nd one. I grew up seeing her scar and always saying I never wanted one.....
http://www.cesarean-art.com/
Anyway, not something the kiddies will enjoy...and have your tissues ready.
I cannot help but think of my mom when I see these.....she also had 2 C sections and hated it....especially the 2nd one. I grew up seeing her scar and always saying I never wanted one.....
http://www.cesarean-art.com/
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