The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog

2008 in breastfeeding research.

It's been another great year in breastfeeding research, with more studies showing the many ways breastfeeding protects babies and mothers from a host of diseases and conditions.

The list below doesn't represent all the research on breastfeeding - not by a long shot - but it gives you sense of the studies that have been in the news.

So, here's my summary for 2008.  You can also read my summaries of 2007 research and 2006 research.

Some good news:

• Breastfeeding initiation rates have hit a 20 year high. 
• Breastfeeding helps you lose weight.
• Breastfeeding does not make your breasts sag. 
• Breastfeeding reduces your risk of metabolic syndrome.
• Breastfeeding reduces you risk of rheumatoid arthritis by half.
• Breastfeeding protects babies from breast cancer as adults.
• Breastfeeding improves intelligence scores.
• Breastfeeding reduces the risk of childhood obesity.
• Breastfed kids have fewer behavioral problems.
• Breastfeeding reduces asthma risk.
• Breastfeeding provides better pain relief during procedures (like heel sticks) than sugar water.

Some bad news:

• Pediatricians are less likely to promote breastfeeding than they were 10 years ago.
• Only 8% of mothers deliver in hospitals that have policies making it 13 times less likely that we'll stop breastfeeding early.
• Obstetricians' textbooks contain poor information on breastfeeding.
• Nursing moms get bad advice from pharmacists. 

Some hmmmm news:

• Men's prolactin levels rise when their partners are pregnant.

And finally, another pitch for the study I'm helping out with at the University of Massachusetts.  Know a nursing mom who has recently had a biopsy or is expecting to have one?  Please send her my way! 

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A visit to the Facebook nurse-in.

I was able to stop by the physical (as opposed to virtual) nurse-in at Facebook's headquarters on Saturday, and I met Heather (pictured at left) who organized the protest, and her mother-in-law Sheri (pictured at right).

As the press reported, the crowd was sparse, but the online nurse-in has attracted a lot of attention, with a huge increase in the number of members of the Facebook group devoted to this issue (now up to 70,000 members), and thousands of pictures and videos of nursing mothers posted. There has also been a lot of press on this topic.

Heather said that when reporters came to film her nursing at home, as soon as the bright lights were turned on her daughter popped off to check out the action.  That's a 9 month old for you!

So far Facebook's only response has been this one, to the New York Times last week:

Breastfeeding is a natural and beautiful act and we’re very glad to know that it is so important to some mothers to share this experience with others on Facebook. We take no action on the vast majority of breastfeeding photos because they follow the site’s Terms of Use. Photos containing a fully exposed breast do violate those Terms and may be removed. These policies are designed to ensure Facebook remains a safe, secure and trusted environment for all users, including the many children (over the age of 13) who use the site. The photos we act upon are almost exclusively brought to our attention by other users who complain.

On the way back to the car from the protest, my son said, "So, did we win?"  I told him that we'd have to wait and see.

So, did you participate?  Have your pictures been removed?

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Guest post: Kelly's 2008 celebrity round-up.

It's time for another celebrity breastfeeding round-up from Kelly, shown to the left with son Austin, 2 1/2 (still nursing), and daughter Anabel, 10 (self-weaned at 2 1/2). 

Another year has passed, and as my own son is moving toward self-weaning, I wanted to look back at the nursing celebrity moms for this year. I really appreciate these self-assured women going public about their decision to breastfeed. I'm happy to report that there are more nursing moms in the 2008 lineup than can fit in one blog entry. I've chosen a few that have truly inspired me (and hopefully many moms-to-be) through their words and actions.

Star Mom: Angelina Jolie
When I think "celebrity" and "mom," I think: Angelina Jolie. So even though Tanya discussed Angelina's beautiful W cover back in October, I think it's worthy of second mention simply because of Angelina's perspective on publicity--leveraging her celebrity for important causes. With the W cover, (photo taken by partner Brad Pitt) she took awareness of breastfeeding to a stratospheric level.

Postpartum Weight Loss Sanity: Melissa Joan Hart and Minnie Driver
After seeing pictures of new moms walking the red carpet three weeks after giving birth, looking better than, well...I ever will in my life, it's nice to get a dose of sanity from these nursing celebrity moms.

Former Sabrina the Teenage Witch star Melissa Joan Hart talked about trying to lose weight after having her second child, Braydon, who she is nursing. "I think a lot of post-pregnancy diet plans are really focused on losing the weight, but this keeps my first priority straight -- being able to stay healthy enough to breastfeed my baby." Melissa states it took 10 months to lose the weight with her first, son Mason, and she's not worried about those last 20 pounds with this one.

Minnie Driver. who nurses son Henry, also has a relaxed approach to weight loss. While she finds that breastfeeding "burns the weight off," she says her routine mainly consists of long walks with Henry.

One Fit Mother: Gabriel Reece
I've always admired Gabrielle Reece for what she's done to promote a health body image. Now, she's not only nursing mom to baby daughter Brody Jo, but also a spokesperson promoting breastfeeding for the non-profit organization Best for Babes.  She also nursed daughter Reese Viola, now 4, for 23 months.

During her exclusive interview on Celebrity Baby Blog, Gabriel discusses how women can set themselves up for success with breastfeeding, and avoid common pitfalls (which are cleverly referred to as booby traps.) She evens dispels the myth of the older nursing baby:  "People have this perception that your one and a half year old is always on the boob, when really they may only be on at night before bedtime, for comfort, and to continue to boost their immune system."

To be Continued: Salma Hayek and Kelly Rutherford
I am please to report two nursing moms in the "extended nurser" category for 2008.

Mom to nursling Valentina Paloma, 13 months, Salma Hayek says she doesn't want to stop nursing her daughter anytime soon. Nursing, says Salma, is "a very powerful thing" and she's committed to it. "I don't care if I cry, I don't care if I'm fat" she says, "when I see how much good it is doing her, I can't stop."

Actress Kelly Rutherford is expecting her second child this summer and breastfeeding two-year old son Hermes. Kelly seems unfazed by societal pressures to wean. "I'll just do it as long as it feels right for my son." As I don't even know any non-celebrity moms who are pregnant and nursing, I'm impressed with Kelly's commitment!

Be My Guest: Christina Aguilera and Nicole Richie
The Ellen Show seems to be the venue of choice for celebrity nursing moms. Christina was discussing nursing baby Max on the show earlier this year. I love when Ellen asks her if she's nursing. The moment (1:02) is adorable!

Nicole Richie is the most laid back, nurturing mom in the public eye. I love how she lit up when she talked about her daughter Harlow recently on the Ellen show. And while I can't relate to her jet-setting lifestyle, I can appreciate her commitment to nursing her daughter. Discussing boyfriend Joel's plans to go to Africa to promote their charity foundation, Nicole explained. "Joel, actually, is leaving next week. I wish that I could go, but I'm still nursing." Making sacrifices for our children; that's something we all can relate to.

And recently, the two moms have forged a friendship with their babies being close in age.

No Doubt, She's a Great Mom: Gwen Stefani
Last year, Gwen was still nursing son Kingston. This year congratulations are in order for new baby son Zuma. I'm a little apprehensive about mentioning Gwen because she hasn't officially discussed breastfeeding Zuma, but was snapped nursing him on a park bench by an intrusive pap.

While I appreciate that celebrity moms open up about their personal experiences nursing their children, I feel funny about observing a private moment between mother and child. So, instead of a link to that park bench shot, here's a picture authorized by Gwen for public use (taken by her father Dennis Stefani) of mom and baby.

Have a blessed new year. Enjoy your babies!

Join the next Carnival of Breastfeeding: What are your breastfeeding goals?

Do any of your goal for the new year have to do with breastfeeding?  Are you resolving to continuing to nurse longer, or maybe planning a breastfeeding advocacy project?

Tell us about it in a post for our next Carnival of Breastfeeding. Send me (using the email link on the sidebar) your submission by January 12, 2009, for consideration for the carnival on January 20, 2009. We'll be looking for posts that are:

– Well-written and grammatically correct
– Thoughtful and directly on point for the carnival subject
– Submitted by blogs that pertain to subjects of interest to our readers (breastfeeding, parenting)

If your post is selected for inclusion, you will be asked on the day of the carnival to edit your post to link back to each of the other participants in the carnival.  Examples of past carnivals are here.

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Guest post: Lucia on harassment at Six Flags.

Today I'm pleased to share a guest post by Lucia, on her experience nursing at Six Flags over the summer.  As she points out, Massachusetts is one of only four states that provides no legal protection for mothers who are harassed for nursing in public.

Update:  It now looks like we may soon have a law protecting nursing in public in Massachusetts!

I breastfed my son for 14 months.  I can't believe how shy I was back then!  I wouldn't nurse in public for a long time and then I started nursing in the car.  Then I started nursing in the doctor's office, then in secluded areas at the mall or at babywearing meetings.  Before I knew it I was nursing everywhere and anywhere without a care in the world about who saw me.  It was very liberating.  When I discovered I was having twins I figured there was no possible way to nurse TWO babies discretely (and there isn't!) so I threw all caution to the wind.  I was convinced that living in the most liberal state in the union made me "safe" from the dirty looks and jeers and even discrimination that I read about online.  I was so terribly wrong.

It was August 2008 and my family and I met with a cousin and her family at Six Flags New England.  We had a lovely day planned together with her older son and twins my son's age.  Her boys are big Wiggles fans so we quickly found our way to Wiggles World.  I decided to nurse one of the twins while in the S.S. Feathersword and Henry's Splish Splash Playground.  The attendant came up to me and told me to stop.  I asked her why and she told me that this is a children's area and I might offend the other parents.  I was invited to walk halfway across the park to use their nursing station, however but I found this unacceptable.  I told her that I had the right to nurse anywhere I had the right to be and I was not going to stop to go someplace and hide to do it.  She continued to argue with me until my daughter finished her snack and I covered up.  I told her that in any other state she would be in violation of the law for harassing me and she said I'm sorry but you still have to stop.  It was embarrassing and infuriating to say the least.  I kept thinking, what if they did this to a less confident mother?  I know women who go to the bottle in public because they can't stand stand the glares and the comments, but that was there and this is Massachusetts!  This can't be happening! 

The experience has changed me quite a bit.  I wear nursing tops all the time so no one can accuse me of being indecent, and I ask if it's okay to nurse someplace.  I shouldn't have to ASK if my child can eat, after all no one asks if they can give their formula fed baby a bottle.  It hurts me so much that we are still so behind the times.  I wrote to Six Flags and never got a response.  I recently put in a call as well.  I contacted First Right about the situation and they found out that it is Six Flag's policy to have all nursing mothers use the baby care area for breastfeeding and nursing in public is against their rules.  The baby care area however is not equipped to handle tandem nursing which is what I do 90% of the time with my daughters.  I called my state rep and the speaker of the house but Massachusetts still doesn't have a breastfeeding law and there seems to be no hope of getting one passed this year. 

I've had so many people tell me online how I was over reacting about this legislation getting passed.  I had long discussions about how "no one would do that here" but guess what, it does happen here.  It happened to me.  Now I take nothing for granted and I hope and pray that with the new year we'll have a new law protecting moms like me (and you) from this kind of discrimination.  Talk to your senator and congressman about getting this passed into law and even if it doesn't stop close-minded people and businesses right away, at least we have the protection of the law behind us.

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An early present.

Well, would you look at this! 

From the Boston Herald:

[Massachusetts] House Ways and Means chairman Robert DeLeo intends to rally legislative support Monday for a bill that legally protects nursing moms when they breast-feed in public, and he hopes to get it passed before year’s end.

DeLeo will release the bill, which already has the backing of Gov. Deval Patrick, from his committee with a favorable review Monday.

“Breast-feeding is a public health issue, and women should not be fearful of the commonwealth or their employers’ retribution just for doing something healthy for their baby,” said DeLeo.

Massachusetts is one of only four states and territories, including West Virginia, Guam and American Samoa, that don’t have laws protecting nursing mothers from indecency violations, according to National Conference of State Legislatures.

The bill, originally filed by Rep. David Linsky (D-Framingham) and Sen. Susan Fargo (D-Lincoln), would allow moms to nurse babies in public places, make it unlawful for anyone to stop a mother from breast-feeding and ensure employers provide a time and place for nursing moms.

Motherwear is based in Massachusetts, and I live there, too.  Our local breastfeeding coalition has members who have been pushing for this for years, writing letters and making the trek to the State House in support of it.  But every year the bill has died.  So this is a long time coming!

Tomorrow's post features a story that demonstrates the need for this bill, as have past stories like these from iParty, and other Massachusetts establishments.

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Every month is a bonus.

I like this ad from the Australian Children, Youth, and Women's Health Service.  It focuses on the tough part of breastfeeding promotion - duration.

I don't know much about breastfeeding rates in Australia, but here in the U.S., the initiation rate (starting to breastfeed in the hospital) has hovered around 70% for some time.  But that rate declines precipitously once mothers are home, for many reasons - breastfeeding problems, return to work, etc.  This is problem because many of the health benefits of breastfeeding are linked to the length of breastfeeding.

Of course, you know that it's not enough to simply encourage mothers to "breastfeed for longer."  Most women say that they stopped breastfeeding before they wanted to.  What's needed to keep breastfeeding going is a whole lot of free, accessible, and skilled breastfeeding help, family friendly policies such as paid maternity leave, and a culture which treats breastfeeding as normal behavior.  I'm sure I'm leaving something out here; feel free to add to my list.

My favorite is still this Scottish ad, but I like this one for its simple and important message: breastfeed for longer.

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Motherwear's 25th anniversary contest for December.

It's time for the last monthly contest of Motherwear's 25th anniversary year.

Don't worry, we'll come up with some good contests for 2009.

To enter to win a $25 gift certificate, leave a comment below by December 22nd, 2008, telling me...anything you want.  I'm out of ideas for this year!

Be sure to leave a 'real' email address (in the form, not in the comment) so I can contact you if you've won.  The winner will be notified by email (no announcement made on the blog).  U.S. addresses only, please.

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The winning nursing story.

The winning entry from Motherwear's nursing story contest is now posted on the Motherwear website.  You'll find all of the other stories submitted there, too.

The winning entry came from Nicole, pictured with her daughter Stella to the left.

Be sure to check it out!

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Facebook virtual nurse-in.

You may remember that last year Facebook and My Space started removing breastfeeding pictures from their pages. 

In response, a Facebook group was created, called "Hey Facebook, breastfeeding is not obscene!" It now has over 50,000 members.

A group called Mothers International Lactation Campaign (M.I.L.C) is now organizing a virtual nurse-in.  On December 27, M.I.L.C is urging Facebook members to change their profile pictures to a breastfeeding image.  M.I.L.C. is also planning in-person events on that day. 

From the event organizing site:

Facebook continues to classify breastfeeding photos as obscene content. They continue to arbitrarily remove these photos from member albums and profiles, accompanied by warnings of account termination. This is highly discriminatory and an affront to nursing mothers everywhere. In protest of this, Mothers International Lactation Campaign (M.I.L.C.) has planned a virtual day of protest...

In protest to the discriminatory and unjust policy of Facebook administration classifying breastfeeding images as obscene content, on December 27th, 2008 M.I.L.C. is asking all of you to change your profile picture for one day, to one which includes an image of a nursing mom.

This could be a picture of you or someone you know nursing a child, it could be a painting or image of a sculpture of a breastfeeding woman, it could also be a photo or image of any nursing mammal….We ask that you include the status line of “Hey Facebook, breastfeeding is not obscene!”

For more information, go to Facebook and type M.I.L.C. into the search bar.  You may need a Facebook account.

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