The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog

Spring preview.

Here are a few shots from the photo shoot for Motherwear's Spring line, due out soon.

In the meantime, there are still amazing deals to be had on current inventory, with especially good deals on swimwear, tanks, and sleepwear.

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TSA lets security guards decide how much pumped milk you can take on board.

This is supposed to be an improvement?

You probably recall that in the wake of a foiled liquid bomb plot, the TSA began restricting the amount of liquids passengers could take on board.  This led to stories of mothers having to dump out their pumped milk at the airport, or going to great lengths to freeze, package, and ship milk home.

The TSA website now says that "medications, baby formula and food, breast milk, and juice are allowed in reasonable quantities exceeding three ounces."

The New York Times reports that the current TSA rules on how much breastmilk a mother can bring on board were designed to be "purposely unspecific to give the security officer discretion" in determining how much pumped milk mothers can bring on board. 

The Times reports:

Caren Begun, a public relations executive in Jersey City who had a baby last year, said the lack of specificity made it difficult for her to figure out what to do. “On the Web site, they say you can travel with reasonable quantities of breast milk, but what does that mean?” Ms. Begun asked. “How much milk can I bring on board? What about ice packs? Will I have to taste the milk to show it’s safe? I got a different answer from everyone.”

How can a mother plan her carry-on and checked baggage if she's not sure how the particular guard on duty in her line will define "reasonable quantities?"  I have a feeling that we'll see more stories of milk being dumped into the garbage again.

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Donated milk keeps two year old alive.

The Times Call of Longmont, Colorado recently reported on a mother who discovered the power of breastmilk when her two year old was diagnosed with a severe case of inflammatory bowel disease:

Symptoms started about a year ago, when Grace began vomiting almost every night for several months, her mother said.

...At one point, Grace cried and screamed for three days and didn’t eat or drink. Vaught and her husband took her to the hospital, where tests were performed, and then found a doctor to treat the disorder.

Soon after, Vaught thought about trying breast milk as Grace had already been weaned and Vaught was still nursing her younger child. The first time Grace drank it, she kept it down.

Vaught prayed: “Lord, if this is something, show me.”

But Vaught, a mother of six, could pump only 4 ounces that day. Armed with $35 and a prescription, she went to Mother’s Milk Bank, a Denver nonprofit, but was shocked to find it would cost $200 a day to buy enough milk for Grace. That day, the milk bank gave her extra.

She prayed again. Mother’s Milk Bank donated $1,000 worth of breast milk. When Vaught ran out of that milk, she prayed again. Samaritans Ministry Christian Health Care, a nonprofit through which Christians help other Christians with medical expenses, donated $21,000 for milk.

Vaught put word out at her church, and news of her plight quickly spread. Other women stepped forward to help, including the group of Longmont women. Through postings on the Internet, she sometimes receives coolers from across the nation from women she has never met.

She admits the milk has not been tested for diseases, but feels that the women had prenatal tests before giving birth.

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Are you a card carrying mom?

I've been working to distribute our breastfeeding coalition's business cards with the new nursing in public law.* You can download a pdf of the card we made, or download it as an MS Publisher file to get your own printed.

These cards are sometimes affectionately called "licenses to breastfeed," and while you certainly do not need a license to breastfeed in public, the cards can come in handy if you're ever confronted about it.

I thought I'd list some other states' "licenses" here. 

• Texas' card, in English and Spanish (pdf)
• California's card - in English and Spanish
• Missouri's card - two sided! (pdf)
• Florida's card (pdf)
• South Carolina's card
• Massachusetts card  (pdf)
• Baby Talk's license to breastfeed covering many states (pdf). May be a little out of date.

And here are a few other fun ones:

• Thank you for breastfeeding (pdf) cards from Militant Breastfeeding Cult.
• "Oops, you caught me breastfeeding" (pdf) cards from Mommy Guide 

Have I missed your state or organization's card?  Post a comment with a link, or email me and I'll put it up.  *If you live in my area and want some cards, email me.

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On Nightline, Salma Hayek cross-nurses a baby in Sierra Leone.

I just couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this story on Nightline.* 

Salma Hayek, UNICEF spokesperson, was in Sierra Leone to promote a tetanus vaccine program in a country where one in five children die before the age of five.  21% of those deaths are due to tetanus.  Another reason for the high mortality rate is lack of breastfeeding. 

In one scene, Salma nurses a little baby (her own is now over a year).  There is a close enough view that I could count swallows.  She then tells the story of her great grandmother in Mexico nursing the baby of a stranger who didn't have enough milk. 

I'm blown away that this was on network tv.

*Quick warning that it shows a very sad scene of a baby dying from a tetanus infection. The breastfeeding part of the story occurs later in the piece.

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Finally, the Mr. Rogers clip!

Here is the famed Mr. Rogers nursing clip!  I've been trying to find this one for so long I was beginning to wonder if it was an urban legend.  Think you could show this much skin on PBS today?  Oops!  I'm informed that PBS does still show this episode.

You'll find many more videos, including a number from Sesame Street, here.

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Participate in a breastfeeding study.

There are several breastfeeding studies currently seeking participants.  Thanks to Diana West and her Low Milk Supply website for several of these!  If you know of any others, feel free to email me.

Breastfeeding and biopsy study

I'm helping to recruit mothers for this study, which is based at the University of Massachusetts.  We're seeking nursing moms who have recently had a breast biopsy, or who are expecting to have one.  I wrote about the study here. 

The primary goal of the study is to identify molecular biomarkers for breast cancer.  This could lead to breast cancer detection long before we notice lumps, which is important because early detection is the key to survival.  Another benefit could be the development of a simple breastmilk test which could determine if breast cancer is present - at its earliest stages - through epithelial cells in the milk, and without the need for biopsies. 

Participants donate a milk sample and share the results of their biopsy.  For more information about this study, visit breastmilkresearch.org or email Dr. Sarah Lenington (see website for address).

Milk supply/supplementation study at Dr. Jack Newman Breastfeeding Clinic and Institute

The Dr. Jack Newman Breastfeeding Clinic and Institute is recruiting mothers and babies for a study on milk supply issues involving formula supplementation.  The study will be a randomized control trial, which is double blind and uses a placebo.

They are looking for mothers whose babies are under 2 weeks of age, and are already using formula as a supplement.  Email breastfeeding@ccnm.edu for more information. 

Premature baby/insufficient milk study

The Reproductive Endocrine Unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital is conducting a research study to treat mothers of premature infants who have an insufficient breast milk supply.  Mothers should be 18-45 years old, pumping breast milk for their premature infant and may not be taking oral birth control pills or have had previous breast surgery in order to be eligible.  The study involves hospital visits, administration of prolactin or placebo (contains no active medication) and blood draws.  A payment for participation of up to $200 will be provided.  Call Corrine Welt, MD at 617-726-8437.

Induced lactation study

Individuals who have induced lactation within the last three years are being sought to participate in a study being conducted by Lenore Goldfarb, B. Comm., B. Sc., Dip. C., IBCLC, for her doctoral research. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the practices and outcomes of women who followed a protocol or procedure to induce lactation to provide breastmilk to their babies. Study participants will complete an internet-based survey.  For more information about this study, or to assist in soliciting participants, visit www.inducedlactationsurvey.com or contact Lenore Goldfarb at Lenore.Goldfarb@tui.edu.

Shatavari survey

Diana West, co-author of The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk, is seeking mothers who have used the herb Shatavari to increase milk supply.  If you've used it, please fill out her survey.

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Winter clearance sale.

Is it bad that I sometimes buy nursing clothes even though I'm not nursing? 

I just bought this Motherwear bamboo logo tee.  The clincher was that it was marked down from $35 to $14.95.  There are lots of other great deals, with a number of items under $20. 

If you're thinking of summer (I am) you'll want to check out the swim suits especially.  One is marked down from $69 to $8.99, and another is just $10.99.

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Podcast: How do other mammals do it? Plus books to give away.

Ever wonder how on earth a whale baby nurses underwater?  How common is it for mammals to nurse other mothers' babies?  Do other mammals have insufficient milk?  How common is it for other mammals to refuse to nurse their babies?

I'm so happy to have had a chance to ask these questions and many more in an interview with Dia Michels, founder and president of Platypus Media.  Dia is author of If My Mom were a Platypus, a children's book about mammal mothers and their babies, as well as a other books on breastfeeding.

You can listen to the podcast through the player below, download it and listen with another player, or download it at our iTunes store.

How do other mammals do it?

Dia has also agreed to give away four copies of If My Mom were a Platypus.  To enter to win a copy, leave a comment below by February 16, 2009.  If you have a mammal nursing story or question to share (this is not necessary to enter), please leave it!  Remember to enter a "real" email address.  U.S. addresses only, please.  Winners will be chosen using random.org, and announced in the comments section.

Here are a few links to things we mentioned: Meerkat Manor, The Story of the Weeping Camel.

Want to get email updates from the Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog?  Subscribe here.  Want an RSS feed? Subscribe here.  Want to subscribe to our breastfeeding podcasts on iTunes?  Click here.