Hospitals Drop the Ball on Breastfeeding

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released it's findings yesterday in the first national report to include breastfeeding practices in hospitals. The results had some surprising statistics. The CDC found that one in four medical centers gave healthy newborns formula or supplements even when their mothers were willing and able to breast-feed.

They looked at 2,700 birth facilities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and rated them based on labor and delivery, breastfeeding assistance, mother-newborn contact, postpartum feeding, breastfeeding support after hospital discharge, nurse/birth attendant breastfeeding training and education, and structural and organizational quality.

Western and New England states performed the best. Vermont and New Hampshire tied for the highest scores, followed by Maine and Oregon. The lowest scores were seen in 7 southern states: Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and West Virginia.

What to do if you are looking to breastfeed your infant:
- Ask beforehand if lactation consultants are available at the hospital you plan on delivering at
- Let your doctor and the nurses on call know that you want to breastfeed and ask that they not give your child any formula or supplements
- If lactation consultants aren't available at the hospital, try La Leche League staff or a doula
- Look for breastfeeding classes in the area to take before birth
- Remember that breastfeeding isn't easy off the bat and may take some time and practice. Be patient, stay motivated and get the help you need.

Breastfeeding and IQ Boosting

Recent research performed at Avshalom Caspi at King's College in London found that babies that carry a specific gene get extra benefit (specifically IQ) when they are breastfeed- than those who lack the gene. The benefits from breastfeeding any baby are still enormous; being protected against childhood cancer, obesity, allergies and infections- are not be belittled here.

The authors looked at a gene called FADS2. They decided to follow this gene because it produces an enzyme that helps convert fatty acids into the polyunsaturated fatty acids DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and AA (arachidonic acid). DHA accumulates in large amounts in the brain during the first two years of life and has been shown to help with brain development, although doctors are not yet sure why and how.

FADS2 has three variants, two of which have an allele called the "C allele". If your baby has the C allele breastfeeding will give them an average boost of 6.8 IQ points. If the this allele isn't present there is no noticeable benefit in IQ. Although it appears the odds your baby has this gene are in your favor- they say 90% of the population has the C allele.

Terrie Moffitt, a professor of psychological and brain sciences in Duke University's Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, and researcher in the study comments on the breakthrough, "The argument about intelligence has been about nature versus nurture for at least a century. We're finding that nature and nurture work together". That's what I like to hear- it's not nature versus nurture- it is a very very complex combination of them both.

A Victory for Breastfeeding Moms

Moms juggle all kinds of things on a daily basis, but taking a 9 hour medical exam and breastfeeding a 4-month old at the same time? That's tough.

So I applaud Sophie C. Currier, 33, of Brookline, Mass. who sued the National Board of Medical Examiners for more time during her medical licensing exam to pump or feed. She got an extra 60 minutes added to the standard 45 minute break time she would have normally had, aruging that she shouldn't have to choose between using her break time to "incompletely express breast milk and ignore her bodily functions, or abdicate her decision to express breast milk, resulting in significant pain.” Way to keep at your dream of medical school and being a good mom.

I Can't Believe It's Not a Breast

Feels like a breast, and even sort of looks like one... the Adiri Natural Nurser. This polycarbonate-free bottle is designed to mimic the female breast in its super soft, pliable feel. The leak resistant bottle has a special vent to reduce gas and colic. Adiri explains how the bottle's design mimics breastfeeding,

"high quality 100% polycarbonate-free materials that warm to a child’s cheek, like a breast, when filled with warm milk. A patented nipple design helps alleviate nipple confusion for breastfeeding babies. Shaped like a breast, they encourage the same type of open-mouthed latching that is required for breastfeeding, making bottle and breastfeeding more easily interchangeable."

The bottle is opened from bottom- you simply "Fill, Twist and Feed". Filling is so easy they claim you can do it with one arm. Available with three different flow rates, each holds 8 oz. of fluid and is thermally sturdy- you can boil it, sterilize it and put it in the dishwasher.

Breast feeding and Painkillers

The FDA warns breast feeding mothers to exercise extreme caution when taking codeine. Doctors believe that it could pose a risk of overdose to infants. Codeine is metabolized into morphine in the body and therefore women who metabolize the drug quickly can pass morphine to the infant through their milk. However, the report claims that this only applies to a small percentage of women.

Mothers who are prescribed the drug take it in very low doses and should watch for signs of excessive sleepiness or limpness in their babies. According to the FDA the percentage of people believed to be ultrarapid metabolizers of codeine varies by ethnicity. For Caucasians about 1% to 10% fall in this category. Among African-Americans it is about 3%. For Chinese, Japanese or Hispanic heritage the rate is estimated at 1%. The highest rate observed in people of North African, Ethiopian and Saudi Arabian backgrounds where the percentage is between 16% and 28%.

Breast Milk Flying High

Over the weekend the Transportation Security Administration put out a new policy on breast milk. At security checkpoints mothers flying with breast milk should declare it, and mothers are allowed to carry more than three ounces. Also, you can carry breast milk now even if the child is with not with you. The justification for these changes lies in the fact that they have classified breast milk in the same category as "liquid medications".

From a Washington Post article we learn a little more,

Q. Do passengers carrying breast milk need to taste it to prove it is not a liquid explosive?
A. No. We will not ask a traveler to taste breast milk.

Q. Why is breast milk not a threat?
A. Breast milk is a medical necessity and it is being classified as such.