Do you feel bad when breastfeeding?

Some mothers have very strong negative feelings well up inside them while breastfeeding, just before the milk begins to flow. These mothers feel fine and happy the rest of the time, and they know they are not suffering from post partum depression, so what is it that makes these bad feelings happen right before the "let-down" starts?

This is a recently recognised condition called D-MER, or Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex and there is a lovely website dedicated to this exact topic, D-MER: because breastfeeding shouldn't make you feel this way. They have found that it is a hormonal condition linked to a drop in dopamine that seems to occur whenever milk is released. The good thing to know is that it is treatable.

Watch their video here and visit their web site for more valuable information:

WONDERFUL breastfeeding video...MUST SEE!!

Click here
For some unknown reason this video has been flagged by Youtube as unsuitable for minors!
It is a video used in breastfeeding education classes. How can breastfeeding a baby be considered unsuitable for minors to view???

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzZJYYrUDwM
Beautiful breastfeeding video from LLL Bulgaria.

MothersMilkBank Charity Ride Australia

The Jetstar Gold Coast Titans MothersMilkBank Charity Ride will see George Doniger cycling from Currumbin to Cairns in Queensland. Starting Monday 16th March 2009 and finishing Friday 3rd April 2009, George will fundraise for the MothersMilkBank during his grueling 19 days of cycling.

The Charity Ride will start at a local IGA store at 9am and finish at a local IGA store at 3pm each day. At the finish of each day, the Lions Club will provide a sausage sizzle for a gold coin donation. This will give the local communities the chance to get behind this great cause.

Queensland is leading the way in helping our babies who need this valuable service but the ability to provide donor milk has stalled. Lack of funds to cover the expenses involved with testing and pasteurising the donor milk means babies and families are suffering without this service.

Since the commencement of the MothersMilkBank, 136 litres of pasteurised donor human milk has been provided for free to sick pre-term infants, as well as other babies in need.

The vision of the MothersMilkBank is to see a national network of Milk Banks established around Australia. The Federal and State Governments have acknowledged that a national network of Milk Banks will greatly improve the health of babies, saving the lives of babies and saving valuable health care dollars. Unfortunately the funding to achieve this vision has not been allocated.

If you would like to make a tax deductable donation or for more information, please visit the website www.mothersmilkbank.com.au

We are also pleased to announce the MothersMilkBank Facebook group! Come, join us and invite your friends. It is hoped we can make this a great place to support each other, ask questions and spread the word.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=61077410212

Thank you for your support, your generosity will play a vital role in the future health of Australia's children.

The MothersMilkBank Team

Voldemort = Formula

‘Voldemort’ approach failing mothers
Monday 9 March 2009

Formula feeding should be clearly named in research showing its potential health risks to babies, according to a new study.

The study, led by Dr Julie Smith from the Australian Centre for Economics Research on Health at The Australian National University, shows that researchers reporting poorer health among formula-fed children too often shy away from including a mention of formula feeding in their titles or summaries.

“This is not helping properly informed health professionals and mothers,” Dr Smith said. “We looked at the findings of nearly 80 authoritative studies, all of which highlighted that formula-fed babies tend to be at higher risk of poor health than children fed on breast milk.

“Yet the vast majority of these studies did not mention formula feeding in the places that matter most for lasting impressions: headlines and abstracts. Rather than naming formula feeding as a significant risk factor, researchers seem to be treating this subject like Voldemort in the Harry Potter novels, as “He Who Shall Not Be Named.” For example, a study showing a higher incidence of a serious condition in formula fed infants was misleadingly named ‘Breastfeeding and necrotising enterocolitis,” she said.
Dr Smith and her colleagues stress that their research into how formula feeding is referred to in scientific studies was intended to ask an important rhetorical question about cultural attitudes and informed choice, and shows why blaming mothers for not breastfeeding is futile and misguided. They argue that initiatives to improve infant health by increasing breastfeeding have described the importance of accurate language, and the key role that well-informed health professionals play for women to breastfeed successfully.

“How can we expect physicians and other health professionals to be informed and convincing about the importance of breastfeeding if they themselves are not getting the facts on risks of formula feeding presented in a prominent and clear fashion?” Dr Smith said.

“Adopting the ‘Voldemort’ approach to describing the risks of formula feeding in published research harms the ability of physicians and other health professionals to support women, and reduces women’s ability to make informed choices. If a mother seeks support and reassurance that continuing breastfeeding is worthwhile, such non committal research reporting means she may get non committal advice from health professionals, even though the evidence is clear that formula feeding disadvantages infant health.”

Filed under: Media Release, ANU College of Medicine Biology and Environment, Health

Learn more: The research paper is online at http://www.acerh.edu.au/publications/ACERH_WP4.pdf

Tokyo Pregnancy group

I am speaking at TPG tomorrow about my work as a Lactation Consultant, my breastfeeding workshops, and I am taking some baby slings to show/sell.I will have all the different colours there, and the free instructional DVDs.

Slings are currently on sale: 6,300 yen including free regular postage. At TPG I will be selling the slings for 6000 yen.

Next breastfeeding workshop is Feb 15th, followed by either March 1st or March 8th.