Some have said that physicians don't really KNOW, and therefore believe,
that formula feeding is potentially harmful.  I disagree.  I believe they
would have to be living under a rock not to have had numerous opportunities
to be confronted with this information.  But I suspect that just HAVING the
information is not always enough to cause a person to change their behavior
or their protocol. In the case of some physicians, they KNOW, but are not
willing to ACT LIKE THEY KNOW.

As an example, I know very well that if I will exercise routinely, I will be
healthier.  But it is hard!  It takes extra time, and the results of NOT
exercising are not immediately obvious. (To take the example a bit further,
my mother (age 70) has never exercised, and "she's FINE..." )  To be
truthful, I need a kick in the backside from time to time to get me to
exercise.

Often, when faced with a difficult issue, people claim not to "believe" that
they need to make a change, as a way of justifying not taking the necessary
action.  I think about aquaintances who smoke, and their insistance, over
the years, that they didn't "believe" that second hand smoke was harmful
(because they hated the idea of smoking being banned on planes and in
restaurants.)  This behavior, of taking a stand against what is obviously
true, is a type of denial, and we all practice it from time to time- it's
our mind trying to help us out of difficult situations.

This discussion came up as a result of the claim that physicians might
support formula because they stand to gain monitarily... maybe that
overstates the case.  However to become fully informed about and to begin
practicing breastfeeding supportive medicine WOULD be more costly to a
physician... in time and in money and brain strain, reading more, attending
some seminars, subscribing to a journal maybe, sending staff for training...
This is no doubt where the stasis sets in, just like for me with exercise.

But, there is one BIG difference between me and my resistance to what I KNOW
is true about exercise and what happens when a physician resists becoming
breastfeeding educated.  In my case, I only harm myself.

Susan Jacoby, IBCLC
Fresno

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