Hi All,

I have it in my head that one of the (many) awesome things about the 
breastfeeding relationship is not just that a mother makes antibodies to 
illnesses she is exposed to then passes those antibodies to her nursling for 
protection but ALSO that a nursing child who is sick with an illness that the 
mother has not had will somehow transmit a message to the mother's body 
telling the mom to make antibodies to that illness, and the antibodies then get 
passed back to the child through the breastmilk.

Is this correct?  And, if so, can someone clarify the mode of transmission (i.e. 
is it through the actual act of nursing that a chemical message of sorts gets 
transmitted or is it the close proximity of mother/child, etc.) and give any 
references.

Thanks in advance,
Dianne Oliver, IBCLC
Simi Valley, CA

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