Pat writes

>Haven't many of us "assumed" that the reason women used wet nurses was
>because they were...... (you name the reason).  Since the bottle was
>invented, moms didn't have to resort to a wet nurse.  Maybe our whole view
>of lactation failure is off kilter.  Now that we are seeing more women try ,
>we are seeing more issues.  Just trying to keep an open mind and look at the
>big picture .... Pat in SNJ

I might be misunderstanding your point, Pat, but my assumption has always been that 
throughout history and in most cultures where it has existed, wet nursing has occurred 
primarily for reasons related to social class.  It has either been viewed as unseemly or 
beneath her station for a well-to-do woman to feed her own children in many societies, 
and that's where wet nurses have come in.  Indeed, there has been a recent resurgence 
of these sorts of arrangements in both Los Angeles and, I believe, Japan.  

Regardless, your point is intriguing in that you seem to be suggesting that at this moment 
in countries such as the US, which have ethnically heterogenous populations, we are 
seeing a larger, more diverse, and, on average, older group of women breastfeeding in 
one society than has ever been witnessed or studied.  Add to that what others have 
mentioned about reproductive technologies and their effect, and it seems we have a great 
deal to learn about how breastfeeding works within this framework.

Kerry Ose, PhD

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