Dear Fellow Lactnetters,
        This is my first letter to Lactnet.  I have been in OB nursing for the
last 17yrs.  I am currently the day shift charge nurse in a 9 bed birthing
center in Newport R.I.  I have been an IBCLC since 1995.  Currently there
are five of us on staff now (2 on days, 1 on eves, 2on nights).
        I am currently enrolled in the MPH program at Boston University School of
Public Health.  Recently, a question came up in a class discussion about
breast
feeding vs. bottle feeding that addressed environmental pollutants.  If the
mother were to be exposed to an environmental pollutant such as PCB's that
may stay stored in her fatty tissues for a long time, would that pollutent
be passed through into her breastmilk?  If she were to consume the
pollutent via her diet while she is breastfeeding, would it pass into her
milk?
        I have been unable to find information about this subject and I was
wondering if any of you could help me out?
        Thanks, Sandi Gabriel, RNC, IBCLC, Newport R.I.