Barbara, you said: Just because this takes time and effort to coordinate doesn't make it impossible, and it ought to be the standard of care. Weights are not the only information one needs, but with poorly feeding infants, they give a piece of the puzzle that can be useful for planning and monitoring. I agree that this sort of thoughtful use of scales would be of great benefit. It also seems to me that this is the ethical use of scales. In our situation in the UK we have a whole lot of sloppy, causal (not done for any defined purpose and then not interpreted usefully), and UNETHICAL use of the weighing scale in routine practice. I think its going to be a huge task to try and sort this out, while preserving the useful and ethical practices you describe. (and I have no idea who might even try to do this -- we don't have a profession poised to take this on, and the profession that does the most weighing [heath visitoring] has a vested interest in continuing current practice). I have been *nauseated* at the routine practices in the UK during my research. But the practices and sloppy thinking are quite entrenched -- for parents and professionals. Its hard to feel optimistic about changing this culture. Magda Sachs Breastfeeding Supporter, BfN, UK --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.478 / Virus Database: 275 - Release Date: 06/05/2003 *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html