Thank you Pamela for your thoughts. I certainly see your point that it is the pacifying that is protective and to some, that is by artificial means whereas to all of us, that is part and parcel of the breastfeeding relationship. As a middled aged kiwi (New Zealander) I well remember the days when the SIDS rates were high and I know our country looks back on that time with horror as we thought we had a good health system. Now our SIDS rates appear to be affected by an unequal health status, but that is another topic. The SIDS rates were always highest in winter and in colder regions. We are bred quite tough out here and do not heat our homes much. As well as that home insulation is a relatively new concept. Many a young baby was raised in a cold draughty house, and yes, often put out into the kitchen/laundry area so you could not hear the crying.A lot of rural women worked hard on the farm and had to get up early for milking. It was often bitterly cold with a fire only being lit at night. Putting on an electric heater was seen as very wasteful and heating the house at night because their was a new baby in the house was unheard of! I remember waking up some days to frost on the inside of the window panes! Breastfeeding was relatively common, but only for a few months. Most mothers spent 2 weeks in hospital where their babies were in a nursery. I guess they saw crying babies as normal. In fact, many believed it exercised the lungs! Then along came the next generation who wanted something better for their babies. Rooming in evolved with shorter maternity stays. Breastfeeding improved in the eighties and modern parenting was born. Out came the sheepskins and the comfort of tummy sleeping. What a disaster that turned out to be. It seems to further we get from our biology, the bigger mess we make! Karen Palmer Midwife and LC New Zealand *********************************************** 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(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html