I thought it was interesting that in the last Lactnet digest we had discussion about breastfeeding being normal (rather than natural) and how it ISN'T normal in our culture...but we are hoping that someday it will be. And within a couple of posts was another about the "MilkScreen" test so that we can know for sure that there is no alcohol in the breastmilk before we nurse the baby.... Breastfeeding will never be a normal part of our lives if we can't live normal lives while we are nursing our babies. As long as we have people that are so concerned about a nursing mom having a glass of wine (or in Wheaton, the margarita) that she has to screen for it (and presumably alcohol from cough medicine will show up as well), then breastfeeding will never be normal. As long as mothers are worried about eating spicy foods, garlic, broccoli, cabbage, etc -- breastfeeding will never be normal. As long as mothers have to have gadgets and gizmos in order to breastfeed, breastfeeding will never be normal. As long as we are more concerned about how long and how often a baby eats, breastfeeding will never be normal. As long as we are looking at growth charts instead of babies, breastfeeding will never be normal. Pardon me while I take you on a little journey that is a "blast from the past." When I first started working in L&D, we used to stop labor by using IV alcohol. You could tell who was in preterm labor as soon as you walked on the unit. If the mother thought she was in labor, but wasn't sure, the tried and true test was a warm bath and a glass of wine. If she was in real labor, a glass of wine wouldn't stop it. If she wasn't, usually she'd get nice and clean and have a good sleep. Fast forward a few hundred years -- OK, a few decades. Moms not only can't have that glass of wine, they can't drink coffee, eat sushi, shrimp, soft cheese, tuna, or a whole host of other things. Pregnancy is no longer normal -- even if it progresses somewhat "normally" -- it isn't normal. We no longer even rely on good old Nagel's rule for telling when a baby is due. It has to be done by ultrasound. We have technologized everything from the moment the mother becomes pregnant -- 'scuse me, before that, as we are getting tests to see when ovulation occurs instead of just enjoying sex. I just had a lovely couple in my office -- mom has really sore nipples -- first baby -- she's 41, conceived through in-vitro because, as she pointed out, she is "old.". Her husband is from Bangladesh, and he was absolutely wonderful. He was knowledgeable, helpful, totally in love with his wife and his little boy. I finally asked him when he came to the US, and he said when he was 18 -- so he knew a lot about breastfeeding -- much more than the average American. "Of course everyone breastfeeds there -- it's "NORMAL" -- and they breastfeed until the baby is at least 2." I don't know that breastfeeding will ever be normal in the US. I've been working as a lactation consultant for 22 years, and it is LESS normal than it was 22 years ago, despite the fact that more women are breastfeeding. There is more - but I'll save it for another day, another post, another rant. Jan Barger, RN, MA, IBCLC _Lactation Education Consultants_ (http://www.lactationeducationconsultants.com/) _My blog_ (http://www.motherofbridebyjan.blogspot.com/) ************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com. *********************************************** Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html Mail all commands to [log in to unmask] To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or [log in to unmask]) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet or ([log in to unmask]) To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]