>>A midwife in my area suggest using 8oz. of water with 1 teaspoon of baking soda in it applied to mom and baby after every feeding. I have not looked into the safety of using this solution on the baby as of yet. If anyone is familiar with this treatment or can respond about the safety of it, please respond. According to the midwife it is safe and moms say it offers relief fast (after first few uses).<< Melissa, this advice appeared in earlier editions of the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding by La Leche League, only the baking soda solution was for baby's mouth; mom was recommended to use a solution of 1 tablespoon of vinegar to 8 oz of water on her nipples. Both solutions were to be thrown out and made new each day, and they worked for many mothers. As far as I know, the vinegar solution can still be used without question; the reason the baking soda solution was withdrawn was because of the *possibility* of causing an electrolyte imbalance in the baby from ingestion of salts in the baking soda. I have never heard of a case of this occurring, so it is most likely a case of prevention. One other concern about these old-fashioned remedies was the possibility of contamination of the solutions; again, I have never heard of such a problem, only the possibility. -Lisa Marasco, LLLL, IBCLC [log in to unmask]@slonet.org