It is my strongly held oopinion, supported by (most of) the medical
literature, that bilirubin levels under 20-25 do not pose a threat to healthy
full term babies. Draw no more blood in a baby who is looking good,
urinating and bringing mom's milk in steadily.
We have to continue to help mothers understand the difference between breast
milk jaundice--which is extremely rare -- and breastfeeding technique
jaundice which is common and benign. I know there are opinions to the
contrary.
Getting this mom to relax and improving latch will help much more than having
her wake up every 1-2 hours. I do encourage very frequent switching (q 5
minutes) from one breast to the other aver and over until the baby is done to
increase milk flow and decrease . . . Worry.
Does anyone have Oski's wonderful old "Vigintiphobia" article?
Jay Gordon
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