>Six weeks is the standard UK NHS advice on introducing bottles.
>
>"*Combining breastfeeding with bottle feeding*
>
>Some women find that combining breastfeeding with bottle feeding is 
>a convenient option for them. However, if you decide to breastfeed 
>your baby, you should avoid introducing bottle feeding during the 
>first six weeks of life, as it can confuse your baby, cause feeding 
>problems, and can interfere with the establishment of breastfeeding."
>
>http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/articles/article.aspx?articleId=641&sectionId=24
>
>And it's what I was taught by my midwife and my HV.


Do you not think it's too dogmatic, though, Morgan? As a general 
piece of advice, it has an element of sense, but it's this 'six week' 
thing that gets me! Living life, and care of babies, by the calendar 
(or the clock) is rarely helpful.

>Also, what happened to trusting mothers?  I'm confused as to how we 
>can recognise that medical professionals who have had some 
>breastfeeding training, know nothing real or useful about 
>breastfeeding...  but now a mother who has breastfed a toddler, 
>isn't in a position to write a book about it, even when she's 
>checking out the factual info rigorously?
>
>I'd rather read a book by a mother who has actually breastfed, any day.


Hmmmm....actually having breastfed is invaluable, but too often, we 
see stuff written about breastfeeding in  newspapers, magazines and 
in books where having breastfed is the only 'qualification' of the 
author, and it's frankly not good enough, as we can see every day, 
practically. It's not a sound basis for giving advice and information 
to other people in a generalist way. That's not to say a writer 
cannot inform herself about anything, and become de facto 'qualified' 
- maybe this is what has happened with this author. I have no 
problems with that, and the rigorous checking is important, too.  But 
I don't trust a book just *because* the mother has breastfed herself, 
and I bet you don't either :)

I do a lot of checking of written material for publishers and for 
journalists on the topic of infant feeding as part of my job, and 
often, the writer has herself breastfed, not always happily or even 
for long, either, and that's another aspect. But even the ones who 
have had a lovely, long-standing bf relationship get stuff wrong.

OK, that where the rigorous checking comes in, and I'm happy enough 
with that as long as the right people do the checking ;)   I've had 
stuff I've written for a prof journal checked by their peer 
reviewers, and their comments revealed they did not know enough to be 
judging my work (long story.....!) ...they tried to correct my work 
and made it incorrect <seethe, rant, rage>.
>
>Also, Pat, I'm confused as to your point about bottle feeding prior 
>to the 3 months reducing milk supply?  I had assumed the bottle 
>feeding advice being given was about EBM?  If so, she's expressing 
>to fill the bottle, so supply would not be reduced?


But that's  not necessarily correct....a mother who expresses every 
evening, say, in order to extend the gap between night feeds, or even 
to go through  the night without bf, may well find she has created a 
decrease in supply (as well as other problems).  Like you, I'm not 
sure what the original text in the book meant, and it needs a lot of 
unpacking and a heck of a lot more detail, as you say....totally 
agree with that.

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc, tutor, UK

             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome