Dear Lactnetters,
The baby Nina talks about whose mother decided to use a new type of nipple,
would still meet "my" definition of exclusively breastfed, as long as
there was only mama's milk in said bottle. Yes, the baby is no longer fed
exclusively "at the breast," but I think getting breastmilk only in a bottle
would keep him in the "exclusively breastfed" category that researchers should
be looking at when one is trying to study or evaluate the health of
babies, in relationship to their diet. The Joint Commission Perinatal Core
Measure for Exclusive Breastfeeding indicates that those babies who receive
mama's milk via alternate feeding methods are still counted as exclusive
breastfeeders.
I really don't think that it is really bad or detrimental to the
breastfeeding relationship when a mother is willing to express her milk, put it in a
bottle of any kind, and let someone else feed the baby, if this her wish.
It is a fact of modern life that many, many women want to do this, and many
have to do it when they do not have a standard paid maternity leave in the
US and they must them to return to work earlier than they would like. I
think mothers should be supported. Of course giving mothers evidence-based
education to make their decisions is always the correct and ethical thing for
IBCLC's to do. But I am saddened when a mother feels breastfeeding must be
an "all or nothing" situation. I routinely tell mothers that one does not
have to be a martyr to nurse a baby. They can have a life too! So many
mothers have so much misinformation about the do's and don'ts of breastfeeding,
that some won't even consider it because they feel they can't "have a life
and nurse." Giving this "anticipatory guidance" type of information to
mothers when I interact with them in the hospital, I believe, is the right
thing to do. Most have already asked me when is a good time to begin to
pump/express, before I even can provide this guidance to them!
As far as the marketing of this new teat goes, we all know that this
company is a Code violator. Why would we expect anything different?
Mary-Jane Sackett, RN, IBCLC, RLC
Pittsfield, MA
(in the beautiful Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts)
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