Kirkwood, Angela <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> What I rarely see, is the criticism focused on those that are so extreme
> with breastfeeding and breast milk promotion that they fail to recognize
> that a situation may need medical attention or continuing a plan of only
> receiving milk at the breast or breast milk only.  What about the babies
> that are admitted to the hospitals with failure to thrive due to
> breastfeeding mismanagement, dehydration due to breastfeeding
> mismanagement, seizures due to dehydration and hyperbilirubinemia
> related to poor breastfeeding, refusal to take textured foods and
> resulting oral aversion related to prolonging introduction of spoon
> feedings well into toddlerhood, aspiration pneumonia due to inability to
> maintain a safe airway when taking thin liquids at the breast.  There
> are many situations that do require medical management and where solely
> feeding at breast or breast milk only may not be in the best interest of
> the baby.  At times to the detriment of the infant's health because of
> refusing or prolonging the initiation of working with medical
> management.  I work with these situations all too frequently.  But I
> make the choice not to reference as a generalized statement and put down
> those in the lactation community against any feeding or supplementing
> other than baby being at breast or breast milk.

I think I must be an extremist! I don't see a single one of those
situations as an absolute indication for cows milk formula (which is
what the NICU thread is about). Some may need donor human milk, some
thickened mother's milk (if there is no other way of overcoming the
problem), or solid food, plus other therapies.

I do see a lot of them as indications that the mother is in need of
competent, supportive lactation services, such as those provided by the
members of this group.

Lara Hopkins

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