That old cherry about war stressed mothers finding it hard to breastfeed
in Kosovo just keeps resurfacing, even from the local medical staff.

The hospital practices about birthing and infant feeding in the region are
way behind the times. They still routinely separate mothers from babies 
after birth, give dextrose and water (and worse) swaddle them tightly
they call them white loaves of bread - and have some very strange ideas
about milk quality and "stress".  And in the midst of an emergency the
crack down even further in a misguided effort to "protect" the babies.

Please take any professional opportunity to knock this myth  about war 
related stress affecting breastfeeding on the head. The biggest stress 
that a mother in war can have is to scrounge around for clean water,
formula, bottles and teats for her baby. I have watched this so many times =
it makes my heart break. The pattern goes like this:
1 Some well meaning doctor or nurse tells a woman her milk is of poor
quality
2 gives a free donation and bottle and then three weeks later there is a
gap in the supplies
3 then the mother will really know what "stress" is
Sometimes the well meaning doctor or nurse is a raw recruit to humanitarian aid doing his or her bit during the holidays - they are not around long enough to see the results.

There is a need for formula in emergencies, but it needs to be very
carefully controlled and delivered in a sustainable way. And the need 
would be much less if everyone enforced the existing guidelines and denounced the shock advertisements and appeals based on starving babies and formula.


Mary E Black
MB BCh BAO FAFPHM MFPHM MRCP(UK) MPH DTM&H DObst DCH

University of Queensland, Cairns, Australia

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