Kris and Maryam:  First, it is good to hear that you are finally reading
Lactnet.  Second,  AS PROFESSIONALS YOURSELVES, YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER
regarding the serious risks that deviations from breastfeeding causes (not
associations, but causative factors).   A quote from the International
Lactation Consultants Association (to which neither of you belong according
to the membership roster) describes this best "The most hazardous outcome of
the aggressive marketing of formula as equivalent to breastmilk, is that
parents and health professionals will believe it."  ILCA THE HAZARDS OF
INFANT FORMULA (708)260-8874.

THIRD, I am sorry that my words have personally offended your professional
sensibilities, but I never stated that I thought WIC personnel were the
equivalent of drug pushers (and it was a health dept employee who made the
pimp comment).  My statement was regarding formula reps (period) who push
formula on hospitals, WIC administrators and entire communities.  Please see
the list below, but the facts are that: FORMULA KILLS BABIES (Yes, it IS
true and I will happily carry a stack of articles over to your offices to
show the overwhelming epidemiologic evidence that the risk of death,
hospitalization, acute and life-long morbidity is significantly raised by
the act of formula feeding, as well as by bottles).  This is not a fanatical
opinion--these articles are peer reviewed from the J. of Pediatrics, Social
Science and Medicine, Annals of Allergy, J. of Nutrition, Pediatric Res,
NEJM, etc.   I believe it is YOU who must prove that the formula given so
freely by WIC is without harm.  The interruption of breastfeeding through
the intentional undermining of mother-baby natural processes is directly
responsible for women leaving the hospital with unsuccessful breastfeeding
experiences.  This leaves these mothers with no other alternative than to
run to the formula deity for salvation.  Yes, formula is better than
starvation--no doubt--but there is a dramatic cost in dollars, lives,
emotional bonding, IQ, morbidity, work-loss days, etc.  These ARE a direct
result of both intentional and latent undermining of breastfeeding efforts
by formula companies.

If you doubt this, I refer you to Gabrielle Palmer's THE POLITICS OF
BREASTFEEDING, Dr. Katherine Detwyller's BIOCULTURAL ASPECTS OF
BREASTFEEDING, or Baumslag's MILK, MONEY AND MADNESS.  If you further doubt
how formula negatively impacts babys' health worldwide, you absolutely need
to read the ILCA SUMMARY OF THE HAZARDS OF INFANT FORMULA.  Even in the US
where clean water abounds, mothers are well-nourished and medical care is
somewhat available, for every 1000 babies born 4 die because they were not
breastfeed (that's half of our infant mortality folks)  see Pediatr Res 25:
105A. 1989  or how about "One sudden infant death for every 1000 live births
occurs as a result of failure to breastfeed in western industrialized
nations see Damus, K. Pakter, J. Krongard, E., et al.  "Postnatal medical
and epidemiological risk factors for the sudden infant death syndrome.  in
Harper RM.  hoffman HJ SUDDEN INFANT DEATH SYNDROME. NY: PMA. !988PP
187-201.

FOURTH, while I can appreciate the comments regarding La Leche League, I
also have been an independent IBCLC for many years and not affiliated with
LLLI for 2.5 years.  I have also worked in public health since 1981
(including  years before I earned an MPH and PhD in two separate
sub-specialties of public health from UCLA while continuing to work more
than full-time in the field including in multiple WIC clinics).  My
education and dual certifications have been donated for many years and now I
do see patients on a sliding scale.  I worked very hard for 6 years as a
VOLUNTEER (20 hours/week or more) to bring couples and working mothers
meetings to this area.   I served as the Area Professional Liaison for
Oregon and the LLLI Research Review Comm Coord.   I have served on our local
Public Health Advisory Board since 1992 and was actively involved in
bringing the Healthy Start program to Benton County as a steering committee
member.  I braved the harsh words of some within LLLI and have always stated
that "SOME BREASTMLIK IS BETTER THAN NONE, AND ONE DAY OF BREASTFEEDING IS
BETTER THAN NONE."

Since I see most of your clients for free (as in zero instead of $60/hr), I
don't feel like you have a well-rounded perspective outside the walls of the
health dept.  I think that one of the main reasons you have interpreted the
post in such a negative light is that you, deep down inside, feel guilty
about not being more supportive of breastfeeding, especially given the
firing of the only IBCLC at the local health dept.  Instead of being so
defensive, how about doing something to change the practices and make sure
that every single mom you work with has open access (not just one or two
home health visits) to a 24 hour lactation consultant who is paid for her
services.  In adddition, or even in place of, how about enthusiastically
supporting the non-profit support networks that are plentiful instead of
making snide comments about them during meetings and office visits with
patients.

I'd like to have us get past this, but until you are willing to truly read
the documentation in this field, I doubt much progress can be made.  If you
have documentation that you would like to share, I am more than willing to
read it as long as it was published in equally prestigious peer-reviewed
journals.

Sincerely,
Chris Hafner-Eaton, PhD, MPH, CHES, IBCLC    [log in to unmask]
mom, wife, educator, lactation consultant, researcher, scientist, author,
organic gardener, photographer, lapidary creator, lousy cleaner.

The above is a rebutal to the following emails:
----------
>From: RUNYON Kristi A <[log in to unmask]>
>To: "'Chris Hafner-Eaton'" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: RE: formula for free to poor
>Date: Mon, May 1, 2000, 3:08 PM
>

> I feel very bad about this--that I am being compared to a drug pusher or
> pimp.  I certainly can't say that I am pro-formula.  I can say that I feel
> disheartened every time I see a baby who has changed to formula esp. when
> the last time we saw them they were nursing fine.  This is such a
> complicated issue--do you give away your services for free?  I guess my
> problem is that I was a formula fed baby (like most born in my generation
> and I must add how supportive my mother was of my daughter nursing for 2
> years) and my brain didn't develop properly so I became a drug pusher.  This
> just goes a little too far for me Chris and I am offended.  Working within
> the system is not easy, but can affect change and we are here every day
> trying to help make that change possible too.  I must add that I have had
> certain people tell me that they quit breastfeeding because it was being
> "pushed" on them--granted these are only a few, but I have people who are
> turned off after attending a La Leche league meeting, because the approach
> is foreign to them.
>
> Sorry you feel this way about us,
> Kris Runyon
>
>
 Well  Chris ,I can't belive as a professional you can say such
thing. It is easier to sit and judge people when you don't deal with it.
Since when you compare us with drug pusher .What happen to respect for other
people descion`and choices even when you don't agree or like. I come from a
backround that we breastfeed for 2 years and as of 3years ago was one of
highest in the world (Iran),and that was according to U.S.A report.Even
there we don't have people with such view and they say we are controling and
narrow minded.This was very offending to every proffestional person.
Maryam Hourmanesh-Jones
 JONES Maryam H <[log in to unmask]>

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