<<ILCA issued a press release on April 28 regarding the importance of BF during outbreaks of swine flu>> Thanks for alerting us, Liz. I was disappointed with the release, though. I felt it would have addressed the situation even more effectively, and perhaps got more attention, if there had been a paragraph straight under the first one saying something like: "It is vital that newborn babies are protected by exclusive breastfeeding from birth. Parents are urged to insist on competent help with breastfeeding at hospitals and birthing centres, with minimal mother-baby separation, so that their babies are not put at risk from this disease." And then the rest of the release. Instead, "new mothers" (and not "new babies") receive a throwaway mention at the end, just above the contact details. Sure, breastfeeding for other mothers "should continue", and it was good to address any misinformed concerns about passing on medication and illness through breast milk. But here we have a wonderful opportunity for highlighting exclusivity and the importance of universal initiation of breastfeeding in times of crisis (if not at all times). Perhaps we wouldn't really want to imply that parents don't receive competent help at hospitals, so my paragraph should be rephrased more delicately....but this IS a good time to encourage mothers to provide another few days/weeks of breastfeeding for at least one batch of babies. Who knows, the mothers may even enjoy the experience after all. Hm, talk about making a silk purse from a sow's ear or something..... Best wishes Jacquie Nutt IBCLC South Africa *********************************************** 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