Hi again, Janet Simpson and everyone! Just couldn't resist a comment on your scenario of the older breastfed child and the crack at the base of the nipple on one side only. We see many older breastfeeding children who change their previous behaviour at the breast because of cutting teeth, distractibility, mouth irritation from thrush or food allergy etc - and can sometimes demonstrate an amazing repertoir of feeding positions, many of which reduce the amount of breast in the child's mouth to something pathological. (And makes us cringe to watch!) It is very interesting that the vast majority of the mothers actually don't have nipple damage as a result of this (well, not enough to complain about, anyway). But there are certainly some who are suffering with problems such as the situation you describe. We find that cracks at the base of the nipple are an indication that the baby is not taking enough breast into the mouth out from the nipple in that spot, and when the mother encourages the baby to accept more breast in his mouth out from that spot, she can immediately notice a drop in the pain levels because there is less "pulling" on the crack. We also find that when there are cracks at the base of the nipple, pumping is more painful than improving the attachment and continuing to breastfeed, because pumping involves a lot more simple suction and pulling on the breast than does a well attached feeding baby. Itis also fairly typical that a problem develops on one side only, even when you can see that the little darling is doing the same appalling things at both breasts - local nipple and breast anatomy is different and the way we hold and attach babies is also a bit different with each side, which seems to be why one side often does not seem to be affected. There is also the difference in flow rates and baby's preference for one breast over the other which may affect why one side suffers damage and the other doesn't. Anne Bovey and Robyn Noble, Brisbane, Australia