Date: Tue, 14 Oct 1997 20:35:24 -0700 From: "Catherine Watson Genna, IBCLC" <[log in to unmask]> The best study I know of that documents a physiological basis for nipple confusion is Blass, EM: "Behavioral and physiological consequences of suckling in rat and human newborns." Acta Paediatr Suppl 397:71(6), 1994, p71-76. This study takes advantage of the fact that infant rats have a behavioral response to nursing, which can be suppressed by blocking a certain class of opiod receptor in the brain. The scientists opened the mother's uterus 12 hours before the pups were due to be born, and offered them either milk, water, or human abm, through either an eyedropper or a rubber nipple. They exhibited the behavioral response only when receiving milk (bovine light cream, I beleive, which the researchers say is close in composition to rat milk). BUT, when they were given the milk through the rubber nipple, they subsequently showed that behavioral response when given the rubber nipple alone. This means that they generalized the neurochemical response to milk plus rubber nipple to rubber nipple alone after ONE exposure to the coupled stimulus. The authors suggest that more caution should be used in exposing human infants, particularly vulnerable preterm infants, to the abm plus artificial nipple combination. I encourage everyone to read this important study. I find it interesting that the research was done in the US (in NY no less) and published in the Scandinavian peds journal! -- Catherine Watson Genna, IBCLC NYC mailto:[log in to unmask] >>