The recent description of how other mammals nurse is quite interesting.
In the young of those animals, perseverence to the teat means survival.

Annelies Bon's description of how ideally a newborn crawls to the
breast to latch is awe-inspiring.  Tell me if today's pediatricians
or OBGYN's have even learned of such a drive in medical school.

Most mothers today do not realize they have an infant with a "drive to
survive" and without drug intervention at birth it would be to root
toward food.  My husband and I surely didn't or we would have wished
to experience this event as part of the birth.  It wasn't in anything
we had ever read prior to birthing.

Most think it's quite cute (some are revolted, actually) when a
normal baby roots in dad's or the grandparent's arms, but no one
really says that without this inborn mechanism, the newborn would be
at risk.  Once born, when babies are held and not carried
artificially, as in plastic seats, this first (rooting) communication
with the mother keeps getting reinforced.

I've told countless of mothers I've sold nursing bras to that without
this act of breastfeeding (and I refer to it as an *art,* a la
La Leche League), humankind would not have survived (and arrived) into
our century.  Do they realize how important this act must be to have
been perpetuated?  It is really Act II in giving life; after Act I,
giving birth.

We need to "let the baby do what it's meant to do."  I think it is
time to really publicize this innate *drive.*
Judy Ritchie

PS:  Thank you Annelies:  25 years ago we didn't know how my second
daughter who slept alone with me in a king size bed at the other side
would end up next to my breast each and every am.   She was put to bed
specifically on her one side each night to straighten the curve that
developed in her back in utero due to my being so shortwaisted.

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