Hi fellow LACTNETTERS,
I had to respond to the Good Morning America comment. I wanted to share
what I had to say. It may be a bit long, but I felt I needed to share.
Dear Sirs and Mesdames,
Let me introduce myself. My name is Veronica Tingzon, and I am a
Lactation Consultant and Lactation Educator in the San Diego area of
California. I was reading about one of your shows last week that had
incorporated a segment on readiness for emergency situations. I was
baffled at what the lady said...she stated that a mom's milk dries up in
times of stress. Totally untrue!
As a lactation professional, and as someone who lived through one of the
many landlsides in California this past winter, I knew that breastfeeding
my baby was one of the only things that was going to get me through this
situation. You see, the mere fact that I breastfed during these times of
stress forced me to have to calm down when feeding my child. It was a
therapeutic thing for me. It also made me confident that if I had to
evacuate quickly (which I almost ended up having to do at one point, but
thankfully, I didn't lose my home) I would have all I needed to feed my
child in a quick get away. I, in a quick escape, would not have to be
bogged down with bottles, formula, etc....
The one thing stress can do, however, is inhibit a mother's let-down or
milk ejection reflex when pumping. (Pumping uses a completely different
physiology than does breastfeeding.) But, tell me honestly, who wants to
pump in a Red Cross tent city when just plain old breastfeeding the baby
is so much more discreet and pleasant? Not to mention, it is the more
sanitary thing to do since washing pump parts or mixing formula in an area
where there is no clean or potable water can be potentially lethal to a
baby.
It makes me so sad that we still, after knowing all we do about the
benefits of breastfeeding, in the media, portray nursing as some kind of
disgusting or wrong thing to do. We take for granted that our bodies were
designed a certain way and we were designed to survive. This is one of the
survival features God gave us. I wish the media would get a little more
educated so that the gross general public could be well informed as they
look to you as a knowledgeable source of reference. Also, the American
Academy of Pediatrics, The World Health Org., and UNICEF agree that
breastfeeding is the best way to keep a baby healthily fed during times of
disaster...it worked in Kosovo during the "war" and in Indonesia's
Tsunami.
My last point, you know how inflamed the breastfeeding community became
at Barbara Walter's "little comment" on breastfeeding, why would ABC allow
someone to make unsubstantiated remarks about breastfeeding again. It's
irresponsible, in my opinion. I would love to go on air and tell everyone
how great breastfeeding is and why every mom should do it in this
circumstance, having personal experience and the educational knowledge to
make my claim. Actually, I would love to share why every mom should
breastfeed, period!
Please hear the brestfeeding community's pleas. Please try to do right
by our nation's babies and stop your people and guests from making
irresponsible remark about breastfeeding. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Veronica B. Tingzon
CLC, CLEC
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