Dear Lactnuts,

We were having a relaxing Sunday breaskfast, listening to the local public
radio station.  A program came on, Dr. Zorba Paster, a family practice
physician with usually reasonable things to say (IMNSHO).  He had a caller
as about fertility and breastfeeding.  She is 39 yo, breastfeeding her
18mo.  She said she'd like to continue breastfeeding to at least 2 years
old or whenever (Yeah!).  However, she and her partner/husband are trying
to concieve another child.  Her doctor told her to wean and she wanted to
hear Dr. Paster's opinion.  He talked about decreased fertility with age
and increased incidence of Down Syndrome, and then suggested she wean.  No
questions about how often and when the child breastfeeds, no suggestions
for decreasing the number of breastfeeding sessions or even how to go about
weaning an  18mo.

Below is his e-mail address and the letter I sent him.  I think his reply
was probably due to ignorance and the need to cut things short on his show.
I just hope the woman got a third opinion.  I know you all understand how I
feel.  thanks for listening.


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Dear Dr. Paster,

First, I would like to tell you how much I enjoyt your show.  I listen to
it Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. on WUKY in Lexington, KY.

I would like to take issue with one segment I heard today (11/30/97).
There was a woman calling from Utah wanting to know if she should wean her
18 month old to assist in concieving another child.  What I think was
erroneous was the way you automatically told her to wean after finding out
how old she was.  The other two questions that I think would have also been
quite pertinent would have been to ask how many times during the day the
child breastfed and how many times during the night.  You also might have
asked when her menses returned.

She and her partner had only been trying to concieve for the past 4 months.
On average, when breastfeeding on demand, menses does not start again for
about a year.  Other factors that might indicate cutting out breastfeeding
sessions, and not totally weaning, would be how often the toddler is
breastfeeding at night.  Breastfeeding many times during the night has been
indicated in decreased fertility (the basis for the LAM Method of Birth
Control, usually effective during the first 6 months post-partum if
"ecologically" breastfeeding around the clock).

I think that you did not give the caller enough choices and did not ask
enough questions of her to ascertain a more gentle approach.  It is also
important to give her suggestions on how to wean, gently and not abbruptly.
You might have referred her to a local Lactation Consultant or La Leche
League Leader for more detailed information than you are able to give on
the air.

Thanks for reading my suggestions,


Alicia, LLLL in the Bluegrass (Lexington, KY)
aka Post Poster and AS for Kentucky
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