Numerous people have posted about mothers in their areas who are hung up on 
the idea that there are two distinct milks and who negate the value of 
lactose in milk.  It looks to me as if it is time to go back to Lactose 101 
(if there were such a course!).  It is time to look at what the lactose in 
human milk actually does - and it is a much more important role than the fad 
described in numerous posts suggests.  I, too, have had mothers talk of "the 
good milk" vs the other kind - but not recently.
It would be timely to look back through the textbooks to remind ourselves of 
the importance of lactose to the human infant (other than the exceptions 
with primary or induced intolerance).  I worry about the long-term effects 
for babies reared on lactose-free artificial baby milks, babies who have 
received these products largely because of advertising and popular 
perception.  (I am not talking about babies with a special need.)  Should we 
term these products "lactose-deficient", rather than "lactose-free"?  Food 
for thought?
Perceptions get skewed and the baby's individual needs are not met, when 
numbers start coming into the natural process, with full-term, healthy 
babies - whether the numbers are the number of minutes, the percentage of 
cream, the most bags of pumped milk women can store in their freezers.
While I was writing this, a mother rang me about fluid balance, and told me 
she was weighing her baby's nappies (diapers) in the night to check output. 
A bit of reassurance was needed.
Virginia
in Brisbane, Queensland, where summer has arrived in August - very early.

             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome