Dear all:

I hate to differ with Diane Wiessinger on this one, but we are not dealing with one very 
simple food that a mother may need help with.  I would argue that this what happened to 
breastfeeding is more akin to what happened to basic knowledge about traditional foods 
and nutrition in Cambodia when the familial structures was almost completely destroyed 
during the Pol Pot regime.   Prior to that huge societal shift, there was a lot of 
accumulated wisdom regarding traditional foods and recipes.  There may have been 
malnutrition, but not on the scale that ensued during the Pol Pot years.  Much of the 
knowledge of how to prepare, cultivate and/or collect healthy vegetables and herbs was 
either lost or dispersed amongst a few individuals.  This loss has enormous ramifications 
for nutrition programs.  Much of what was known now has to be recreated. Not just one 
recipe --- but many recipes.  Not just one food, but an entire menu of foods that make 
for a healthy cuisine for an entire culture.

We have to recreate from scratch an entire structure that used to exist.  La Leche League 
was reserve and pockets of those who managed to retain some of that knowledge during 
the dark "Pol Pot" years under fire from hostile forces.  Then in Cambodia, there came 
the emergency refugee nongovernmental organizations.  All well meaning, some of these 
are experienced professionals who are effective, some are adrenaline junkees trying to 
save the world, some think that just because they are trying to do good work that it is 
good regardless of the outcome ---- etc.  These groups help mitigate starvation --- the 
worst of the worst of the nutritional effects.  I'd say there are similarities here with our 
present situation of trying to fix the various outcomes of birthing, hospital policies that 
are not yet in line with normal infant feeding, and a societal structure that has forgotten 
what normal infant feeding is all about ---- and this is why we are NOT yet anywhere 
near a situation in which we can expect one mother to simply show another mother how 
to make the peanut butter sandwich.  Or to put it another way --- we may be just barely 
getting to the point where most of the population isn't dying immediately from 
malnutrition, but we are a very long way from healthy eating.

Our next task is moving beyond fixing the immediate problem and working on developing 
a solid knowledge in the whole society.  I liken this to moving on to programs that 
facilitate local organizations to work on LONG TERM solutions to malnutrition and that 
ALWAYS requires a multisectoral or holistic approach and lots of cooperation between 
organizations to get there.  It cannot be achieved without local community participation 
from the very start in building the structure that will remain and thrive long after the so-
called "experts" leave.

Best, Susan Burger.

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

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