My mother, and also my former sister-in-law, were both very fat babies, who
were totally breastfed for their first year.  At the time my mom was born
(1929) breastfeeding was still the norm, in the rural area she was from, and
her mother was often congratulated for doing such a great job nursing her
baby.  In fact, my grandfather was still bragging about what a great job she
had done nursing my mother (her only child) 50 years later!

It was totally different for my mother-in-law, exclusively nursing her
daughter, born in 1958.  Had this baby not been totally unwilling to take a
bottle or any other form of food or liquid, she would not have been totally
breastfed very long, because of the harassment of relatives and medical
professionals.  She was an extremely big, fat baby, over 20 pounds at three
months, and over 30 pounds before she took any other food but breast milk.
Her mother was warned that she would be anemic and would have weight
problems throughout life.  However, while several of her siblings, who were
not breastfed very long, have grown up with weight problem, she has been
slim all her life, even after having five babies.

Certainly a big part of the problem, in virtually any situation where
breastfeeding mothers are told that there is something wrong with their
breastfed babies, is that we have gone so many generations without being
able to see what "normal" is.  Had breastfeeding remained the norm
throughout the 20th century, we would definitely not have the need of such
an active e-mail list as Lactnet!

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