Hi All--
Jack wrote that he's frustrated with cup feeding being suggested rather than
finger feeding, and Laurie writes she has difficulty with cup feeding.

Jack: I prefer cup feeding in the early days because it's relatively easy
for the mother to express a bit of colostrum into the medicine cup and it
looks like a lot. It's also fairly easy to get the baby to take sips
(although sometimes the colostrum needs to be diluted with a bit of water so
it runs). I don't like putting my finger, or having the mother or father put
their finger, into the baby's mouth in the early days, if I can help it. I
DO try to tailor suggestions to each mother and baby, however, since some
babies don't like the cup and really fight it. Some parents can't cope with
the hassle and mess. So, that's when I look at other methods, like finger
feeding. I suspect in developing countries, there is a big concern about
hygiene and finger feeding, which is perhaps why cups rather than fingers
are being recommended. I also think that the age of the baby needs to be
taken into account when deciding on supplementation method.

The article I mentioned in my original posting is: "Implementing the
WHO/UNICEF
Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative," Beverley Chalmers, University of
Toronto, J Soc Obstet Gynaecol Canada 1998; 20:271-279 (March 1998).

On p. 278 under Implementing Step 9, Give No Artificial Teats or Pacifiers
to
Breastfeeding Infants, Chalmers writes: "Cup feeding is to be encouraged in
preference to finger feeding. The principle of not teaching a sucking method
which appears to simulate bottle feeding is to be followed. Finger feeding
encourages a closed mouth pickering of the lips as well as a sucking action
to extract the milk from the tube. Cup feeding, during which the baby is
encouraged to lap the milk from the surface of the cup held against the
bottom lip while the baby is seated in an almost upright position, assists
the baby to use its tongue in a lapping motion more similar to breast
suckling than finger sucking."

Laurie--I think using a cup just takes practice and patience. And, as I
mentioned above, some babies are very resistant so something else needs to
be tried. I like the little medicine cups--they're cheap, available, can be
squeezed a bit to make a bit of a spout, and a tiny bit of colostrum looks
like a lot.

Leslie Ayre-Jaschke, BEd, IBCLC
Peace River, Alberta, Canada