What has Lactnet done to me?  I never wrote letters like this before
subscribing.  In fact, I hardly ever wrote letters!

I sent this to the Johns Hopkins people:

To Whom It May Concern:

Your breastfeeding "information" pages contain so much erroneous information,
that I don't know where to begin.  Has ANYONE with any breastfeeding knowledge
at all EVER looked at these pages for you to make sure that the information is
factual?  Looking at them myself, I think the answer would be no.

Would you PLEASE, as a service to the public, pull all of your breastfeeding
pages, until such time as you can hire a Board Certified Lactation Consultant
to edit/rewrite them?

>>For cracked and painful nipples, break open a vitamin E capsule and rub a
drop or two of the liquid on your nipples and areola after nursing and let
your skin air-dry. The oil is soothing and can repair damaged skin. You can
also cap off your nursing by rubbing some breast milk on your nipples, because
milk from the end of a feeding is high in lubricants and contains an
antibiotic substance. And when you're not nursing, soothe gnawed nipples by
applying a skin moisturizer containing lanolin.<<

This passage alone, contains many factual errors.  Vitamin E oil is NOT
recommended for sore nipples, as the amount of vitamin E that the baby ingests
may be far more than is recommended or required by the infant.  The word "rub"
when applying anything to a sore nipple sounds painful.  The words "gently
apply" would be far more accurate, and sound less likely to hurt.  Using the
term "gnawed nipples" must have come from someone totally anti-breastfeeding.
This also sounds painful, and would be a breastfeeding turn-off for many
expectant mothers.  Finally, "skin moisturizers containing lanolin" are NOT
recommended for oral use by infants, either.  "Pure anhydrous lanolin
products" are recommended.  Skin moisturizers contain alcohol and other
products that should not be taken internally by infants.

Again, this is only one paragraph of your web pages.  They are all this
factually deficient and misleading.  Please have them all reviewed/rewritten
by someone who is qualified to do so.

Margie Forrest, RN, BSN, IBCLC
Instructor, Maternity Nursing, Palm Beach Community College, Lake Worth, FL
Lactation Consultant, Palms West Hospital, Loxahatchee, FL