I was glad Chris Mulford chimed in on the conversation about the value of
mother's milk, and esp. glad she mentioned her wonderful book, The Milk of
Human Kindness.  It is one of the most interesting books about bfg there is,
because it looks at the whole issue of the valuation of women's role in
producing the "crop" that sustains the next generation.  I heard the
feminist economist Marilyn Waring give a talk in Melbourne about how once
they valued out the contribution of mothers milk (in terms of Gross National
Product -- as we would call it in the US) it won women a seat at the table,
as it were, to discuss ways to enlist government protection for bfg.
It costs something to produce milk and to care for children even if it isn't
priced out, and it certainly costs to replace mothers' milk with
substitutes.  These have economic, health, and environmental costs.  Reading
Chris's book is a real education in these matters.

Barbara Wilson-Clay, BS, IBCLC
Austin Lactation Associates
LactNews Press
www.lactnews.com

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