The person who knows the most about what is in the medical literature about 
induced lactation is Karleen!  All in all, though, there isn't a great deal 
in the medical literature that is all that helpful for individual moms 
trying to establish a breastfeeding relationship and milk supply for an 
adopted baby. Besides that, approaching it as a medical occurence, IMO, 
results in a lower success rate, overall.  My goal, in breastfeeding my own 
adopted children, and with counseling others, is to see as many adopted 
babies as possible being nurtured at the breast, recieving some amount of 
breast milk, for as long as they want and need to keep nursing. Although it 
may seem that looking for scientific information would be the best course to 
take, IME, that approach tends to be more of a stumbling block than an 
advantage.  The more medical approaches may result in a few mothers being 
able to claim larger milk supplies, but the overall percentage who succeed, 
according to the above definition, tends to be much lower.

The medical approaches put the focus on milk.  Those who concentrate on 
producing milk, rather than feeding and nurturing at the breast, are more 
likely to throw in the towel, when their milk supplies don't meet their 
expectations.  Of those who do keep going, there is a large percentage who 
end up pumping and feeding with bottles.  Besides the fact that the baby 
doesn't get any nurturing while his adoptive mother is pumping, very few 
moms will keep pumping for a very long time.   I have known of a couple who 
lasted a year, but most only hang in there for a few months.  I think it is 
important to ask which baby is getting the most benefits, one who gets lots 
of breast milk from a bottle for a matter of months, or one who enjoys a 
normal breastfeeding relationship and continues to get a significant amount 
of  breastmilk for two years, or however long he feels the need? I sure see 
alot of evidence with my own kids, as to the answer to that, especially with 
my nearly 16 year old, with whom things have been challenging, to put it 
mildly!  I'm not sure we would have made it without the rock solid bond that 
Thomas and I have as mother and son.  Nearly everyone who has worked with 
him, and even many of the other kids he has gotten to know, who have been 
through similar problems, has commented on the bond we have.  I am convinced 
that the fact that he was able to keep nursing, from the time I got him, at 
15 days old, until he chose to pass "Mommy's nursies" on to his baby 
brother, Joseph, when he was four and half years old, was extremely 
beneficial.  Had I focused too much on how much milk I was producing, rather 
than the nursing relationship, I am not so sure we would have made it beyond 
the first few months.

That is not to discourage efforts to maximize milk production, just to keep 
it in perspective.  Keeping the baby at the breast is actually the surest 
way to keep milk flowing too.  Some ladies respond to medications and pumps, 
by producing milk, and some don't.  Responses to a baby at the breast are 
alot more consistant.

Anyway, I hope that this couple and their baby will be able to enjoy the 
multiple benefits of breastfeeding for an extended time!  A good resource is 
www.fourfriends.com/abrw

Aloha,
Darillyn

""Wonderful couple planning to adopt an infant are looking for 
evidence-based
guide to induced lactation.  Does anyone have any resources to share?
Thanks!""

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