Pamela, Yes, in "our" world knowledge of the function of the breast is more important than a pump. I did not think that Peter Hartman was employed by Medela. I realize he is a researcher and as a researcher, he is fascinated with the way things work. You wrote that Medela will pay for the research and use it to "understand the lactating breast?" No, that is where I believe you are mistaken. Medela will use the research to sell more pumps or more equipment. They are a business. They use their knowledge to sell equipment. "Our goals, our beliefs" as LC's are not one and the same as a business. A business survives by making money. Everyone putting a baby to the breast is not going to help Medela survive as a business entity. This says nothing about their ethics. It is just plain fact. You also wrote "However, there are babies who cannot go to breast, there are mothers who want desparately to have the choice of providing their milk long term as opposed to formula and it is easier for them to that if the pump actually works. Yes, in the ideal world there would be no need of pumps, all babies would be born healthy and in tact and nursing would proceed without complications. But, that is not the reality of our day. And yes, I know all about hand expression which is by far my personal choice (as in I like to hand express, do not like to use a pump....but I am not all mothers), but that does not mean I want pumps being manufactured that hurt mothers and do not help with milk production." I have no illusions. There is no "human" world where problems do not exist. Life and death, health and illness are a part of our existence. Hand expression is not the only answer. We have equipment for a reason. But we use equipment and we introduce some new risks. Interventions always carry a risk. For instance, a mother with a preterm infant in the hospital has an good electric pump and her milk supply drops. Why? The pump works fine and the mother is pumping regularly. What should we do about it? I often see on this list that these moms will get prescriptions for certain drugs to improve their milk supplies. But is the problem about the mom's milk supply or about the fact that she is separated from her infant? Is the real answer to be found in a better electric pump, or more pumping or in more and better drugs? Maybe the answer is simply that separation from a baby, the lack of skin to skin contact with a baby results in lowered milk supplies. Mom simply needs to be with the baby. But due to our medical care system, we don't let that happen. So instead we substitute these interventions. Yes, we have to have these interventions because of a medical and cultural system that refuses to see that breastfeeding is difficult to maintain during separations. Yes, women make it work, but they make it work at a great cost physically, emotionally and spiritually. And god only knows how this effects the little person, the infant who faces a world full of pain without its mother. After looking at 600+ human milk patents, I have a different feeling about human milk research. A small part of this research does benefit breastfeeding. Researchers are doing what they love to do and getting paid for it. What more could we want? The problem is that this research is bought and paid for by the infant formula, drug and vaccine industry. So what the media gets is a twisted and warped version of the research from the companies that stand to profit by the imitation of breast milk or breastfeeding. On the other hand, we may never hear about some of the wonderful things that researchers have found out about human milk. (For instance the use of human milk in regard to cancers--now just coming out in the media--but Nestle knew about it in the 80's) Much of this drive for research is premised on two ideas. First, that there will always be a need for infant formula because not all women want to breastfeed. This never questions why alot of woman refuse to breastfeed or breastfeed briefly. Second, that imitating or improving upon human milk should be our goal in regard to infant feeding. Why all this investment on imitating human milk or breast function? That investment means that little is invested in "breastfeeding." I am hoping I have explained myself better. Valerie W. McClain, IBCLC *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html