Interesting article on exclusive BF in the beginning

[carolinagirl831]

Anyone see this around FB?
fedisbest.org/2015/04/letter-to-doctors-and-parents-about-the-dangers-of-insufficient-exclusive-breastfeeding/

Read the entirety before judging.
The points at the end I think should be stressed more.
I totally get the stress as someone who produced very little with my first but the nurses just kept saying their tummies are so tiny they don't need much.

[carolinagirl831]

I totally get the stress as someone who produced very little with my first but the nurses just kept saying their tummies are so tiny they don't need much.

I had a hospital with an excellent lactation department who recognized my baby was getting next to nothing and encouraged formula. I actually did produce with my second but the experience had me so paranoid I always wanted to give her formula too.
I can see how this happens to new moms and its so heartbreaking to be realizing you are starving your bAby.

[noodleskooze]

Happened to me; realized at day 3 or 4 (at home) that he was starving. Have felt like I've fallen short as a mom every day since.


ETA: he was not hospitalized or anything, for that I'm so thankful. He was having trouble nursing before we even left the hospital, and I just knew/thought that was normal. He was inconsolable for the next day or two, but by day former he was really tired and quiet. I realized he wasn't dirtying diapers at all. breaks my heart all over again thinking about it.

[Deleted]

As sad as I am that breastfeeding didn't work out for me either time I understand a bit of the struggles EBF moms go through.  Ben I had to supplement in the hospital since he wouldn't latch and the nurses were judgy about it.  Ethan was breastfeeding fine in the hospital and I had an appointment with a BFing doctor that I proactively scheduled at 8 a.m. the day after we got home.  Unfortunately that night he screamed at the breast for seven hours so we supplemented.  So yes I think offering bottles early contributed to the failure to EBF I also think that it's dangerous to tell moms that if they want it enough they have to just work through the early days where it seems like the baby isn't getting milk.

[lilac05]

I think I saw it posted here the other day, but didn't have time to read it. I love that she not only has a great point, but she backs it with data AND suggestions for a solution. THAT'S how progress is made!

I get that women have been feeding their babies with breastmilk from the beginning of time, but a) we don't know that they DIDN'T supplement with something different long ago, and b) humanity survived a LONG time without cars...but I don't see a whole lot of people refusing to drive cars because feet and animals alone were good enough for people for countless generations.

There is an easy solution for this! We need to get the information out to new moms, doctors, and lactation consultants and start making changes. When we know better, we do better. I used to be one of the "don't buy a single can of formula before baby is born...it'll tempt you to take the 'easy' way out when times are hard." No more. Have one can, even if you plan to be 100% dedicated to nursing.

For new moms really concerned about their supply & stimulation, they can pump when the baby gets a bottle. But personally, I don't feel like it makes THAT big of a difference.

noodleskooze, I'm sorry it happened to you. Please be kind to yourself. There just isn't much awareness about it right now. From what you post on here, I think you're a great mom. (And I think most moms feel like they fall short frequently.)

[Deleted]

I googled and she did an interview on this blog too: www.fearlessformulafeeder.com/2015/05/interview-with-dr-christie-del-castillo-hegyi/ 

I think it's important to note that most babies don't experience serious consequences of underfeeding.  I'd hate for someone to read this and decide not to try BFing.  But it can be hard and the fear of formula, I think, is damaging.  Anecdote but my sister BF three kids for a while each and she had to supplement each one at the beginning.

[pugz]

I've been following her FB page for a year or so (the org is new, formerly a FB page called Breastfeeding is Best but only if you have Breastmilk.). It is good info to have but overwhelming too. Would like to see more research done. I am grateful our hospital encouraged supplementing as I had no milk for a week and when i got it there was very little

[jorja]

I got super anxious reading the description of her first day home with her son-that's exactly what it was like when we brought DD home, too. She screamed/tried to nurse for 24 hours straight. I finally gave her formula after she hadn't peed for 16 hours. She sucked it down and I felt so guilty that she had been starving that whole time.

My milk came in on day 5, and she's still nursing now, at 20 months.

Next baby I will be offering formula after at least a couple of feeds a day until I'm sure my milk has come in.

[Cicero]

I hate the, "for centuries mankind survived without supplementing so there is no reason for us to" argument. Sure, mankind survived but a lot of babies starved to deathin the process. If you didn't have milk or didn't want to nurse you hired a wet nurse. If you were poor your baby died. End of story.

I fail to see why this is something we should emulate when we don't have to.

[greycat]

I think it's a disservice so much research on BFing is focused on EBFibg. Early supplementing can a mother continue to BF.

DS developed jaundice. He was monitored everyday - in the hospital and after we were discharged. We were advised to supplement with formula and/or pumped milk (I did both). He cleared the jaundice and never needed to go under the lights. He got BM exclusively from then until around 6 mo th when I supplemented because I would not pump enough at work. I weaned DS a little after 2 and feel supplementing was the key to BFing him for so long.

DD only got the slightest bit jaundiced. We monitored it at the pedi and only did 1 follow up blood draw because her number went down so much. At 5 days old she refused to latch for a number of hours (4 or 5i think) so I pumped. I called the LC associated with my pedi in a panic and she reassured me that I did the right thing. She reminded me that the most important thing was to feed the baby. She confirmed that the amounts I was pumping were appropriate and gave me some strategies to try. I have no doubt that she would have adviised supplementing if needed. Despite my positive experience with supplementing I was hesitant to give DD any formula. I posted here and was encouraged to do so. DD is 19 weeks and gets a about 4oz/day of BMsuring the week to make up for my shortfall. I don't usually supplement on the weekends.

In my case I received good support both times from the hospital nurses & LCs and my pedi & the LC affiliated with their office. It is easy to see how things can go wrong. I think nurses and pedis need to be educated about BFing and supplementing. Parents need support in the hospital and at home.

[nessness]

I remember we discussed another article on here maybe a year ago from a woman who also believed EBF had caused her kid's autism. Her conclusions were much more extreme though - basically that the idea that babies only need colostrum for the first couple days is bunk and everyone should supplement. That article freaked me out, even though when you take a step back it doesn't make much sense, since breastfeeding is associated with lower rates of autism.

But this one seems much more reasonable. There needs to be a balance between the desire to EBF and making sure your baby gets enough calories, and doctors and LCs need to be educated to help moms figure out where that balance is.

[ssmjlm]

I'm surprised that the LC at the pedi didn't say anything at their first appointment. Mine was very hands on during the visit and was checking for milk intake, was E actually swallowing, etc. It was more than just latch.

It seems as though she really didn't get the medical support and information needed to make a decision about feeding her child.

[Willis Jackson]

Aug 28, 2016 0:47:58 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

That's horrifying that she was advised not to supplement when her baby had jaundice. Lu had jaundice and there was no question from the hospital pedi that she had to be supplemented. I was semi distraught since it felt like a huge BFing failure but in retrospect I'm so glad they pushed the formula.

Same here with DS1. I was really upset and my mom was all, "He doesn't need formula!" because her baby who had much milder jaundice in 1978 just needed colostrum and a sunny window. Ugh.

I ended up giving DD a nip of formula when she was on the verge of not peeing enough in the very beginning. The "my baby never had a DROP of formula!" people always bugged me.

[starburst604]

My milk didn't come in until day 5 and while L wasn't jaundiced, she lost quite a bit of weight (can't remember exact numbers). Thankfully for us both, we were still in the hospital due to my CS so she was well monitored. I was squeezing out tiny drops of colostrum but the doctors were firm, the baby needed more. That is where BFing education may have disagreed with them and said that the colostrum is enough for her tummy, her birth weight was exaggerated due to my long labor and fluids so the loss seemed more dramatic, etc. But my instinct was that she needed more too.

My hospital had a donor bank so we fed her donated milk with a syringe and she ate it hungrily. Honestly, if I had another and were faced with the same situation I would just give formula (we went to EFF around 12 weeks anyway). I almost feel guilty that we used that milk instead of a NICU baby. I'm sure they wouldn't have given it if they didn't have the supply, but I think there are babies who needed it more than we did, and formula would have been fine. But I was all about the BM at that time.

[karinothing]

Aug 28, 2016 0:47:58 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

That's horrifying that she was advised not to supplement when her baby had jaundice. Lu had jaundice and there was no question from the hospital pedi that she had to be supplemented. I was semi distraught since it felt like a huge BFing failure but in retrospect I'm so glad they pushed the formula.

Both my kids had jaundice. We were.not advised to supplement, but my milk came on within 48 hours and my kids had their levels checked every 24 hours. So that is obviously different.

Historically I often wonder if women who struggled to breastfeed were ever given older babies to stimulate milk production. Kind of like how we use a pump today. But anyway, I kind of hate that argument because babies died very frequently in infancy and I am sure some of that was due to lack of food.

[Saudade]

Aug 28, 2016 0:47:58 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

That's horrifying that she was advised not to supplement when her baby had jaundice. Lu had jaundice and there was no question from the hospital pedi that she had to be supplemented. I was semi distraught since it felt like a huge BFing failure but in retrospect I'm so glad they pushed the formula.

My first two, and probably this one too, had jaundice. My milk didn't come in until day 5 for both. I was never advised to supplement. They both had to be on the bili blanket at home for a couple days.

[broadsheet]

This is my IRL friend. She is brilliant, and I'm so glad this is gaining traction on FB and elsewhere!

[mekia]

My milk didn't come in until day 5 with DS and he was jaundiced. He lost 11% of his weight (8.1 lbs at birth). He was so sleepy. At day 4 the doctor said he was dehydrated and told me to start supplementing.

I was so confused and scared. I went to see a LC right away and she told me to start pumping. She taught me how to hand express and feed it to DS. I didn't supplement and my milk came in the next day.

I still feel terrible about this. I can't bear to look at pictures of him when he was 3-5 days old. His lips were dry and his top skull was a bit skunked

I honestly had no idea how dangerous it could have been.

[noodleoo]

Wow, this rings true for me.

"The mothers that are most educated in breastfeeding are the ones who have been taught that offering just one bottle will ruin her breastfeeding and potentially harm her child. I have learned that this is a distortion of reality created by breastfeeding education to pressure mothers to exclusively breastfeed that can put her child’s life at risk."

My milk didn't come in until day 5 and DD was so hungry she was inconsolable. H kept wanting to give her a bottle but I said no because that's what my BFing class thought us. Day 3 at home was horrible, she cried all night long. We saw her pedi on day 4 and he told us to supplement. As soon as we gave her a 2 oz bottle she was finally happy and slept. I feel so bad remembering that moment where I realized she was SO hungry. It makes me really angry that if I hadn't taken that class or had the LCs scare me about nipple confusion and sabotaging my BFing relationship with a paci or 1 bottle, I probably would have just given her some formula and we could have all slept. Once my milk came in she was fine. After all this time and technology, shouldn't we know better by now?

I feel so bad for the new moms who will continue to have the same experience.

[WillabyWallabyWu]

I'm always so confused by the no formula thing. Both of my boys got formula while in the NICU and I never thought twice about it. I pumped to stimulate my milk, then they got my mik. DS1 nursed until 15 months and DS2 is going strong at 3 months. Introducing formula/bottles didn't cause us any issues with nursing. I realize that it may have caused issues for others, but in my limited sample, utilizing both tools was the perfect solution. I am so glad my hospital is in the "fed baby" camp and not just breastfeeding. I really wish more hospitals were like that.

[Yankees21]

Aug 28, 2016 7:09:12 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

Wow, this rings true for me.

"The mothers that are most educated in breastfeeding are the ones who have been taught that offering just one bottle will ruin her breastfeeding and potentially harm her child. I have learned that this is a distortion of reality created by breastfeeding education to pressure mothers to exclusively breastfeed that can put her child’s life at risk."

My milk didn't come in until day 5 and DD was so hungry she was inconsolable. H kept wanting to give her a bottle but I said no because that's what my BFing class thought us. Day 3 at home was horrible, she cried all night long. We saw her pedi on day 4 and he told us to supplement. As soon as we gave her a 2 oz bottle she was finally happy and slept. I feel so bad remembering that moment where I realized she was SO hungry. It makes me really angry that if I hadn't taken that class or had the LCs scare me about nipple confusion and sabotaging my BFing relationship with a paci or 1 bottle, I probably would have just given her some formula and we could have all slept. Once my milk came in she was fine. After all this time and technology, shouldn't we know better by now?

I feel so bad for the new moms who will continue to have the same experience.

This is exactly my story too. Even when my milk came in, it was very very little. He had lost over a pound (was 7 pounds 5 oz) by day 4 and I felt so guilty that he was starving.

[thebreakfastclub]

300 years ago, you'd be like 16 having your first baby. Your mom, your aunts, sisters, etc would all be nearby.

They would all have nursed several children and some would likely be still nursing. One of them would feed the baby and help get started.

There would be so much help in your group.

It's not like now, where you sit in your house alone with the baby and have to do it all.

[cheeseandcrackers]

when i brought my daughter home i specifically remember complaining to my husband about this. my milk hasn't come in till day 4 or so and she was a hungry baby, all she wanted to do was eat. I didn't understand how my colostrum would be enough to keep her fed. it wasn't, i had to give her formula, but she was happy and hardly lost any of her birth weight because of the formula.

i always wondered if maybe that's why my breastfeeding adventure didn't work out, but reading this, i feel a little better about supplementing when she was born.

[Deleted]

This EXACT same thing happened to an acquaintance of mine. Her son was diagnosed with brain injury with autistic like features. It is so sad. I am forever greatful that the nurses tested DS' blood sugar & had him supplementing within an hour of birth. When I had no collustrum to express they were ( almost) all fully supportive of switching to formula ( I was also not highly motivated to breastfeed )

[Marmee]

My DD1 didn't get any milk for 3(+)? Days. I was in the hospital and no one noticed. I got her home & she was inconsolable & no wet diapers in well over 12hrs and (this will date me) luckily I had been given lots of Formula samples from the OB (I swore I wouldn't need). I gave her some and she immediately passed out and slept way longer than she ever had. I remember saying to my husband "she was starving, I was starving her" & crying. I had issues (jaundice, low supply, etc) with my other kids too. I certainly never was an over producer. It's so stressful. I really like her idea of having a protocol on monitoring this stuff.

[Deleted]

Aug 28, 2016 7:20:41 GMT -5 thebreakfastclub said:

300 years ago, you'd be like 16 having your first baby. Your mom, your aunts, sisters, etc would all be nearby.

They would all have nursed several children and some would likely be still nursing. One of them would feed the baby and help get started.

There would be so much help in your group.

It's not like now, where you sit in your house alone with the baby and have to do it all.

Exactly this. There was a " village" to support new moms. If your milk took too long someone would wet nurse for you & you would eventually do the same.

Now we are so isolated & shamed by medical providers it's a wonder that any of us get through early motherhood unscathed.

[face]

I can't imagine the pain of knowing that your baby is starving. How awful. This article is really informative.

DD was jaundiced and her pedi recommended supplementing on day 3. We did supplement for a few days. A short 4 months later DD became a bottle refuser, and over 2 years and 9 months later (!) she still nurses once a day. I know this isn't the case for everyone, but supplementing does not necessarily mean breastfeeding is over.

[jssymom14]

Aug 28, 2016 7:32:53 GMT -5 gravytrain225 said:

I'll never understand why Moms are so afraid of formula. If you look at my eff children, what is SO bad about them that makes you never want to feed your child formula? How can you see a society full of babies who have formula and are perfectly healthy, yet still refuse formula?

I have given both my kids formula as primary source or nutrition but tried very hard, almost too hard on their little bodies to breastfeed early on because I wanted to do what was pushed as the "best".

This story/situation rings true for my experience with DS. I truly believed that DS was getting enough early on because he was so content and sleepy, peed enough but didn't poop. I was not giving him enough and as a GD baby they sometimes are very sleepy and I had to force him up to eat, most likely dehydrated. DH insisted we give him formula bc we had experienced this with DD. I ordered an infant scale to see how much he was getting because I wanted so badly to succeed but my body just doesn't make enough for his needs.
I currently breastfeed both sides and than give a bottle of two more ounces. I continuously ask myself why I keep doing this as it takes so much time (an hour) when I could and know I will eventually EFF. It's a messed up situation in my brain

[noodleoo]

Aug 28, 2016 7:32:53 GMT -5 gravytrain225 said:

I'll never understand why Moms are so afraid of formula. If you look at my eff children, what is SO bad about them that makes you never want to feed your child formula? How can you see a society full of babies who have formula and are perfectly healthy, yet still refuse formula?

When pg, between the BFing class I took and the guide from the hospital that pushed rooming in, no pacifier use and no bottles for the first 4 weeks, you are basically taught that even giving one bottle will ruin your chances of successfully BFing. The pendulum has swung so far the other way to EBFing. My sister even told me to throw out the formula samples I got in the mail because "studies have shown that having formula samples decreases your chances of successfully BFing". That's what she told me, and she was just trying to help me. I'm so glad I kept the samples, but I felt guilty doing so. 

I kept telling myself I wouldn't care if BFing didn't work out, but I almost felt brainwashed by everything I was taught and I really resisted formula. There is a lot of pressure to EBF. H and I were just talking about it and I won't make the same mistake next time. 

[anna7602]

Aug 28, 2016 7:32:53 GMT -5 gravytrain225 said:

I'll never understand why Moms are so afraid of formula. If you look at my eff children, what is SO bad about them that makes you never want to feed your child formula? How can you see a society full of babies who have formula and are perfectly healthy, yet still refuse formula?

I don't think it's so much that formula is "bad" as the pressure to "succeed" at breastfeeding is so damned high. I didn't even offer my first-born a pacifier at the hospital because I was so terrified of "nipple confusion" (which I now think is BS, but didn't know as FTM). in those early days, I honestly thought that any kind of supplementation would signal the beginning of the end of breastfeeding, and I didn't come up with this on my own. It was the message received loud and clear from those around me when I was a vulnerable, hormonal new mom and later when I was a stressed-out, pumping, working mom striving to keep up with DD's BM consumption.