Article on increasing bf rates

[Tatties]

\link{http://news.scotsman.com/opinion.cfm?id=543942006\interesting article}

[Pruni]

V interesting.

(Can you imagine the fall-out from b/f mothers getting cheaper nappies and wipes, though? And how could they tell if the baby was being b/f? What about mixed feeding?

"For a start, lower-income women should be given tokens for all breast-feeding paraphernalia: feeding cushions, pumps and breast pads - all of which can prove prohibitively expensive. There is no real reason why nappies - the most expensive item on every new mother's shopping list - or wipes could not also be subsidised.")

[Cristina7]

Good article.

[ladyoracle]

It would be interesting to see what would happen if they were offered subsidised formula or nappies??

[Tatties]

Yes, I think bf mothers getting cheaper nappies etc.. could be problematic. But I don't see why bf paraphernalia couldn't be provided to low-income families as an incentive. Also subsidising nappies wouldn't encourage people to use cloth would it?

[Pruni]

I think a brilliant idea would be to give out the paraphernalia.
I do think the nappies and wipes is a silly idea though.
She is spot on about the lack of posters showing teenage mothers in crop tops and trackies breastfeeding.

[milward]

what a great article - on the ch4 bf prog there was a group of mums that supported other bf mums - could something like this be worked out for the scottish mums in the article. Really got me thinking about bf & the drugs issue & bf & clubbing. These are issues that need to be addressed - when was the last time there was a picture of bf in the media??? - can't remember the last time any teen mags had a bf article?? - never probably is the answer to that one or when there was bf on tv in an everyday situation???

[lact8]

Interesting article. I am currently attending La Laeche League bfeeding support course held at at our local health centre. They have a range of posters up at the moment to promote bfeeding which show very attractive thin teenage girl at a bus stop with a baby to advertise that it can help you to lose weight. There's also one aimed at young dads explaining how their support can really make a difference as to whether breastfeeding works for their partner. (There are more but didn't get chance to read them all)

Last week we were discussing how to react to different people, ie. not making judgements about people with regards to their appearance, race, homes etc. The issue of drugs, smoking etc was raised and the trainer said if the mother was HIV positive they would now recommend she carries on feedinG. If the mother was a drug user they would still recommend feeding. She said that previous guidelines have been changed and the positive effects of breastfeeding are thought to outweigh the possible sideaffects as a result of the mothers health or lifestyle choices.

I am aiming to work with young mothers and feel it would be great if someone on TV, especially Eastenders or Corrie could be seen breastfeeding. Instead of the media concentrating on how quickly the latest celeb has got her figure back after the birth I would love to see them on the front of Hello feeding the baby. Or paparazzi shots of new celeb mums feeding their babies in public!

[Cristina7]

Lact8 - are you doing the leadership applicant course? Or just attending the meetings?

[lact8]

Atending the course, 6 weeks in, 6 to go! Have you been on the course?

[Cristina7]

No, but interested in it. I didn't know it was only 12 weeks, I thought it took 2 years or so. I'll ask on Tuesday when I go to the monthly meeting. How long is the teaching part and how much study at home do you need to do?

[lact8]

To clarify, I'm training on the course to be a breastfeeding supporter for local mums. Hope that makes sense now cause my last post didn't!

[lact8]

Cross posts! The course is 2 weeks in total, 2 hours each week, baby friendly so I take DD (16 weeks) with me. The course is in 12 parts, some looking at how we physically breastfeed, how we producs milk etc. Some of it looks at communication. We get given lots of handouts/books each week to look at at home. I was approached by my health visitor to attend as there is no one in my area that she can advise her new mums to contact I would definately recommend you to do it

[lact8]

I really should check before I post, 12 weeks in total

[Cristina7]

Thanks for that, Lact8. So 12 weeks x 2 hours plus home study. That's not too bad. I'll definitely ask on Tuesday if they do it locally, I haven't heard of the support one, only the leardership one. You must have a very good HV if she's so encouraging of you and others too.

[HRHQueenOfQuotes]

so even here in the UK where dirty water isn't going to kill the baby you'd still recommend a mother with HIV to breastfeed?????

[Pruni]

QoQ I just looked up the figures for that.
Apparently exclusively b/f for 6m is recommended, or f/f, but not mixed. The risk of contracting HIV is c. 14% higher with b/f. B/f beyond 6m is not recommended. In Western countries with access to clean water, formula is safer.

[HRHQueenOfQuotes]

Yes I was looking it up too - NAT recommends (in the UK) not breastfeeding at all. Obviously the dirty water/lack of access to buy the ff changes things in developing countries.

[lact8]

She's great! There does seem to be a real drive in our area at the moment to offer help and support to mums. And I think sometimes you just need someone who's been in the same situation as you to tell you what the baby's doing is normal. My HV says she knows some mums are struggling but don't want to let her know incase she thinks they're a bad mum. She said she's been really frustrated at times like this and is hoping our group will help out in those situations.

Good luck on Tuesday, let me knwo how it goes. if you don't have any joy I'll ask next time I go and put a thread on here for you

[lact8]

TBH I hadn't looked up on net for information to back up what the trainer advised re HIV but I'll ask her where she got her facts from. I'd always been under the impression that breastfeeding was a no no if HIV+

[lact8]

Sorry to hijack but further clarification. The role that I would be in would not involve offering any medical advice to any breastfeeding mother. I'm not allowed to advise about taking paracetamol, to say the baby has thrush etc. It is about supporting women who have chosen to breastfeed. I will be there over the phone or making home visits to offer advice about positioning, latching on, frequency of feeding etc. To say its normal to sometimes feel overwhelmed by the responsibilty of being the only person the baby needs for food. If a mother was a drug user or HIV+ it would not be up to me to advise her to breastfeed, that would be between her and her midwife, but if she chose to do it then I would be there to support her.

[Cristina7]

Lact8 - the meeting was cancelled today, I was quite disappointed. Luckily I met up with one other mum and we went and had coffee together. I'll phone one of the leaders to see when the next one is.

[kiskidee]

HRHQoQ: apparently the risk of transmitting HIV thru breastmilk is v. minimal. the risk of getting hiv thru breastmilk is more likely once solids or formula is given to baby. read it on a unicef page will try to google it later.

[KoolKat]

Excellent article - I think what she says about Scotland applies to England as well. But since the NHS and Govt. in general here are so "can't care less" about bf, I can't see the prospect of a drive getting crop topped teen mothers to bf !

What she says about drugs and HIV is very important. I don't remember any of the women at my LLL meetings asking "can I bf and take xxx drugs at the same time", so I tend to agree that bf has become something middle-class, older mums do.

What she says about the name La Leche League is very funny ! I had never thought of it that way, but it is a bit of a pompous name !! The reason it was called that is because apparently when it was first set up in a very uptight 1950's USA, the word "breast" could not be used, so they couldn't call it "The Breastfeeding League"...or anything like that !

[lact8]

Hi Cristina, what a shame about your meeting! I'm going to meet mums who've already qualified tomorrow to find out exactly what they're doing so I'll try and find out some info for you. What area are you in?

[Cristina7]

I'm in SW London. I didn't go last month and didn't check in advance for today, I just assumed it would be on as it's always on the second Tuesday of the month. I'd taken the morning off work too, and taken DD out of nursery as well...