Looking for more balanced info about the impact of breastfeeding?

[foodiemountainbiker]

I am very positive about BFing and BF DD1 for 13 months and (so far) have been BFing DD2 for 18 months.

I am getting joint pains in my hands and, having been to the doctor today, it appears that I am getting the pain because I am still BFing (similar to carpel tunnel that I got when pregnant). The doctor was obviously very reluctant to say that to me (I guess, because she wants to be seen to promote BFing). A few months ago there was another issue (pain in my episiotomy scar) that also turned out to be due to me still BFing.

I am really annoyed that it is almost impossible to find out anything about any negative impacts of BFing. What I would really like is balanced information about the whole subject. I feel as though the BF counsellors, NCT, LLL etc. are trying to brainwash us into thinking it is all positive.

Is anyone aware of any more balanced information about the whole subject?

? are you a troll

well, it is true that your hormonal status when bf or pg is different to that when not bf or pg. So conditions that are exacerbated by that hormonal state will be worse. i suppose joint laxity springs to mind, will have a think/look for others. i don't think it is a long list.

on the other hand, the things that are less frequent, such as breast cancer are more studied. And it physiologically/anthropologically being pg and/or bf for most of our adult lives is normal, rather than now when it is the other way round in our society. (and i mean the natural term bf, hunter-gatherer, baby every 4 years model, not the baby every year Victorian type model).

I'm sorry you are having health problems, but bf organisations are there to promote bf as normal and help with problems, they are not brainwashing! try kellymom that may have something?

weasle - Thank you. I'll have a look.

serant - No I'm not

Part of this issue will definitely be that only a low percentage of mothers in the UK breastfeed as long as you have managed!

Having said that, I've done a lot of work related to chronic pain issues and GPs frequently mis-diagnose all kinds of ongoing pain. So just because a GP has reluctantly said it's due to bfing, doesn't mean it's necessarily true.

I would imagine that such things are rarely discussed because they rarely occur.

How did bfing effect your episiotomy scar?

Could she explain why it is related to breastfeeding? I'd imagine at 18 months the hormonal effect is becoming muted.

You could try maybe easing off the demand feeding if that's what you're doing? I did this to bring on a period after 2 years' demand feeding.

I'm 6 months pregnant and feeding a 2-1/2 year old and yes, my hormones are different but I cannot imagine how that would seriously impact pain. I'd love to hear an evidence-based explanation.

Magnesium deficiency can cause leg cramps, iron deficiency cracks at the corners of the mouth. I could imagine that other deficiencies could cause other minor ailments. Long-term bfing on a not-always-optimal diet could presumably result in mineral or vitamin deficiency, since the body prioritises bm quality over the mother's needs. Just my thoughts, of course.

If bf really was linked with higher rates of any disease, however rare, someone on here would have found out about it by now and would bring it up at every bunfight .

silkenladder has a good point there, you milk will be produced at the expense of your health. Even near staving women can sucesfully BF but it probably does effect the mum. Why not try adding a vitamine/minarule suppliment into your diet to see if that helps.

Note I'm no expert in nutrian just an idea.

www.arthritis-treatment-and-relief.com/foods-or-vitamins-that-help-with-joint-pain.html some of the foods in this article sound delicious!

i reckon silkenladder is on the right track here too. i bf ds for 15months and felt pretty exhausted by the end. the milk does contain vits and mins so it makes sense that it would take your supplies to do this. i have heard that during lactation metabolism is more efficient - the lactating woman gets more vits out of foods or something like that (sorry no links) but still, it stands to reason that you may be lacking in some vitamins.

no expert either and agree something about how it drains the mother would be helpful - in terms of how to replenish your stores etc

I think I can be 100 per cent confident that pain in the episiotomy scar is unrelated to breastfeeding. Ditto carpal tunnel - though I do know that it can take a little while after childbirth for this to go, and there is a hormonal influence.

Hormone levels after 18 months of breastfeeding are virtually back to pre-prgnancy levels - prolactin is only raised by the most miniscule amounts, and breastfeeding is sustained almost 100 per cent by the autorcrine system not the endocrine (hormonal) system. Perhaps enlighten your doc on this point?

You can't find evidence of the negative effects on mother's health of breastfeeding not because of brainwashing - but because there is no evidence!

I might as well have a rant and say how annoying it is there is no 'balanced information' that wearing a yellow hat on Sundays causes cross eyes, and that opticians should be telling us the truth!

:)

now recall that in PoBF she mentions that a particutlar is leached during bf but that the body goes into overdrive afterwards to replace it and that this is why bf is associated with lowered risk of osteoperosis (sp)

Am sure silkenladder is right. If anything was known we'd hear no end of it. It's bad enough with the way stuff is misreported in the media. Imagine what the mail could make of something that was actually based in fact!

'autorcrine' should be 'autocrine' for people who want to look it up :)

I am hypermobile. I had SPD in pregnancy that didn't resolve postnatally. two bf counsellors have told me it's unrelated to bf, several physios and a lactation consultant have told me it is. who should I believe?

the pain is manageable, it doesn't affect my decision to bf, but if it is affected by bf, then at least I could look forward to it clearing up eventually. tiktok, do you know?

MamaChoc - I don;t know . I know there is not a consensus about it - SPD is a bugger and there are conflicting studies about its relationship to bf.

Mamachoc, I have the same problem, I have severe pelvic girdle pain (to the extent that I use a wheelchair) and I have been told that bf does prolong the problem due to hormones (though to a lesser extent than pregnancy) I have been told this by several hcp's ans in fact my orthoprdic consultant won't see/test/treat anyone one until at least 6 wks after they have finished breastfeeding

How true this is I don't know, but on a purely anacdotal level, I have had SPD four times (not counting now) and each time it began to get better only after I had finished bf

thanks tiktok. an honest don't know is actually strangely comforting. if it might be related, then it might clear up as the babies switch to more solids/less bf with time :)

Oh my goodness please excuse my awful spelling and typing in that post, combination of typing while bf and heavy duty painkillers

thanks immortal. sorry yours is so bad you're using a wheelchair, but glad to hear it can get better. did yours ever completely resolve between bouts?

Watching this thread with interest as I had SPD while pregnant. Thankfully mine wasn't terribly bad - I wasn't on crutches or in a wheelchair - but DS is now 8 months old and it hasn't completely resolved. I am really hoping it goes when I stop BFing.

Mama, I have hypermobility and have also had De Quervain's Syndrome (inflammation of tendons going through the thumb). My hand therapist (physio) told me that it would be worse because of the hormones associated with bf (DS was 6 months at the time). That was certainly my experience with pregnancy.

I have found that it has improved a lot since then, though - DS is 15 m.o. and still bfs at least 4 x a day. Co-sleeping actually makes it worse than bf IMO, as I tend to sleep in the same position all night.

Hmmmm....this is far from being my specialist subject, but hormones play such a small part in established breastfeeding, but it is certainly possible physios and so on are not aware of this.

It would explain why hormonally-related things like SPD do eventually get better, the longer bf continues.

That's interesting, tiktok - but as you say, a pretty low proportion of women bf for a longer period, so some physios might be applying the hormonal effects that you see in the early stages of bf to all women who bf for longer.

Actually, my wrist problems have been worse with bf - because I have rubbish posture and I tend to slump my shoulders while feeding which causes tension. But it's a posture issue, not a bf issue.

I was told relaxin levels would be raised for a year postnatally whether or not you bf.

I have hypermobility syndrome & do find that feeding positions put a lot of strain on me, as does holding DD. I can't use a sling for walks without SPD & SI pain.

Is the pain in your episiotomy scar during sex? I have heard that bfing can increase vaginal dryness - think it's the oestrogen.