Idle speculation...... affect of perfumes/deodorants/body lotions on early bf .... any thoughts?

[Tittybangbang]

....have been mulling on the role of smell in early instinctive bf behaviours in babies. Wonder if anyone has done any research into this issue because I would have thought that mothers being drenched in synthetic scents might affect the way her baby responds to her in the first few hours of life. I personally use very few products on myself - rarely use deodorant, don't use soap except on my armpits, don't use body lotions, or scents of any sort and never really have. I suspect I'm unusual and that many women use a lot of these products - especially to 'freshen themselves up' after birth.

Wonder if this thought has crossed anyone else's mind....

I don't use anything sented. Never wear deodorant and so if anything smell kind of natural. I struggled to establish breastfeeding in the begining and it wasn't until my DD was about 8 weeks that I 'got it'. Lady in the bed opposite at the midwife centre where I delivered was spraying perfume all over the day after delivery and her DD BF immediately with no probs.

I don't like scented stuff and really didn't like using anything even body lotion when BF because wanted DD to smell me not something artificial but I'm not sure it made a difference in either of our cases.

Yes this is a good point ... I felt instinctively that scents and deodorants were not great in the early days particularly when baby was shoving face in my armpit while feeding, and I didn't use anything for the first few months. It just seemed logical, as babies are such ANIMAL beings.