got milk? .... what kind?

Soluna is 1 years old and in many parents and pediatricians calendars, it's time for cow's milk! Living in the Berkeley/Oakland area and being connected to non-mainstream mama circles through yoga and ColorfulMamas, it's interesting what baby-raising norms get questioned, challenged, and deconstructed.

Ben and I were raised as milk drinkers. Benji still sits down almost every night with a glass of milk and cookies. I, on the other hand, love milk and cereal every morning. We often get through a gallon of milk a week (with just the two of us)! We grew up with our carton of milk or chocolate milk on our lunch tray and sexy got milk? mustache adds. Until becoming a mom I had never even thought for a second that milk was anything but healthy mojo. But here are a few facts to make you wonder:

Milk consumption is the #1 cause of iron-deficiency in infants today according to the American Association of pediatrics.

Almost 90 percent of African Americans and most Latinos, Asians and Southern Europeans don't have the genes necessary to digest lactose.

60% of ear infections in kids under 6 years of age are milk-induced.

There is a $450 million a year industry creating lactose intolerance products.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University to Harvard University are starting to link consumption of milk to prostate cancer, asthma, osteoporosis, and other health complications.

The Bovine Growth Hormone used in the US increases the cow's likelyhood to have pus in its udders because the hormone leads to mastities, a udder infection.

Hmmm... makes you wonder. My question is: How much is the milk industry in this country is worth?

Some Suggested Readings
Don't Drink Your Milk, Frank Oski, M.D. and Chairman of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins University
"White Poison", Shanti Rangwani of Colorlines Magazine
Recommendation from Dr. Sear
"Why we should think Twice about Milk", from the Blog WAVE of the Future

The Colorlines Article is particularly interesting because it talks about how milk may be okay for white people, but has many side effects for people of color. Since those affected are people of color, mainstream media has yet to pick up on the idea that milk might not be for everyone. Hiro, are you really not lactose intolerant? ahahha...

Anyhow, I do believe in balance and I don't think it's time to pull the plug on milk in this household. We will just limit our intake as parents and share milk every once in a while with Soluna. Dr. Sears suggests to make sure that calcium and fats are in any baby's diet so we'll definitely be feeding her cheese, yogurt and breastmilk!

brown hippie mama confession #4: i believe in breastfeeding toddlers

(Painting Credit: "Dependent Man" by Samantha Weber. www.samanthaweber.com)

This has been on my mind a lot lately. Most of my family and my husband's family breastfed their babies for less than a year. Most of my mama friends breastfed for a year to a year and a half. Only a handful of my friends breastfed until their babies were 2 years old or even longer.

Here and there I have heard little snips from family that leads me to believe that if a walking, talking Soluna jumps in my lap and I pull up my shirt to give her a snack, I will, mostly likely, raise a few eyebrows, hear a few snickers and, possibly, get a gasp or two.

But now that Soluna is 7 months old, I wonder what we'll do when the time comes. I love our breastfeeding relationship. For the most part, it calms me and her down, gives us time to rest during the day and I enjoy the time I have comforting her. It's not all roses of course and sometimes I wish I had more time in the day to do other things, but I chose to be a mother and want to give her the best start in life that I can possibly give her. It's only in the Americas where extended nursing is rare. Worldwide, children, on average, are breastfed until the age of 4.

Now what are the benefits of breastfeeding after a year?
Breastmilk is still liquid gold for toddlers. It enrichens a toddler's diet by providing protein, fat, energy, vitamins and minerals and passes even more of the mother's immunities. Research shows that toddlers that breastfeed get sick less often and for shorter time periods. And, beyond these kind of nutrition and health reasons, breastfeeding toddlers get comfort and security from breastfeeding. Ultimately, they are well nurtured and their emotional needs are met so that they can be more independent children and adults. (This country is always pushing for independence, which I think is so important for children and young adults. But, why do we push our babies into independence so early?) ... And some research even claims that the longer babies breastfeed the smarter they are! (From Sears & Sear's The Breastfeeding Book and Kellymom.com)

And, the "experts" agree ... (copied from kellymom.com)

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that "Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child... Increased duration of breastfeeding confers significant health and developmental benefits for the child and the mother... There is no upper limit to the duration of breastfeeding and no evidence of psychologic or developmental harm from breastfeeding into the third year of life or longer." (AAP 2005)

A US Surgeon General has stated that it is a lucky baby who continues to nurse until age two. (Novello 1990)

The World Health Organization emphasizes the importance of nursing up to two years of age or beyond (WHO 1992, WHO 2002).

So as Soluna and I grow together, if we continue to breastfeed, I'm going to have to divert criticism and stand my ground. And hopefully, at the least, Soluna will someday learn that it's important to do what you believe is right and meanigful regardless of the attitudes of those around you and the discomfort they might have in your choices... Isn't that how we want to live our lives?

to pacify or not to pacify?

"Where is her chupon?" My suegra would ask whenever we brought Soluna over. Whether to use or not use a pacifier was one of the most "controversial" baby decisions my husband and I made and it seemed to constantly come up when we visited his parents. We decided not to give Soluna the pacifier for several reasons:

#1: An early introduction to the pacifier could cause nipple confusion. Ouch! And, if Soluna had all her sucking needs satisfied with a pacifier, it could have led to low/no milk production.

#2: We thought: Do you really want your child sucking on a piece of rubber? Or, would you rather comfort her in your arms and at at your breast?

#3: We believe that baby cries are forms of communication. (This is from the Sears' attachment parenting beliefs that I will discuss in a later post.) We wanted her to keep trying to communicate with us and we wanted to keep trying to understand her. We didn't just want to "shut her up" as quick as possible.

We did waver in our stance twice. Once, Soluna was up for hours crying and crying. My nipples were sore and we were exhausted. We gave her the pacifier and she fell alseep after a little while. The second time, we gave in to parental pressures and, thinking that I was going back to work soon, we realized she actually may need to satisfy her sucking needs when I wasn't around. We tried to offer her the pacifier and she continued to push it out of her mouth with her tongue or just let it fall out.

Let me tell you though, we do have a little bit of a whiny baby. She tells you right away if she is uncomfortable, if she is hungry, if she is bored or if she wants to be carried by mom or dad. I am happy that she knows her whines and cries will be heard. This is not to say that I now jump up at her every whimper, but I do listen to her... and hope that in the long term this teaches her something more important. I truly believe that a quiet baby is not necessarily a happy baby. He/she just might be a baby that has learned that his/her communication and wishes are not listened to or important.

The other day Benji tried to cut her nails while I was breastfeeding. What?! She gave him a stern growl and shot him a look of anger. For some parents this would have led to some crazy power struggle. Instead, we knew exactly what she wanted... to eat in peace. Doesn't everybody want this? And she let me cut her nails the next morning, with no problems.