It is obvious that putting a baby to the breast calms the baby, but what is less apparent is how calming breastfeeding can be for mothers. And it isn’t just because they stopped their baby from crying, which certainly calms me down. Breastfeeding has actually been shown in experiments to alter mood and reduce perceived stress in nursing mothers. (more…)
If you are wondering whether or not your baby is getting enough iron while you are exclusively breastfeeding, a recent study published by the International Breastfeeding Journal answers this question. Babies who are exclusively breastfed are getting sufficient amounts of iron in their diet, even when the mother is iron deficient. (more…)
Question: When should my baby start solid food?
Unless there is a complication that prevents you from doing so, your baby should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months. This is in accordance with the World Health Organization’s breastfeeding guidelines and the American Academy of Pediatrics’ policy statement on breastfeeding. But knowing that you shouldn’t unnecessarily introduce solid foods, or foods other than breast milk, prior to six months of age probably doesn’t help you know when you can, or should, start introducing solid foods into your baby’s diet. (more…)
In this video you can listen to the sound of my daughter breastfeeding to hear what a nursing baby sounds like when latched on the breast properly. In the video I also discuss what sounds you might hear if your baby is not latched on properly. (more…)
Leukemia is a leading cause of cancer among children, and it is the stuff of nightmares for parents. No one wants to see a baby who’s hair has fallen out, isolated in a hospital behind a plastic bubble, and waiting to have a dangerous transplant operation. While as many as 85% of children may survive leukemia, survival rates vary wildly from one type of cancer and stage of disease to another. (more…)
Lupus is a potentially life threatening autoimmune disorder which affects about 2 million Americans. For most people the disease is mild, affecting only a few organs, but for others the disease can be life threatening. In fact, the daughter of someone I know died from lupus. Interestingly, most of those affected with the disease are women. (more…)
Neonatal Jaundice is a common condition that more than half of all newborns get. Within the first week or 2 of life you might notice that your baby’s skin looks yellowish, and the whites of their little eyes look slightly yellowish, too. In just a couple of weeks, that should have all cleared up. (more…)
When Hannah was born, I noticed that she had a propensity to seek out and try to suck on her hand. She wasn’t my only baby to start swiping at her face as a newborn, but she was the only one who successfully developed a thumb-sucking habit over time. (more…)
One of the easiest ways to lose weight after you have a baby is just by breastfeeding. Even Hollywood stars like Christina Aguilera and Naomi Watts claim breastfeeding helped them to trim down. (more…)
If you don’t have breasts that are even slightly different in size and shape, whether pregnant or not, big breasts or not, nursing or not, despite never having cosmetic breast surgery then congratulations, you are a rare the exception to the norm. But as for the rest of us…. (more…)