How does that old nursery rhyme go? "One little fell off and bumped his head. Mama called the doctor and the doctor said..." Well, we had a minor furniture malfunction last week with our bed, but we thought we had it fixed (well, Dan had it fixed - I held the mattress up). But seven years, two pregnancies, two babies, a toddler, a preschooler and the occassional insolent dog later and our poor bed gave up the ghost...
Unfortunately, it gave up while I was nursing Thomas and Isabelle was next to me - but fortunately we were all awake and no one was hurt. Dan tried to repair it, but it's no use - the old king had just seen too much living, I guess.
On the upside, now that our mattresses are sitting on the floor, I've discovered that the low bed gives a really open zen feeling to the room - the old four-poster was fun, but I'm really thinking the next frame is going to reflect what's changed since that first bed seven years ago - we're steadier, we're simpler and, in every sense, we're closer to the ground.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Breastfeeding Boosts IQ
The big story this week about breastfeeding that a major study has confirmed that breastfed babies have higher IQs and that duration and intensity of breastfeeding have a cumulative positive effect. I'm happy for the researchers and that it got lots of press, but it's not exactly breaking news, folks.
The story that seems to be missed in all this is how mothers in the study were supported and the dramatic difference it made in breastfeeding rates. By using the Baby-Friendly Initiative model combining appropriate hospital policies, education and support, there was a dramatic difference in breastfeeding rates at every stage. Contrary to what some the news reports suggest, the BFI program is about supporting mothers and encouraging them to listen to their baby's cues as opposed to training them in some magic breastfeeding tricks.
It's unfortunate that this part of it has not gotten the attention that it deserves - it's not really helpful to be debating whether 5 IQ points matters in the long-run or not. Breastfeeding is the way babies were meant to be fed and this is good proof that their mothers can provide that for them when given a reasonable support system.
The story that seems to be missed in all this is how mothers in the study were supported and the dramatic difference it made in breastfeeding rates. By using the Baby-Friendly Initiative model combining appropriate hospital policies, education and support, there was a dramatic difference in breastfeeding rates at every stage. Contrary to what some the news reports suggest, the BFI program is about supporting mothers and encouraging them to listen to their baby's cues as opposed to training them in some magic breastfeeding tricks.
It's unfortunate that this part of it has not gotten the attention that it deserves - it's not really helpful to be debating whether 5 IQ points matters in the long-run or not. Breastfeeding is the way babies were meant to be fed and this is good proof that their mothers can provide that for them when given a reasonable support system.
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