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.

Kids do say the darndest things

Like the jargon of any organized group, families all seem to have their own secret language that only the members share – and it’s the children who bring the unqiue words to us.

The funny little expressions they use as they are learning ways to express themselves are often fleeting, but sometimes they stick. Just ask my uncle, Carlo, who is still called “Caco” as my sister reaches her late twenties. It could have been worse, though I’m not sure that Coco would be much better than Caca.

Since these are so fleeting, I thought I’d take the chance now to share a few of Isabelle’s particularly cute or funny ones:

- greffast: as in “Daddy made me pancakes for greffast”

- dewey: not the decimal system, but rather “dirty”, now largely outgrown, but we heard it a lot during the fastidiously clean phase that preceded her current ‘devil may care’ hygiene rules

- eye-spy down: as in “pineapple eye-spy down cake”

- eye-spy up: the reverse of eye-spy down

- mamote control: oddly, Isabelle could say “télé-commande” in French well before she could say it in English and just recently dropped mamote term

So, readers, share your favourite cute ones with me…

And baby makes four...

With Thomas' recent birthday, I've been reflecting a bit on the transition to little ones and looking back on it with a bit more space (and sanity).

Older siblings will often regress in their behavior, wanting to nurse or drink from a bottle if they had previously given it up or being less reliable in their potty training. In addition, older siblings will often become clingier, to one or both parents or even adopt a transitional object, like a blanket or stuffed toy, when they had never shown interest before. Isabelle definitely did all of these - adopting "Bear" as her nighttime companion.

Parents can make the transition more difficult on everyone when they do not recognize what an enormous change the older child has undergone. Understanding and compassion, along with time, will restore household peace and help forge the lifetime bond that siblings will share.

A tried-and-true tip is to have an extra-special gift for the older sibling that the new baby “brought” for them. Make believe play is very powerful to young children: older siblings should have their own “baby” and gear to mimic mom and dad. This “baby” also gives them an outlet to play out their frustrations safely. Finally, everyone will benefit if mom has a good comfortable baby carrier so that she can meet baby’s need for closeness while having her hands-free for play. There are even great matching slings for both mom and siblings. These make a wonderful shower gift - older siblings will be very proud.

In human development, there are no absolutes and very little is inevitable: parents can expect their children to react to the addition of a new sibling as they would to any major event. A happy, go-lucky kid is likely to adjust pretty quickly, irrespective of their age or gender. Conversely, a child who is resistant to changes in routine or highly sensitive to noise is likely to have more difficulty. Go easy on yourselves and each other – it’s a joyful journey once all your little travelers get along.

To crawl or not to crawl...

Thomas is 9.5 months old and he doesn’t crawl. There, I’ve said it.
He is semi-mobile, but the mechanics of forward motion really escape him for the moment. My knowledgeable mommy-self knows this is not a big deal: babies crawl when they have developed the need to get beyond the reach of their bodies. He is apparently content to catch whatever is falling into his circle of influence (which is wide enough to include the dog’s water bowl when my back is turned, mind you).
But, a voice in the back of my head wonders… should I teach him how to crawl? Maybe I haven’t been modeling enough for him… maybe I wear him too much...maybe he needs more motivation… How do you teach someone to crawl? What motivates a baby? As far as I can tell, the only thing he won't lose interest in is nursing – maybe I should lie topless just out of reach?
Sigh… isn’t all this supposed to get out of your system with your first child?