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Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Quick! Need Your Vote TODAY!
(Yep, I'm back, but it will be another day or two before I can get a post up on my trip...)
Need you guys to get clicking for me ASAP. I'm headed to NYC in two weeks for a search industry show. One of the vendors at the show throws a charity event every year to raise money for a different non-profit. This year, four of us got to put in our charity of choice and it's up to a vote to see who the event benefits. As you can imagine, I'm promoting HMBANA milk banks.
PLEASE go here and
vote for the milk bank. Then send a quick email or throw up a blog post asking others to do the same. Voting ends at midnight tonight, so we've got to work quickly!
Thanks all!
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Finally! I can share the good news!!
(no, I'm not pregnant.)
It's been about a week since a few of us found out, but until today's press release, we were sworn to secrecy.
As it turns out, The Mother's Milk Bank of New England WON the $10K prize for January over at
Ideablob! Thanks so much to all of you who voted and helped spread the word!
Tanya over at Motherwear got to break the news earlier today.
Nice job everyone! Way to see the community come together!
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Need Help #2 - Bye, Bye Meat?
Ok. Here's the deal. I need to lose weight. 25-30 pounds to be exact.
I'm done having kids, done nursing, done having "excuses" to lug around this extra weight. I started going to the gym three days a week again back in November, so I'm started on the exercise part, but I need some work in the "food intake" area.
I've also found myself sucked in to
a contest with some of my fellow SEOs. Basically, ten of us are going to live blog our weight loss attempts over the next two months. There are five women and five men participating and we're gathering up sponsors. (Anyone interested?
Email me.) At the end of the two months, the man and woman with the highest percentage of weight loss will go head to head in a vote. Winner gets all of the sponsorship money for the charity of their choice.
Now obviously, I'm going to be playing for the milk banks.
We've got $2500 raised so far and we're all working our contacts. There's a good chance we can get the pot to $10K or more.
That's obviously pretty good motivation for me. I mean geeze, fit into skinny jeans AND help the milk banks? It's a win-win.
So to pull this off, I need a game plan. I'm going to be relying on bento boxes for portion control and healthy eating while I'm out and about (no more fast food) and I'm going to be mixing pilates into my workout schedule to cover me on the days when I don't make it to the gym.
Beyond that, I'm giving VERY serious consideration to giving up meat. (Please do not even think of suggesting I become a vegan cause it ain't gonna happen. I can live without meat, I refuse to live without organic dairy and organic eggs. :-P) I know several of my readers are vegetarians/vegans and I would love it if you'd share your favorite recipes and resources.
(NOTE: I'm reminded now of why I don't generally write and publish posts on the fly. Clearly people are reading this post and thinking I'm giving up meat as a "diet" to lose weight. That is not what I mean. I'm saying I'd like to try giving up meat because there are health benefits to doing so and because it will force me to work harder to incorporate whole grains and new veggies into my diet. There are sources of protein other than whole milk and peanut butter. ;) Giving up meat does not mean eating tons of fatty foods as protein replacements.)It will be a challenge for me as I don't like tofu, lentils or red/black beans. That said, I fully recognize the health benefits of eliminating meat from my diet. So...I'm willing to experiment with tofu, but let's aim for tofu in terms of stir-fry and maybe chili or spaghetti...not tofu as in "this chocolate dream pie made with silken tofu is fantastic! really, I promise!" ('cause I believed them and they're wrong.)
I also need a cheering squad/accountability squad. I need people to pester me about working out and what I eat. That might be in the comments here (because I get email notice) or even in the comments
over there once I start posting later today. In an ideal world, some of you would join me. :) If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll post weekly accountability posts here on The Lactivist where everyone can share their progress.
So, what do you say folks? Anyone have any tips, resources, ideas? Anyone want to join me in publicly saying "yeah, yeah, I'm fat. Let's get this fixed?"
Oh and is it cheating to eat a bunch of junk today to get it out of my system and to give me more weight to lose? (I kid! I kid!)
Labels: Healthy Eating, Healthy Living, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Final Push to Raise Funds for New England Milk Bank
Thanks to everyone who voted for the HMBANA milk bank in New England in the
Ideablob contest last week. Thanks to your help, they've made it into the finals!
That means we need
another push this week. For the next ten days, the milk bank will go head to head with seven other business ideas. Whichever one garners the most votes wins $10,000 in startup funds to get things moving.
The milk bank desperately needs this money to get up and running, so please take a moment to register and make sure to spread this message far and wide!
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Friday, January 18, 2008
Two Clicks Can Raise Money for Two Breastfeeding Friendly Groups
It's time to mobilize again ladies (and gents.)
Project The First: Help the Mother's Milk Bank of New England Raise $10,000There's a web site called
Ideablob that is sponsored by Advanta, the company responsible for a huge portion of the small business operating loans in this country. It's a new site I discovered a little ways back while doing some research for my day job.
When I saw it, I noticed that it didn't take more than several hundred votes for a busisness idea to win, so I contacted Tanya Leiberman of the
Motherwear blog and suggested the New England Milk Bank submit in an attempt to gain some much needed start-up funds.
Tanya emailed me back last week to let me know the bank had submitted their proposal and that the race was on to get enough votes to get into the finals. The milk bank is in the lead right now, but voting runs until the 21st. Please register at Ideablob and
cast your vote for the milk bank so we can make sure they get into the finals. (When they do, I'll let you know again so we can rally to get enough votes to make sure they win.)
Project the Second: Help Raise $50K for One of My Readers to Launch a "Cafe and Play"
Some of you may recognize the name Alissa DeRouchie from the comments section here on The Lactivist. Alissa has been a long time reader and an active player in the conversations that take place here. As it turns out, she's also been bitten by the entrepreneur bug.
Alissa and her husband are looking to open a new kid friendly cafe with healthy, affordable options. Picture the benefits of a Chik-fil-et or Burger King play area with the bonus of yummy, healthy food like you might find at a place like Panera Bread. What parent of toddlers wouldn't want a Cafe where their kids could safely play?
Alissa's idea is one of five finalists in
QuickBook's Just Start small business contest. Voting for the contest runs through the end of this month and the business idea that gathers the most vote will win $50,000 in start-up funds.
I'll tell you, I live here in the Columbus area where Alissa is located and I would LOVE to see this idea come to fruition. I've cast my vote and am asking my readers to consider adding their votes as well. Alissa is in second place right now, we need to get the votes moving.
You can follow Alissa's blog following their journey for this contest at
Vote Cafe and Play. You can watch their
video entry for the contest to get an even better idea of what they're planning.
I had hoped to get word of these out sooner, but my laptop has been out for repairs all week. I just got it back about an hour ago. The good news is that I've seen both of these stories circulating around email lists and parenting boards, so both are already getting really great exposure. That said, let's add some more votes for each cause and make SURE we advance breastfeeding and parenting.
Please go vote and then spread the news of each of these stories as far and wide as you can!
Labels: Life as a Mom, Milk Banking and Sharing, Nursing in Public
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Change in Milk Banking Rules
Wanted to pass along word I just received about a change in the rules for donating milk to the Mother's Milk Bank of Ohio.
One of their long standing rules was that you had to stop donating when your youngest child turned one year old. (I'd never quite gotten a good explanation for that, but apparently it's a common rule for HMBANA banks.)
I found out just this past week that the milk bank here in Columbus has lifted that rule and will now test milk from any mom and will accept it if the calorie and fat count reaches a certain level.
I don't know if this is a change at all HMBANA banks or just the Ohio bank (which is VERY short on milk), but it's worth checking if you're a mom with excess milk and open to donating.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Help Me Raise Some More Money for the Milk Bank?
This is totally off topic for the Lactivist, but it doesn't mean it's not a chance to spin it toward a Lactivist cause.
There's a dealio going on in my industry right now where a site has put together the "
Top 40 Most Influential People in Search Marketing." I've made the list, though that's not really why I'm posting this.
They've opened the list up to votes. Whoever
gets the most votes by the end of the year will have $500 donated to the charity of their choice. Obviously mine would be the Mother's Milk Bank of Ohio. So, here's one of those shots where a single vote from you (and some emails to your friends) can help me snag another $500 for an organization that desperately needs it.
Go vote! :)
Labels: All About the Kids, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Cross Feeding or Cross Nursing Documentary
Hey guys!
Still buried here. (Emmitt has gotten four molars and three other teeth in three weeks and it's looking like the rest may bust through in the next week or so. Nothing like going from 8 teeth to all of them in a month to make a kid cranky as all get out.)
I've had two emails in the last two weeks from folks working on documentaries about breastfeeding. One is specifically about wet nursing and cross feeding, the other is simply looking to do a segment on it. Both are looking for people who have shared breast milk with others (informally, not via a milk bank) and who have nursed other babies. One is also looking to find a mom who has served as a paid wet nurse.
If any of my readers fit the bill and are open to speaking with the film crews (both are UK based, but will speak with moms outside the UK), please drop me an email with your contact information (email or phone) and I'll pass it along.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The International Breast Milk Project in the News Again
The Orange County Register is running a story this week about the
International Breast Milk Project.
From the article:
April Brown strives to make a difference — even as a stay-at-home nursing mom.
Brown, who breast feeds her one-year-old daughter Bailey Mae, opened the organization's California chapter.
"It doesn't cost anything (to start a chapter) and it's a great cause to help," she said.
Brown has a personal connection to the nonprofit. Her mom, Elena Medo — the CEO and founder of Prolacta Bioscience — partnered with the International Breast Milk Project through her company to fortify human breast milk, needed for preterm babies to grow. Unfortunately, while the article does include information on the donation process, there is no mention of the fact that Prolacta and the IMBP ship just 25% of collected milk to Africa. (You may recall that the IMBP announced this policy after I
questioned their practices here on the Lactivist this past May.)
I wrote a letter to the journalist who wrote the article and left my own comments on the OC Register site, but I will say that it disappoints me (though it doesn't surprise me) to see a news story failing to disclose the actual amount of milk being shipped to Africa.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Friday, June 08, 2007
Salon.com Covers the International Breast Milk Project Controversy
Oh, what one little blog post can do...
Salon.com has picked up the story about Prolacta and the International Breast Milk Project and
asks a few questions of their own about how everything is working.
Earlier this week, Prolacta and Youse attempted to clear the milky waters. According to Elster, all milk received from the inception of the IBMP project to May 31 of this year will go to Africa. After May 31, however, IBMP will send 25 percent of all donations received to Africa, and 75 percent will be sold to Prolacta for $1 an ounce. What kind of profit margin does this mean for Prolacta? Potentially a motherlode. If, as Elster told me, the average donation runs around 180 ounces, then that would mean that 135 ounces (75 percent) "sold" to Prolacta would generate around $4,725 (at $35 an ounce) for the company, or about $3,890 after subtracting the expense of donor processing (about $700 per donor) and the cash payment to IBMP.Quite honestly, those numbers don't look much better than the ones I originally posted.
Basically, for every donor the International Breast Milk Project recruits, the IBMP will get 45 ounces of breast milk and $135. Prolacta, on the other hand would get 135 ounces of breast milk and up to $3,890 in sales.
Umm...that just doesn't seem right.
The article also touches on my question about the financial issues of shipping all that milk and includes a response from Jill.
Prolacta's profits aside, a question remains: Should we really be sending frozen breast milk to Africa? Given the shipping, the refrigeration, the sheer expense of transporting precious little of the precious liquid around the globe, is it more important as a symbol than as an effective solution? As Laycock observes: "Fifteen thousand ounces will feed three babies for six months. If those dollars spent processing and transporting milk could be spent setting up milk banking in a country, one can only imagine how much more they could accomplish."
In part, Youse agrees with this sentiment, though she adds that not all communities in Africa are good candidates for setting up local breast milk banks. In addition to widespread HIV infection among potential donors, there are cultural and practical obstacles. "In some places, it can work, in others it's never going to happen," says Youse. But in general she acknowledges that transporting milk safely to Africa is extremely expensive and not terribly efficient. I wonder if Oprah will read that article in Salon...
Labels: Lactivism, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
My Thoughts on the Prolacta / International Breast Milk Project Arrangement
So I've had a few days to mull things over since Jill shared the
new agreement between the International Breast Milk Project and Prolacta. I've also had a chance to send a few emails back and forth with Jill to clarify some points and to answer a few questions that I still had. Now that I've had some time to digest things, I think I'm willing to lay out my current thoughts on the subject.
(No idea what I'm talking about? Check out my original post asking if the
International Breast Milk Project is a scam?)
Where Things Stand NowFirst, let me lay out the facts about the relationship between Prolacta and the International Breast Milk Project according to Jill.
1.) Jill is NOT employed, paid or in any way compensated by Prolacta for her work with the International Breast Milk Project. While she does devote herself to the project full time, she is a volunteer. She tells me that she has reimbursed herself "around $3000" in the last year to cover her own personal expenses. She says that there are no plans for her to earn an income from either the IBMP or Prolacta.
2.) Prolacta and the International Breast Milk Project had collected roughly 55,000 ounces of donated milk for Africa as of May 31st, 2007. Prolacta had shipped around 15,000 ounces to Africa. They have confirmed that they will ship 55,000 ounces to Africa. In other words, ALL of the milk collected prior to June 1st WILL be shipped to Africa.
3.) Beginning June 1st, Prolacta will ship 25% of the milk received via the International Breast Milk Project to Africa. The remaining 75% of collected milk will be "purchased" from the IBMP at a cost of $1 an ounce. These funds are to be sent directly to the centers in Africa that are using the milk for the purpose of setting up their own systems. Prolacta and the International Breast Milk Project estimate that this will amount to roughly $50,000 to $75,000 a year in funding.
4.) The International Breast Milk Project has had more than 800 applicants but has only processed and accepted 275 donors.
5.) While the shipping from the United States to Africa is donated by various shipping companies, Prolacta's "cost" for supporting the project includes blood testing, shipping from donor moms to Prolacta and the milk screening and processing.
6.) Prolacta has been in business since 1999 and has made less than $1 million in the last seven years.
7.) The International Breast Milk Project has committed to yearly reporting on the amount of donor milk collected, the amount sent to Africa and the amount of funds raised from Prolacta.
What This News ChangesThe main thing that all of this changes is the idea of transparency.
You may recall that my primary motivator for my original post was the fact that moms were being drawn in to donate to a "tear-jerker" (but obviously wonderful) cause and that Prolacta might be profiting hugely from those mother's altruistic intentions.
If everything runs as Jill says it will, that risk is somewhat negated. Any mom that does even the smallest bit of reading on the IBMP site will know what percentage of their milk is going to end up in Africa.
Ultimately, that was the main goal of my post. To make sure that moms had the ability to make informed decisions. It appears that they will now be able to do so.
What This News Doesn't ChangeSo there's no denying that the IBMP and Prolacta stepped up to the plate when it came to transparency, but the reality is that this new information doesn't really do much to improve my opinion of the arrangement.
In fact, it pretty much confirms my own feelings that as a donor mom, I'd be sticking with HMBANA.
Here's why.
1.) While I understand that Prolacta spends a lot of money on screening, shipping and processing, there's a HUGE difference between recouping costs and making a profit. The system as it is set up now leaves them in a position with a strong potential for profit. The idea of a company profiting off of the donated milk of a mother seeking to help someone doesn't sit well with me.
The current agreement means that Prolacta will get about 75,000 ounces of breast milk a year in exchange for processing and giving away about 25,000 ounces of breast milk. For a company that has had a hard time gathering donors, this seems like a pretty fair trade. Sure, they're paying $1 an ounce for the 75K ounces, but they're also factoring in the cost of those other 25K ounces. Prolacta is not going to lose money on this deal, so you know that they know they can still come out ahead based on the 75K ounces.
2.) It's a bad business model. Sure there's money to be made...but as an entrepreneur I have to frown on any company that builds their business model off a process that requires someone else to provide your raw materials for free. Can you imagine Del Monte expecting farmers to ship their fruit and vegetable to them out of the goodness of their hearts? Why should breast milk be any different?
I'm a capitalist at heart. I believe in business and in charging what the market will bear. I don't believe that "essential" products should be given away for free. At the same time...I don't believe in profiting off of good will. In other words, if I found out that the Red Cross was selling 75% of my donated blood to a pharmaceutical company, I'd be equally upset.
3.) For every question answered, another one gets raised. For example, Prolacta has suddenly started promoting their "human milk based fortifier" and speaks of it repeatedly in the new FAQ section. Unfortunately, I cannot find any info on exactly what this is. I also can't find ANY confirmation that they have a true human milk fortifier other than what's on their web site. Considering the risks associated with milk fortifiers in micro-preemies (necrotizing entercolitis for one) and the fact that those risks would mostly vanish with the intro of a true human milk based fortifier, I'm honestly astounded that I can find no mention in the mainstream press, medical journals, IBCLC sites, Preemie sites, and so on.
In fact, I find it amazing that none of the the wildly intelligent women that I know who have had babies stay in NICUs within the last year have been able to find any information about a human based milk fortifier being available.
Thus, I'd love to hear more from Prolacta about exactly what it is that they have. Are they simply gathering the milk together and skimming off the top 10%...the way you'd take cream from cow's milk? That would create breast milk with incredibly high fat and calorie counts. It would also leave 90% of the milk to be used for pharmaceutical research.
Or, are they somehow creating an entirely need product that's formed from breast milk, but is a "new" product entirely? I'd just love to hear more about this and I cannot find any information at all apart from fuzzy marketing speak and press releases.
Where Does This Leave You?Well, it depends on how you feel about all of the above. I can't (and won't) tell you what you should do. I can simply tell you to read the information, consider the situation and decide where you want to donate your milk.
If you aren't near a HMBANA bank and want to donate badly enough to be ok with just 25% going to Africa, then go for it. If you are near a HMBANA bank and still want to donate to Prolacta, then that's your choice too.
They've certainly given us answers... I just can't say that they've made me happy.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Monday, June 04, 2007
Radio Show on Milk Banking
Note: Sorry about the slow response on the Prolacta/IBMP thing...I'm having lap top trouble and have limited time online, so "real" work has had to come first.Last night I had the pleasure of joining Tamara and Kristen on their show at Blog Talk Radio. We spent an hour talking about milk banking and the various topics related to it. We covered the HMBANA banks, for profit milk banking, how to become a donor, what the milk is used for...we even did a brief dive into the controversial practices of wet nursing, cross nursing and milk sharing.
If you're interested in any of those topics, you might enjoy
downloading the podcast of the show and giving it a listen. I actually had a great time talking with these two ladies and I think we managed to put out a fun, informative show.
I'll actually be on again this coming Sunday to talk about the culture in the United States as it relates to breastfeeding. We'll hit topics like breastfeeding legislation, breastfeeding in public, breastfeeding older children and anything else controversial we can think of.
So take a
listen to yesterday's show and if you like what you hear, mark your calendar for 6pm next Sunday so that you can listen live (or even call in with your own questions and comments.)
Labels: Lactivism, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Update on Prolacta and the International Breast Milk Project
I'll be back in the next day or so with my own commentary, but in response to
my post questioning the International Breast Milk Project, Jill Youse, the IBMP's founder has issued the following open letter.
Dear International Breast Milk Project Family,
I have some very exciting program updates for you!
Last fall, Prolacta Bioscience pledged to donate the processing of 10,000 ounces of donor milk for babies orphaned by HIV in Africa for the International Breast Milk Project (IBMP). I was thrilled with this pledge because it doubled the amount of our previous shipment.
Oprah’s coverage on the International Breast Milk Project coupled with other prominent news stories caused a ripple effect that no one could have imagined. To date, we have collected nearly 55,000 ounces of breast milk.
This overwhelming response from generous donors and supporters like you has enabled International Breast Milk Project to expand its reach. Last week, Prolacta Bioscience agreed to process and test even more donated breast milk for free. 25% of all donated breast milk—an estimated 25,000 ounces each year—will be screened, tested, and shipped by Prolacta each year for free. When you donate milk, Prolacta will segregate 25% of your milk to go to Africa, so every mom knows that some of her milk is going to help babies orphaned by poverty and disease in Africa. The rest of milk will stay in the US for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Prolacta has also agreed to donate $1 to International Breast Milk Project for every ounce of donated milk that stays in the U.S. Based on current donations, IMBP will receive $50,000 - $75,000 each year, ensuring a sustainable, steady source of funds to build critically needed healthcare clinics for babies orphaned by poverty and disease in Africa, and will provide a vehicle to help local moms donate milk. 100% of every dollar that each ounce of milk provides will go directly to supporting babies orphaned by HIV in Africa.
Ultimately, the vision of IMBP is to make donor breast milk a global norm. Our increased funding will enable us to achieve our goal which is to build critically needed healthcare clinics for babies orphaned by HIV in Africa. These clinics will also serve as a vehicle to help local moms donate milk. Breast milk donated within Africa provides an even more efficient and sustainable source of breast milk for infants there.
IBMP will publish quarterly donation reports on our website www.breastmilkproject.org, so you can track the ounces coming in and the funding going out. You will know that 100% of your milk is making a difference in the lives of babies orphaned by HIV in Africa.
Also, be sure to read through the updated Frequently Asked Questions on our web site, which provides detailed information about how and where your breast milk will be used.
Thank you again for your amazing response and support. Your donations mean a lot to us—and even more to the infants whose lives have been saved by your generosity and compassion.
Thanks,
Jill Youse
IBMP Home Page
INTERNATIONAL BREAST MILK PROJECT
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is the IBMP a non-profit organization?
o Yes. The International Breast Milk Project is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
o IBMP provides free donor breast milk to infants who have been orphaned by HIV in Africa.
2. How is the milk collected?
o There are several steps:
1. A candidate donor applies online and fills out a medical questionnaire. Once the questionnaire goes through medical review, the candidate is asked to get medical clearance for herself and for her child.
2. After medical clearance is received, IBMP bank arranges a blood test at the donor’s home which is paid for by Prolacta Bioscience. The blood test is performed by a national laboratory. At the same time, the potential donor provides a cheek swab to create a DNA match for the milk. This ensures that only milk from tested donors enters the system. The DNA test was developed and is paid for by Prolacta.
3. Once the blood test comes back clean, the donor is qualified! Prolacta sends a specially designed container and cooling bricks to the donor’s house using FedEx. The donor places the cooling bricks in her freezer for 48 hours in preparation for shipping. When ready, the donor mom places the milk and the cool bricks into the box and puts the prepaid priority FedEx label on the box. One call to FedEx, and the milk is on its way. Prolacta pays for all of the shipping.
4. Once the milk reaches Prolacta, it is tested for the five most common drugs of abuse, for excessive levels of bacterial contamination, and matched using Prolacta’s proprietary DNA matching technology.
3. How is my medical information handled?
o Each candidate is assigned a donor number. This donor number is the only identifying information that the national lab has. The lab uploads the results into the donor tracking management system so names and results are only known by the IBMP bank staff. IBMP bank is HIPAA complaint.
4. How is the breast milk shipped safely to Africa?
o The milk is frozen and sent on dry ice. Prolacta uses the same shipping containers that are used in the pharmaceutical industry to maintain the temperature. These containers have been tested and with the right amount of dry ice, they can hold the milk in a frozen state for seven days. Additionally, the companies that ship the milk, such as Quick International, have the ability to re-ice the shipments if there are delays in transport. To date, the milk has arrived frozen solid!
5. What does Prolacta pay for?
o IBMP bank arranges a blood test at the donor’s home which is paid for by Prolacta Bioscience. The blood test is performed by a national laboratory.
o The DNA test was developed and is paid for by Prolacta.
o Prolacta sends a specially designed container and cooling bricks to the donor’s house using FedEx. The donor places the cool bricks in her freezer for 48 hours in preparation for shipping. When ready, the donor mom places the milk and the cooling bricks into the box and puts the prepaid priority FedEx label on the box. One call to FedEx, and the milk is on its way. Prolacta pays for all of the shipping.
o Once the milk reaches Prolacta, it is tested for the five most common drugs of abuse, for excessive levels of bacterial contamination, and matched using Prolacta’s proprietary DNA matching technology. Prolacta pay for this extensive testing.
6. If the shipment to Africa is full, will I be told in advance of donating my breast milk?
o The shipments will continue as long as the milk for Africa is collected. If your breast milk arrives after the shipment cut-off date, it will simply go into the following shipment.
7. If the shipment to Africa is full, where will my milk go and who will it benefit?
o If you donate, at least 25% of your milk will go to Africa. The other 75% will be used in the U.S. to help critically ill infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Units. Some of this milk will be sold, some will be donated in the U.S., and some will be used in research to demonstrate the benefits of human milk fortifiers made from human milk.
8. If my milk is sold, how much will it be sold for?
o A portion of the milk that is not sent to Africa will be used to make human milk fortifier which is used for critically ill and premature infants. Prolacta produces the only fortifier made from 100% human milk for critically ill infants in the NICU. The fortifier is used to supplement a mother’s own milk. Like many products in the NICU, the cost of human milk fortifier is expensive. Human milk fortifier costs begin at approximately $100 per day per baby.
9. What is human milk fortifier?
o Human milk fortifier is used to increase the caloric content of mother’s milk. Currently, most premature infants are fed bovine (cow) based fortified milk using products made by formula companies. Prolacta’s Human Milk Fortifier is made from 100% human milk.
10. Do the non-profit milk banks sell a Human Milk Fortifier and if so how much does it cost?
o No. The non-profit milk banks do not sell a Human Milk Fortifier.
11. If human milk is perfect food, why fortify?
o By being born early, premature infants miss out on significant in-utero growth. Human milk does not have enough calories and protein to sustain the growth rates required for these babies to catch up with their full term peers. Feeding these babies more volume does not work since their stomachs are too small. The solution to this problem is to concentrate their food. The current standard of care is fortification using cow milk products. Prolacta Bioscience is offering an alternative by making a concentrated fortifier from 100% Human Milk.
12. How is fortifier administered?
o It is added to a mother's own milk, or to donor milk, and fed through a feeding tube.
13. How much of each donor’s milk is processed for Africa?
o At least 25% of the donation will be sent to Africa. Prolacta will also donate $1 to International Breast Milk Project for every ounce of donated milk that stays in the U.S.
14. Why does IBMP allow any of the donated milk to remain in the U.S. for use by a for-profit company?
o IBMP requested this combination of milk and financial support to meet the critical needs of infants in Africa. In order for IBMP to realize their vision of establishing donor breast milk as a norm in Africa, a supply of local donor milk must be established. Based on current donation rates, it is estimated that IBMP will receive $75,000 each year, ensuring a sustainable, steady source of funds to build critically needed healthcare clinics for babies orphaned by poverty and disease in Africa, and will provide a vehicle to help local moms donate milk.
o Prolacta has stepped up to support our efforts. Their organization is also a start-up organization, and the relationship is based on a sustainable model that allows them to donate the services that no other organization can provide.
o Partnering with a for-profit organization allows us to help babies in need in Africa AND to help critically ill babies in the NICU here in the U.S. It is a win-win situation.
15. What will the dollar per ounce be used for?
o This past year we have partnered with the Lewa Children’s Home Eldoret Kenya to bring clean water and healthcare to children orphaned by disease and poverty. We will help fund a healthcare clinic that will break ground in late 2007 or early 2008. We will be shipping the milk to Eldoret and exploring the possibilities of local milk donations. 100% of the dollar per ounce will go directly to aid the Lewa Children’s Home and healthcare clinic. Click here to view the photo album of the home.
16. Does anyone profit off of the IBMP milk?
o No one has made a profit to date; however, the hope is that there is enough profit in the future to continue to expand and support the program. More funds will enable us to build critically needed healthcare clinics for babies orphaned by poverty and disease in Africa as a vehicle to help local moms donate milk.
17. Does Prolacta sell milk online or to the public?
o No. Prolacta provides milk to hospitals only. You must have a prescription for Prolacta’s products.
18. Is it true that IBMP has had 800 donors for the IBMP?
o No. We have had over 800 applicants to IBMP. Currently, there are 275 qualified donors.
19. Why didn't you partner with non-profit milk banks?
o Prior to partnering with Prolacta, IBMP asked non-profits if they could partner with the International Breast Milk Project. The non-profits were very supportive but graciously declined for various reasons.
20. How exactly is Prolacta involved with IBMP?
o Prolacta donates the collection, processing, safety testing, and shipment of the breast milk to Africa. Prolacta uses state-of-the-art formulation (pharmaceutical grade), pasteurization, and filling processes to ensure the highest possible quality and safety of donor breast milk for babies. Their processes include tests for foreign (non human) protein, drugs of abuse, bacterial contamination, and PCR testing for viral contamination. Prolacta has been a pioneer in developing improved methods for all aspects of human milk testing and handling.
21. How much does it cost Prolacta to donate the collection, processing, safety testing and shipping services?
o The cost of collection is very expensive. The cost of collection, processing, safety testing, and shipping make up the majority of the cost of the product.
22. What is the relationship between IBMP and Prolacta?
o 25% of all mother’s milk received will be segregated during the testing process for shipment to Africa. 75% of the milk received will yield a $1.00 per ounce donation in the name of the mom to the International Breast Milk Project. 100% of these donated funds will be used to build critically needed healthcare clinics for babies orphaned by disease and poverty in Africa.
23. What percent of the $1/ounce that Prolacta donates to IBMP milk banks in Africa program goes toward Africa?
o 100%
24. Is it true that Prolacta has profited millions of dollars from donor milk?
o No. Since Prolacta was established in 1999, its commercial sales to date have been less than $1 million dollars.Labels: Lactivism, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
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Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Is The International Breast Milk Project a Scam?
Man do I hate asking questions like that. I mean who wants to be the jerk that questions the intentions of a group that aims to provide breast milk to AIDS orphans in a third world country?
I've been sitting on this post for awhile now trying to decide if I should publish it, or simply keep responding to the emails that I receive almost weekly from moms looking to donate to this organization. Then I saw that Mothering.com had decided to promote the International Breast Milk Project as their "activism alert" in their newsletter, and I realized that the time had come to speak up and say something.
I've made no secret of my dislike for Prolacta. I've even
written posts cautioning mothers about "
The National Milk Bank" and other non-HMBANA affiliated banks that are usually
serving as a front for Prolacta.
I wonder, how many Mothering readers know that Prolacta is the group now "funding" and "running" the
International Breast Milk Project?
Now, let me say that I have a great deal of respect for Jill Youse and her idea of setting up this organization. I think it's a beautiful idea and brings much needed attention to the HIV/AIDS crisis and the problems with formula use in third-world countries. In fact,
I wrote about this project back when I first heard about it.
From the IBMP site:
The International Breast Milk Project is the first organization in the world to provide donor breast milk from the United States to babies orphaned by disease and poverty. The first batch of donor milk arrived to the iThemba Lethu orphan home in April 2006. The organization was founded by Jill Youse and her brother Will Harlan. Over 800 moms have applied to donate to the Breast Milk Project.Now I understand that shipping milk to Africa is AMAZINGLY expensive. The cost of keeping that milk frozen and of safely transporting it is extremely high. Thus, it only makes sense that Youse needed to partner with a company to take care of the cost of processing and transporting the milk.
I just wish she'd chosen someone other than Prolacta.
I've got two primary issues with this arrangement and I think that any mom preparing to donate to the International Breast Milk Project needs to be aware of them and needs to consider them before making her choice of where to donate.
1.) Money. Apart from the very high cost of processing and shipping all that milk, there's the cost in screening donors, shipping them free hospital grade pumps, sending them free storage bottles and covering the full cost of shipping and materials to safely get the milk from donor mom to the Prolacta processing center.
Now, if all of the money put toward that was simply sent to Africa to allow them to work on setting up their own system of screening mothers and collecting local milk, I have to believe that it would go MUCH further than it will with the current setup.
In fact, this quote is from the IBMP web site:
We funded our first two banks in October 2006 established by Dr. Peter McCormick. Setting up small banks in rural Africa to benefit fragile, sick, preterm babies is neither expensive nor complicated: Dr. McCormick's milk banks cost less than $1000. Our goal is to continue to support this effort by implementing 4 hospital based banks in 2007-2008.If that's the case...why collect milk here at all? Why not use all those collection funds to start new banks in Africa? Quite honestly, there's just something that feels condescending to me about shipping over our American milk to "save" their babies rather than helping them make use of their own resources to save even MORE babies.
2.) Lack of Disclosure. Quite honestly, this is the biggie. I've had a LOT of email in the last six months from mothers that had/have signed on to donate to this organization. Every last one of them went through the screening process and went so far as to receive their donor kit before finding out that everything was being run through Prolacta. Most of them emailed me when they could not get a straight answer from Prolacta about whether or not the milk they donated would be going to Africa or into Prolacta's American milk bank. (Which charges hospitals roughly 10x more than HMBANA banks.)
I did some digging around and turned up a few things that simply don't add up.
Over 800 moms have applied to donate to the Breast Milk Project. (from the IBMP site.)
Some of your milk goes to babies in Africa and some of your milk stays here for critically ill babies in hospitals. Exactly how depends on how much you send and how much room is left in our shipment. (from the IBMP site)
"The average donor is probably pumping 800 to 1,000 ounces for a shipment, but it really varies. It could be 100 ounces; it could be 2,000."
(from Foreign Policy)
"All milk from qualified donors is pooled together in large batches when production begins, starting with the oldest milk in the freezers. This varies as milk from different donors becomes available. So percentages may vary from batch to batch. I can tell you that we have made the commitment to send 5,000 ounces twice a year to Africa and that the milk that comes into this bank is given priority to that commitment. Any amount of milk that is received beyond that will go to premature infants in the United States to enable additional donations to Africa. "
(from an email sent from "Robin" at Prolacta to one of my readers)So let's do the potential math there...
800 moms times an average of 500 ounces each. (Let's cut the above quoted average of 1000 ounces in half) = 400,000 ounces per year
Prolacta's commitment to Africa = 10,000 ounces per year (for those not so great at math, that's enough to feed two children 32 ounces a day for 5 months.)
Even if the IBMP is only bringing in half of my already halved estimate...that's 200,000 ounces a year of which 5% is being shipped to Africa and the rest is being used by Prolacta state side.
Does that seem wrong to anyone else?
Now, for full on accuracy, the Prolacta site says that all money "earned" from the breast milk donated to this project goes back into funding the project.
Well, let's see. If they have 390K ounces of excess per year that they are
selling at $35 an ounce. That's umm...$13.6 million.
Again, I ask...does anyone else feel like something a little strange is going on here?
I emailed Prolacta myself to try and get some answers from them on exactly how much of the milk that's donated to the IBMP will end up in Africa. I emailed three people. Twice. I could not get a response.
I'd love for them to respond now.
I want to believe that while I disagree with a lot of things about the way Prolacta is run and the way that they represent themselves, that they really are supporting this project with 100% openness and honesty.
Based on what I can find on the Prolacta and IBMP sites and in the news, what I'm hearing from donor moms and the lack of response to any questions I put forth to their staff, I'm left with the cynical thought that Prolacta has found a wonderful tear-jerker cause upon which to build a for-profit milk banking business.
Thinking about donating to the International Breast Milk Project?
How about writing a check to an
HIV/AIDS orphan charity and donating your milk to a
non-profit HMBANA milk bank instead?
Labels: Lactivism, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Monday, May 21, 2007
Breast Milk as a Cancer Treatment
There was a story that ran on CBS 5 in San Jose earlier this month that talked about
Howard Cohen and his breast milk smoothies. Cohen drinks a fruit, yogurt and breast milk smoothie each day after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.
His reasoning?
He read about a study that showed that
breast milk kills cancer cells. He started off drinking the breast milk of a friend, but soon turned to the Mother's Milk Bank of San Jose with a prescription from a doctor in hand.
He's not the first to try it. The San Jose Milk bank has shipped breast milk to dozens of adult cancer patients. Our milk bank here in Columbus has done the same.
Not everyone is a fan of the idea though.
Dr. David Newberg, an associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, put is this way: "I do think that it's premature for adults to be drinking breast milk. It hasn't been fully tested yet and we like to be very careful not to use things in humans that we don't understand."Umm...ok. Does anyone else think it's funny that Dr. Newberg speaks like breast milk is this mysterious unknown force that might hurt you if you drink it? I mean who knows for certain if it kills cancer, but I don't think anyone can argue that at worst, it will simply have no impact. Breast milk from a screened donor is not going to HARM anyone, no matter what the age. It just might not help them.
On the other hand, one of the other doctors interviewed makes a very good point.
Dr. Pamela Berens with the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine ... worries adults using donor milk will deplete the already limited supply, commenting that "right now we don't have enough breast milk for our donor milk banks for the premature infants who we have such wonderful data about the benefits."Honestly? That's my primary concern.
We don't have enough breast milk now for the babies in the NICUs across the country that desperately need it. Babies for whom breast milk means the difference between life and death.
While I'm fascinated with the idea that breast milk could help fight, or even cure cancer, I have a hard time justifying using up the very limited supply when there are lots of other treatments available for adult cancer patients.
That's not to say that I wouldn't pump for an adult friend with cancer if they asked me to. I'm just not keep on using our limited screened donor milk for that purpose.
But the thing that I find strangest about the story?
Mr. Cohen's quote that says:
"It doesn't taste all that pleasant. It's a bit oily and there's an after-taste."What? Oily?
I thought breast milk tasted like cantaloupe. (Anyone else remember that Friend's episode?)
Seriously though, I've tasted it...licking it off a finger, but I've never actually taken a gulp, so I have no idea what it tastes like. I just have a hard time believing that it's "oily."
It is pretty darn high in fat content though, so I suppose someone used to skim milk might find it to be a bit more fatty and could refer to that as oily...
That quote just really rubs me the wrong way though.
So how about you guys? Would you drink breast milk from a friend or milk bank if you were diagnosed with cancer? How far would you go to get it? Would you pump for a friend or family member? Do you support milk banks shipping breast milk to adults?
And seriously, is breastmilk "oily?"
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Friday, April 27, 2007
Is Wet Nursing a Bad Thing?
It's no secret that wet nursing is the topic du jour these days when it comes to the media and breastfeeding related issues. It's been in
Time Magazine, and on
The Today Show. I even had a call just yesterday about a radio station that was planning on covering the issue.
In general, my view of wet nursing gets laid down something like this...
1.) It's been around since almost the dawn of time, so long as the wet nurse has been tested for milk-born diseases, it's fine by me.
2.) I do worry about the idea of paying women to be wet nurses, especially if those women have children of their own. My biggest concern is obviously...what happens to the children of the wet nurse? Are they being given formula so that mom can nurse the baby that carries a pay check?
3.) I also worry about
the bonding. The nursing relationship creates a
powerful physical and emotional bond. I guess I don't see how an infant (and even a child) could separate that bond and really fully understand the difference between a wet nurse and a mother.
Now with that in mind, I've seen two things pop up in the last few days that have caused me to have even more concern about the issue.
The first is from the
Foreign Policy blog. The author wonders what will happen if human milk becomes part of a global trade.
...if the for-profit breast-milk industry grows (in 2005, demand for breast milk from one nonprofit association of milk banks grew 28 percent), where will companies get all their milk once altruistic donors run dry? If they follow the model of other American businesses, they might turn to the developing world for their raw material—in this case, breast milk.
It would be expensive to ship frozen milk across continents and oceans, but given that Prolacta last year was marketing milk at $35 per ounce, it's possible that paying low amounts to women in the developing world would make importing a viable business strategy.
Clearly, though, there are a lot of sensitive questions to be debated. Is this exploitation of poor women, or is it giving them income for a body fluid they supposedly can't use anyway?Yikes. That thought had honestly never occurred to me. I've written about my concern on that level for paid milk banking. I've often worried that if milk banks like Prolacta began purchasing milk that they would then process and sell that you'd run into some serious ethical issues.
For instance, you could have moms pumping and selling their milk while formula feeding their own children. After all, if you could sell your breast milk for a few dollars an ounce, you'd have enough money to pay for anything your baby needed, even formula.
Then I spotted another post on the topic that spun the concerns off into a whole other direction.
Jennifer James over at Black Breastfeeding Blog puts the
issue of wet nursing into a historical perspective and sheds some light on a history that I'm sure many of us haven't considered.
Forced wet nursing during slavery and then wet nursing for survival post-Civil War caused untold pain in the black community that still resides with us today. In my opinion, wet nursing is the primary contributor to the low breastfeeding rate among black women in America. When breastfeeding rates are as low as is currently evidenced among black women, babies and families alike suffer. Because breastfeeding produces so many health benefits to children and mothers, when breastfeeding is noticeably absent in such high numbers, black babies aren't as healthy as they could be. Today, this may not have been the case had black mothers been able to nurse their own children throughout American history instead of being forced to work the fields or be house slaves.
On the farther end of the spectrum, wet nursing was yet another factor that kept black women from bonding with their children both during slavery and afterward. Black women so often were nursing white children that their own children were not able to benefit from the healing properties of breast milk and the natural bond between mother and child. These reasons alone make wet nursing one of the worst institutions imposed upon black women. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but I'll be completely honest and say that I read that and went "oh wow." (And not in the happy way, more in the "holy crap, that's horrible and I can't believe I never realized it!" way.)
Talk about adding a whole other level to the debate...
Here I am talking about my own fear of wet nursing being used to exploit low income women without realizing that the exact history of wet nursing in the United States was closely tied to that very thing. (Though obviously far worse than simply exploiting low income women.)
I wonder, do these posts change the debate for you?
I still don't have a problem with wet nursing per say, since in this day and age one would like to think that someone becomes a wet nurse purely by choice...but it does spark in my mind that creeping bit of doubt that says that there's a fine line between "by choice" and "by necessity" and that it's a line we don't want to see crossed.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
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Thursday, April 26, 2007
Outsourcing Breastfeeding on the Today Show
I posted earlier this week looking for some moms that had cross nursed or wet nursed. Thankfully, many of you wrote to help me track down some women for a spot on national TV.
The spot aired this morning on the Today Show on NBC and should be available online shortly.
It started with a quick scene of Kirsten Dunst in Marie Antoinette just after she'd had a baby. She says (as they are taking the baby away) "I'd like to feed him." The woman taking the baby responds "But madam, we have a nurse for that," as the baby is whisked away.
Next we cut to Janet Shamlian of NBC Chicago reporting on mothers. They speak with Tabitha Trotter who says she often breastfeeds someone else's baby. She states that she has nursed the children of gay men, of moms that have multiples, moms that are on medications, etc. She estimates that she's nursed more than 40 infants over the last decade. She's never charged for her services though, she does it, because she wants to help.
They then cut to Gretchen Flatau, the Executive Director of the Mother's Milk Bank of Austin, Texas. She mentions that there's a risk of direct cross nursing or wet nursing because of the potential to spread viruses. She talks about the screening process and the pasteurization process of the HMBANA milk banks.
They cut back to Trotter, who explains that the pasteurization process destroys some of the benefits of the breast milk and that she feels that the milk has the most impact when it comes straight from the source.
Shamlian then mentions a service in California that wet nurses can be hired through. They stated that the going rate for a wet nurse starts at $1000 a week. (Though I think what they meant was that it ADDED $1000 a week to the typical nanny fee, as from what I understand, the wet nurses of this variety also serve as nannies.)
Shamlian also mentioned that while wet nursing and cross nursing are happening, many women fear being judged when they talk about it publicly, so it still mostly goes on quietly and behind closed doors.
With that segment wrapped up, they shift to Merideth Viara in the NBC Studios. With her are:
Jacqueline Wolf, Department of Social Medicine, Ohio University
and
Jeanne Rosser, from La Leche League International
On the topic of professional wet nursing, neither one is in favor. They both point out that there's a concern about the potential of exploitation for the mother's of poor children. (A concern I've noted in the past as well...) Wolf points out that paid wet nursing is a situation "frought with peril" due to the potential for jealousy between the mother and the wet nurse since nursing creates such an intense physical bond.
When it comes to cross nursing, where mothers aren't paid, both women support the idea. They explain that it takes so much time, so much concentration and so much focus to have that breastfeeding relationship and with more than half of mothers with children under a year old working, it's a time issue. They talk about a mom's need to focus on work, to focus on nursing the baby to focus on older children and basically point out that many moms are "too busy" to be able to fully nurse their own children.
Rosser explains that mothers need to know that there are risks involved in cross nursing, and states that LLL likes to support the mother/baby nursing relationship. She states that La Leache League does support milk banking because milk banking is screened to rigorous standards and is pasteurized for extra protection.
Wolf explains that if you are going to cross nurse or have a wet nurse, you need to know "as much about that mother as you would know about a sexual partner."
Viera asks about bonding between mother and child. "If you are't feeding, do you break that bond?"
Wolf states that that is her primary concern about wet nursing, that a paid nurse is nursing th baby all the time. That means that a strong bond is going to form between wet nurse and baby rather than mother and baby. She goes on to explain that with informal cross nursing, it's an occasional thing and it's very unlikely that you'll risk breaking that mother/child bond.
Viera asks about what a mom that is interested in doing this should ask.
Wolf (I think) replies that you need to know the woman's health history and situation and that she should go through a health screening similar to what she would if she was going to give blood. She went on to point out that this practice is more common than people realize, but they ran out of time and the segment actually cut Viera off in closing to go to local news.
Overall, I think it was a very good, very positive piece, far better than I had hoped for. Hopefully the the transcript and video will go up later today so that I can link to that.
ETA: The Today Show has the
story up online now.
Labels: In the News, Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Dr. Phil is Glad He Wasn't Breastfed
If you haven't already started to hear the buzz, you will soon.
On today's episode of Dr. Phil, he and several other doctors (including a pediatrician and an OB/GYN) were covering a wide variety of controversial topics. Things like older women having babies, celebrity rehab, sleep issues, and so on. During the conversation, wet nursing came up.
Since I can't find the video anywhere on YouTube yet, I've put together a transcript for you.
DR. PHIL: All right. Another topic that gets people talking, and this one just, I got to tell you, this kind of creeps me out, is the use of wet nurses popping up in social circles. Can't breast-feed your baby? No problem. Call one of your friends who's breast-feeding and see if they can do it!
What is up with this?
Dr. MASTERSON: They need to really start thinking about it, because they don't know what their friends have that they could be passing to the breast milk. So at that point, you know, formula may be just as good. I mean...
McGRAW: Well, psychologically speaking, I got to tell you...
Dr. STORK: That's gross.
McGRAW: ...if I grew up and found out that my mother had been passing me Around the neighborhood, I'd be walking down the sidewalk going, 'Oh, God. Is she one of them? Oh, no!' I mean, that would be horrible.
Dr. ORDON: I know--I know I was never breast-fed. Maybe that's why I went into breast surgery. I...
McGRAW: Yeah.
Dr. MASTERSON: My...
McGRAW: Well, I wasn't either, and I'm glad now.
Dr. MASTERSON: I think there's real big time when that, you know, nursing helps to, you know, mother and child bonding. I mean, what do you think?
McGRAW: Yeah, but I don't want to bond with the neighbor.
Dr. ORDON: On a serious note, some women, for whatever reason, they may have had cancer surgery, they just may have very poorly developed breasts, they just can't breast-feed.
Dr. BROWN: There are people who cannot breast-feed and there are alternatives. They actually have mother's milk banks where this milk is actually, you know, the moms are tested, the milk is tested. It's pasteurized. I mean, I would definitely do that. But this is just really wrong on so many levels. OK?
McGRAW: We got to move on.I find this sad.
Why?
Not because they talked down about wet nursing...after all, I can completely understand that most people would be uncomfortable with the idea in this day and age. I personally don't think there's anything wrong with it, but I understand how it weirds people out.
What makes me sad is the fact that a group of doctors that includes a pediatrician and an OB/GYN think that the only benefit of breastfeeding worth mentioning is the bonding.
Perhaps Dr. Phil and his guests fall into the
25.7 percent of Americans that think formula is just as good as breast milk.
While I have no problem with them cautioning against the casual sharing of breast milk without properly screening the mom acting as wet nurse, they could have easily done so without all the "gross" and "really wrong on so many levels" talk, you know?
What they've done is further perpetuate the myth that breastfeeding is ONLY about emotional bonding.
They've also perpetuated the idea that breastfeeding has some type of sexual aspect to it by ranting about how sick and disgusting it is for one woman to nurse another's child.
Then again, Dr. Phil and I don't agree on a lot of issues, so I don't suppose I should be surprised about this one. Again, I'm just VERY disappointed to see them fail to recognize the health benefits of breast milk and to understand that some moms may want those benefits badly enough to seek out a wet nurse. It also fails to take into account that to many women, cross-nursing babies (say while baby-sitting for a friend) is no different than letting another mother give your child a bottle.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Friday, March 23, 2007
A Milk Bank Donor's Story
Sometimes I get an email that I really think is worth sharing with my readers. This one comes from Jessica Lietz, a Lactivist reader here in central Ohio.
...I made my first milk donation to the Mother's Milk Bank of Ohio yesterday!
Yesterday was my 28th birthday and I was thrilled to do this. Georgia gave me the tour and I saw your name on the plaque as being one of the first donors. That is awesome! I am so excited to be able to have extra milk to donate. My only sibling, my sister Mary was born at 23 weeks gestation and could have benefited from a milk bank. Mary is 24 years old now but was never expected to survive the ambulance ride from Port Huron (MI) where she was born to Detroit Children's Hospital. She weighed 1# 2oz and was the length of a Barbie doll.
I was 3 when she was born. Our Mom had difficulty while pregnant with me and I was an emergency c-section. My Mom was 19 when she had me and 22 with my sister.
Mary is deaf, blind, has cerebral palsy and has severe mental retardation as a result of her prematurity. BUT, she has a beautiful smile and laugh, she loves to ride horseback, loves rides at the fair and likes to go for walks with my parents. My parents still take care of her at home and in MI she goes to school yet for another year.
I've been involved in OhioSIBS since I moved to Columbus almost 5 years ago, it's for adult siblings of people with special needs. I had a fellowship at OSU's Nisonger Center and was their first epidemiology fellow. So donating to the milk bank to help babies that need the benefit of human milk is an extension of what I've been doing for years. And not only is it me helping, but Natalya helping as well because if it weren't for her, I wouldn't have all this milk!
So, it was an unusual way to celebrate my birthday but it made me very happy.
And Georgia said they were getting low on milk and were looking forward to my donation (about 200 oz) so they really made my birthday a special one. I hope my birthday makes some baby's "birth" day special too :)If you've never considered donating milk and live anywhere near a
HMBANA bank, give it some thought. As I've mentioned before...every drop counts.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant. |
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Denver Milk Bank Offering Loaner Pumps
Earlier this month I put out a call for breast milk donors for the
HMBANA milk bank in Denver. I mentioned that their freezers were running low and that I hoped that any moms in the area would consider donating.
I heard back today from Amy at
Crunchy Domestic Goddess. She said she contacted the bank and mentioned that she had plenty of milk but didn't have a good electric pump for expressing it. Turns out that the Denver milk bank will lend out pumps to their donors!
If you live in the Denver area and have considered donating but lack a good pump, I hope that you'll give them a call and see if you qualify as a donor.
Every drop counts.
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
Author: Jennifer Laycock » Comments:
