Blacktating

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-17T08:34:00.000-04:00

I first saw this photo posted on my friend's Facebook page. I asked him what the heck this product is and he said "Cambodian breast milk." I thought he was joking (he's not Asian, so I assumed he was just making shit up to mess with me) but check out this recent article on Weird Asia News. Maybe he wasn't joking after all!

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Black Family: A Doula Story

2010-03-16T21:39:00.000-04:00

I have been meaning to blog about Loretha Weisinger for about a year now, but I could never quite put into words the way I feel about her, the work she does with poor teenage mothers in Chicago, and the excellent documentary about her, Black Family: A Doula Story. There just really aren't words to express the depth of the love Loretha has for these young women who often have no one else in their lives who even care about them and their unborn children, let alone love them.

Loretha herself was a statistic, a poor, single teenage mother, who remembers contemplating suicide after the birth of her child at 16 because she desperately needed help and couldn't find any. She provides the help for these girls that was missing from her own life. In addition to doula services, Loretha nurtures the girls throughout their pregnancies, teaching them about healthy eating, how to care for and love a baby, breastfeeding and how to manage their pain during labor. All of this is provided for free, and Loretha even provides postpartum support up to 12 weeks and even longer if the girls still need it because she doesn't want to leave them without a support system.

One of the reasons that I think breastfeeding is so important for black moms is that research has shown that moms who breastfeed are less likely to abuse their children and breastfeeding naturally lends itself to a more nurturing parenting style. I feel like I see a lot of black parents who are big on discipline but not necessarily loving touch. I really believe that a lot of the violence problems in our community start in the home, with child-rearing techniques that rely too heavily on corporal punishment. In the documentary, Loretha talks about how the girls she cares for have never been parented in a loving and nurturing way, so how can they pass that on to their babies if they've never felt it before? She says:

I’ll ask them, ‘Is it OK if I hug you’? and I’ll say 'See how that felt? I’m hugging you, not to get nothing from you, but just to have the feeling…to bring you where I am.'"

More than how to give birth, Loretha is teaching these young girls how to love. She talks to them about the importance of breastfeeding, reading to their babies, playing classical music for their babies. She tells them how when the baby cries, you need to pick her up because you need to show her you love her and that you're going to take care of her. For so many who've never known love, Loretha is the shining example of what it means to love unconditionally.

If you have about an hour, I highly recommend taking the time to watch the documentary. Have any of you heard of Loretha before? What do you think of her story?

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Happy Black Girl Day!

2010-03-10T06:24:00.001-05:00

I'm pleased to present a post today in honor of the Happy Black Girl Day 2: Happier and Blacker. HBGD was created by Sista Toldja of The Beautiful Struggler, whom I fell in love with after her post on why black women weren't exactly thrilled with the choice of Reggie Bush as Essence Magazine's "love issue" cover model. But enough about the stuff that pisses us off, Happy Black Girl Day is about celebrating everything that is wonderful about being a black girl.

So today I am celebrating some of my favorite black girls who understand the importance of birth autonomy, breastfeeding and natural parenting. Here are my Top 5.

#1. Phylicia Rashad- Yes, the original black Super Mom is a breastfeeding mom in real life. Not to be outdone by the character she played for years, Phylicia is a phenom who is not only still acting but also recently narrated "Bringin' in da Spirit," a documentary about the history of black midwives in America. She hosted a DVD that provided breastfeeding information for parents-to-be called "Your Healthy Baby." On Mother's Day she appeared on the Al Sharpton radio show to discuss maternal health and stressed the importance of food as medicine and the importance of motherhood.

#2. Lisa Bonet- OK, so she's a little nuts (I mean, Lilakoi Moon? Really?) but she's in a relationship with the super hot Jason Momoa and has ridiculously gorgeous kids. She's also a self-proclaimed "hippie at heart" who gave birth at home and breastfed all her babies.

#3. Deborah Cox- The platinum-selling singer is a mom of three breastfed babies. Deborah says she is "a big believer in breastfeeding" because "at the end of the day, you have healthier kids." So true!

#4. Halle Berry- The most beautiful mom on the planet breastfed her daughter and praised Larrivo nursing bras for making breastfeeding "sexy." She's also a co-sleeping mama: baby Nahla slept in an Arms Reach co-sleeper.

#5. Tonya Lewis-Lee- Spike Lee's wife Tonya is the executive producer of the film "Crisis in the Crib," a documentary about the high infant mortality rate in the black community. She is working with the department of Health & Human Services to promote breastfeeding and was the face of the "A Healthy Baby Begins With You" campaign. Tonya was breastfed herself until she was two and plans on nursing her own daughter just as long.

Want to read the other Happy Black Girl Day posts? Check them out here (will be updated throughout the day).

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Breastfeeding jokes galore on The Office

2010-03-05T07:54:00.000-05:00

Did you catch last night's episode of The Office? Before it started, I tweeted my prediction for lots of breastfeeding jokes and they didn't disappoint! Pam and Jim had their baby girl and like many new moms, Pam had some trouble getting the baby to latch. Every time she tried to ask her nurse for help with breastfeeding, the nurse offered to take the baby to the nursery and give it a bottle. So frustrating, but unfortunately, that seems to be a universal experience amongst moms who gave birth in the hospital.

I loved that the lactation consultant in the hospital was male and that Pam accidentally breastfed her roommate's baby (wonder if she'll sue the hospital?) The only part I didn't like was Pam wearing that damn nursing cover all the time, even when in the hospital bed (does anyone really do this?). In the last scene she is struggling to get the baby to latch on while Jim has gone to install the carseat and I was hoping she would snatch the cover off and that would make the baby latch on properly, but alas it didn't go down that way. Oh, well, you can't have everything, right?

My next prediction? Pam is back to work and pumping, Michael "accidentally" walks in on her and hilarity ensues.

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Kourtney Kardashian: Future Lactivist?

2010-03-03T22:35:00.000-05:00

I swear, I was never a fan of the Kardashians, but I am quickly falling in love with Kourtney. The new mom was calm, cool and collected during the recent birth of her son Mason (she even caught the baby herself!) and has been extolling the virtues of breastfeeding online. She has talked about tasting her own breast milk on Twitter and now we get this choice quote in the latest Us Weekly:

"If I have to feed him, I just whip it out. If I'm doing it in public and someone doesn't like it — don't look. I don't give a shit."

Loves it!

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Simplisse Breast Pump Review & Giveaway

2010-03-01T21:24:00.000-05:00

I've got a fabulous giveaway for a Simplisse manual breast pump and breastfeeding accessories over at Blacktating Reviews. The total prize is worth over $100! Go enter now.

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Wordless Wednesday: Imagine Living in this Building

2010-02-24T05:00:00.000-05:00

Breastfeeding Mural, Denmark

Photo by Passion for Birth

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Stephen Colbert Breastfeeds His Grammy

2010-02-23T21:56:00.000-05:00

Stephen Colbert must know a lot of about breastfeeding. First, he discussed pumping at work with Rep. Carolyn Maloney. Now, he talks about breastfeeding his Grammy.

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Stephen Apologizes for Feeding His Grammy Baby Food

www.colbertnation.com

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor

Skate Expectations

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Action Against Hunger & UNICEF's Breastfeeding Initiative in Haiti

2010-02-23T21:10:00.000-05:00

The organization Action Against Hunger has created an initiative in Haiti, supported by UNICEF, to protect breastfeeding in Haiti. Since the earthquake, lots of mothers have stopped breastfeeding under the mistaken belief that stress and lack of adequate food would make their breast milk go bad. With the influx of formula donations, a lot of women began to formula feed, despite the lack of access to clean drinking water.

After the earthquake, AAH set up tents in Port-au-Prince to provide mothers a safe place to breastfeed their babies. The women in the tents also provide mothers with medical, nutritional and emotional support. Here is a short video about the initiative and how AAH is working to protect breastfeeding in Haiti.

Meeting Urgent Needs of Women with Young Children in Haiti from Action Against Hunger USA on Vimeo.

You can read more about these "Baby Tents" on UNICEF's site. Also, American Idol star Kris Allen recently visited Haiti and performed "Amazing Grace" for the women and children in one of the Baby Tents.

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Lawmaker Calls for Ban on Selling Breast Milk

2010-02-20T12:52:00.001-05:00

Last fall, Channel 3 News out of Memphis, TN ran an investigative journalism piece on women who buy and sell breast milk online. Their "investigation" uncovered what most of us already knew exists: a marketplace online, on various forums, where women post about their need to purchase breast milk and moms with a healthy supply offer up their extra for sale. It's been going on for quite a while, and will continue to go on because there are a lot of women who don't believe formula is a safe alternative to breast milk who either can't breastfeed or don't make enough to meet their baby's needs.

A local Memphis lawmaker named Joe Towns, Jr. got wind of the story and has proposed a ban on selling breast milk online. In one of the most ironic statements ever, he declared selling breast milk to be "purely profit driven," and that "we should never place profit over the health concerns of infants." Maybe he should spend a while reading about the marketing tactics the formula companies use if he wants to talk about placing profit over the health concerns of infants.

Despite how you may feel about buying and selling breast milk online (I personally wouldn't do it, and this practice is discouraged by La Leche League), I don't think it's "purely profit driven" for the women involved. I think moms who sell their breast milk online feel a kinship with other women who want to breastfeed and for whatever reason can't supply their babies with all of the milk they need. The sense I've always gotten is that these women feel they are doing a favor for a friend, not creating a business enterprise. Besides, no one online is selling her breast milk at the same cost as the for-profit companies like Prolacta, who charge $3 per ounce for breast milk.

I think Rep. Towns could better use his muscle to help create milk banks in Tennessee, so that women whose babies need breast milk have a safe way to obtain it. If there were more human milk banks that were fully stocked with screened milk, moms wouldn't have to risk their baby's health by buying it online from virtual strangers. He, like many people, seems to be bothered by the "ick" factor of sharing human milk, rather than considering how breast milk is the normal food for infants and is life-saving in many cases. Women who can't breastfeed should have real options and be able to make an informed choice on whether or not they want to use formula. Right now, the only thing women who've educated themselves about the potential dangers of formula can do is buy breast milk online from women they don't know. And that is a problem.

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Other Uses for Breast Pumps

2010-02-19T05:48:00.018-05:00

Have you ever stopped to consider any other uses for your breast pump? I mean, after you fork over hundreds of dollars for a quality pump, you may feel like you got your money’s worth if you were able to provide that liquid gold for your baby for a full year (or more!) But perhaps you ladies who are more, um, frugal, wish that you could’ve found yet another use for your pump. If you’re both cheap and lazy, you’ll love what the guys at Evil Mad Scientist came up with…..a cocktail robot that makes mixed drinks. Hot!

Apparently there are people all over this great country of ours who spend lots of time creating Barbots, AKA robot bartenders. There was even a festival celebrating these cocktail robots in San Francisco last night.

This beauty was created using an Evenflo double electric pump and is capable of making cocktails with up to three ingredients. According to its inventor, it was tricky finding a pump that could quickly move liquids, but was also safe to use with food. Enter the breast pump! He says:

"If there's one consumer group that I can expect to be more picky than me when it comes to food safety it's new mothers, so these pumps-- designed to move food grade fluids without contamination-- aren't actually a crazy thing to consider. They are cleanable, don't use much power, and are inexpensive. Amazon sells a pair of these "Evenflo Comfort Select Performance" units for $45. (Try as I might, I could not find a three-pack anywhere.)"

And for those of you intellectuals who are into science and engineering, here’s what your breast pump looks like on the inside.

By the way, the guy behind Evil Mad Scientist used this baby to create a White Russian. I won’t ask where he got the milk.

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The CinnaMom: Jerilyn Brusseau

2010-02-17T09:32:00.000-05:00

I recently went on a trip to Seattle sponsored by Cinnabon. If you care to read the details of that trip and enter a giveaway for a $20 gift certificate to Cinnabon, please see this post.

On my trip, I got to meet the woman who created the Cinnabon back in 1985, Jerilyn Brusseau. All of the bloggers on the trip took a moment to introduce ourselves to Jerilyn and talk about our blogs. After the introductions, Jerilyn came over to talk to me and tell me how wonderful she thought it was that I write a breastfeeding blog. She told me how when she was pregnant with her first child at age 21, she wanted to breastfeed, but everyone around her kept telling her she should be a modern woman, there was Gerber now, so you don't have to "do that."

"Well, I've always been a bit of a renegade," she told me, "and I knew I was going to breastfeed that baby!" And she did. She connected with a local woman in her community who just happened to be a member of La Leche League and gave her a book called The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding. "All I had was that book, and it taught me how to nurse," she said.

Not only did Jerilyn go on to nurse her children, she and some other ladies from her local chapter of La Leche League actually started their own milk bank in the 60s for a baby that wasn't thriving on formula at a local Seattle hospital. They got a van and a fridge and would drive around collecting the milk and bringing it to the hospital and saved that baby's life. Jerilyn's daughter even works as a lactation consultant today!

Isn't that amazing? One woman was able to help Jerilyn and it changed her life and affected not only her family, but the people around her. Now her daughter is on a mission to help moms and babies, too. It gave me goosebumps to hear her story and I am so glad she shared it with me and that I am able to share it with you. Jerilyn is an inspiration, but so are all of you. You help women to breastfeed, to meet their nursing goals, you give them a sense of community. You can never know how many people's lives you change with your passion for and advocacy of breastfeeding. So if no one has told you yet today or recently, thank you. Thank you for your commitment to this cause, for all you do to help women and babies.

And an extra shout out to Alice of Sweet Savory Life and Shara of Mommy Perks, who have nursed three kids each! And to Cathy of Gastronomy Blog, who doesn't yet have kids, but bragged about the superiority of her mother's breast milk and plans to breastfeed her future babies.

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Black Women Breastfeeding: A Multigenerational Story

2010-02-10T08:41:00.000-05:00

Here is a beautiful video featuring one family's story of breastfeeding.

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Come Out of the Closet, Michelle!

2010-02-09T08:41:00.000-05:00

Remember during the election when I wondered if the Obama kids were breastfed? Apparently, they were! Yes, Michelle Obama has always been on SuperMom status: gorgeous, smart, an attorney, and a breastfeeding mom! I don't know how anyone knows for sure that Michelle breastfed, but apparently it's a known fact that Michelle nursed both of her daughters and pumped for them at work.

You may have read that Michelle will be unveiling a new anti-obesity campaign, the details of which will be announced on Tuesday. So far Michelle has declined to speak about breastfeeding, but advocates are hoping she will change her mind, since we know that breastfeeding is part of a healthy lifestyle that does prevent obesity in children and helps moms lose the pregnancy weight easier.

"We have a dynamic role model in the White House, a black woman who gets the idea that she can go to work, be a lawyer and still provide milk for her baby," said Napiera Loveless, co-founder of MamaTotoMatema, a Cincinnati-based organization committed to educating and encouraging leaders and health care professionals to adopt different approaches to promoting breastfeeding in African American families. "She takes away the excuse."

Michelle is also such a beloved figure for African-American women, who knows how much influence she would have if she talked about the wonders of breastfeeding! I'm constantly bemoaning the lack of breastfeeding role models in the black community, and I've been holding out hope for Beyonce to get pregnant and breastfeed. But if Michelle Obama has already breastfed, has pumped at work, understands the commitment it takes and can speak to the benefits of breastfeeding and how worth it it is to make some sacrifices for your baby, well, I think that would be a huge boon to the cause.

So come on, Michelle! Come out of the closet! Talk about breastfeeding! You have the power to make a difference in the number of our women who choose to nurse. We're counting on you. I'm counting on you!

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Scientists link serotonin deficit to SIDS

2010-02-03T15:14:00.001-05:00

Despite the "back to sleep" campaign and increased awareness on how to prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, it's still the number one cause of death of babies in the US during their first year of life. A recent study may shed some light on why certain babies may be more susceptible to dying of SIDS.

According to Dr. Hannah Kinney, who conducted the research on the brain stems of 41 babies who had died of SIDS, serotonin levels in 35 of the SIDS babies were 26% lower than in all babies who had not died of SIDS. The article states:

Kinney had previously found differences related to serotonin receptors in SIDS babies' brain stems, but it was not clear whether there was too much or too little of the neurotransmitter that sends signals between nerve cells. An unanswered question was whether the serotonin was there and the babies' brains were unable to use it.

Marian Willinger, who is responsible for the SIDS research program at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, called Kinney's results on a serotonin deficit important.

"I think this is an important advance in our understanding of what's wrong with the brain stem of many babies who die from SIDS," she said in an interview. "It helps us ... to understand the pathophysiology, how the baby dies, because we don't really know."

Kinney said the goal is to identify the infants who have this problem.

"We are closer than we have been, but we still have quite a journey to go, to test and then identify it in the living infant and then to have a treatment for it," she said. "Those are long-term goals and we know we are years away from them."

So what does this have to do with breastfeeding? In a 1997 article, Dr. James Prescott talks about the role of breastfeeding and breast milk in brain development. He states:

"There is another neurobiological mechanism involved in the development of brain serotonin–tryptophan–a precursor amino acid essential for the development of brain serotonin which is richly present in colostrum and breastmilk but absent in formula milk. Thus, two distinct and different neurophysiological mechanisms have been identified that contributes to deficits in brain serotonin: a) failed physical affectional bonding in the maternal-infant/child relationship (sensory processes); and b) the amino acid tryptophan present in colostrum and breast milk but absent in formula milk (neurochemical processes)."

It's interesting stuff and definitely worth reading. I am always surprised that there are very few mentions of breastfeeding as a way to reduce the risk of SIDS, yet there seems to be a lot of research to suggest that breastfed babies die of SIDS at a much lower rate. I think this serotonin finding is just another example of that. I'd be curious to know how many of the 35 babies whose serotonin levels were much lower than normal were also being breastfed.

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Should You Buy Generic Formula?

2010-02-01T19:19:00.000-05:00

If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know that I and other lactivists have a huge problem with the aggressive marketing employed by the formula companies. The three biggest brand names, Enfamil, Similac and Nestle, spend big bucks every year to get moms to choose and stick with their particular brand of formula. This includes, but is not limited to, advertising in parenting magazines as well as mainstream magazines like People, giving out freebies to pediatrician's offices and hospitals, sending samples to the homes of moms-to-be, sponsoring studies to tout the benefits of formula, and making shady if not outright outrageously false claims about how closely they approximate breast milk.

A few months ago, Enfamil lost a court case brought by PBM, the makers of the store-brand or "generic" formulas you'll find at drug stores and warehouse stores like Target and Sam's Club. A district court in Virginia ruled that Mead Johnson, makers of Enfamil, had mislead the public in its advertising that suggested that store brand formula was not as nutritious as their own. The text of one of their ads read, "It may be tempting to try a less expensive store brand, but only Enfamil LIPIL is clinically proven to improve brain and eye development," and "there are plenty of other ways to save on baby expenses without cutting back on nutrition" (like say, breastfeeding....heh). Anyway, Enfamil was ordered to pay PBN $13 million and is barred from making these types of claims again.

Of course there is not really any difference nutritionally between the expensive name-brand formulas and their store-brand counterparts. All of this is regulated by the FDA and all infant formula has to meet the same standards. You may find some variation in things like color or consistency, but nutritionally, it's the same. In the past when I had friends who were weaning or needed to supplement with formula, I'd tell them to just buy the store brand. After all, it is the exact same ingredients and you'll save yourself a ton of money that could be better spent elsewhere. But I've begun to notice that PBM is working on several social media campaigns using mom bloggers to advertise its products and the fact that they will save you money over the name brands, and their marketing is beginning to make me uncomfortable.

I first noticed sponsored tweets that were linking to this YouTube video, where moms and dads on the street are asked to compare the ingredients on a can of Enfamil to those in PBM's formula. The tweets from people read "Save money, buy store brand formula." Then I noticed bloggers being paid or otherwise compensated to blog about how much money using store-brand formula saved them. Even breastfeeding moms have gotten in on the act, tweeting and blogging PMBs press releases for pay. It has gotten so insidious that I see one of these tweets almost every single day in my Twitter stream and a simple Google search will lead you to a ton of blog posts sponsored by PBM.

Of course this is a WHO Code violation, and although PBM would like you to think they are more ethical than the brand name formula companies, they're not (in fact, PBM has paid for celebrity endorsements from Brooke Shields and Tori Spelling for their Bright Beginnings formula). They also recently announced they've hired a new Executive VP of Marketing to help them increase their sales and market share.

So what is next for PBM? Will they, too, begin mailing out freebies to new moms and creating "breastfeeding support bags" for moms to take home with them from the hospital? Will they expand their social media campaign?

What do you all think of these marketing tactics? Is PBM going too far or is this just a smart business move in this economy? And what of the bloggers being paid to advertise store brand formula? Do they need an education on all of the problems aggressive formula marketing can cause?

What do you think? Has PBM gone too far?

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Use of soy formula increases risk of fibroids

2010-02-01T13:13:00.000-05:00

A new study shows that there may be another danger to artificial feeding your infant, particularly if you have a daughter and are giving her soy formula. A recent study of 20,000 white women found that those who had been fed soy formula rather than breastfed or given cow's milk based formula were 25% more likely to be diagnosed with early-onset fibroids. Although this is the first study of its kind and relies on women (and perhaps their mothers) to remember how they were fed as infants, I think the findings are interesting. We already know that soy can affect the reproductive system because of the level of estrogen found in soy products, so it makes sense that early introduction of soy might cause these benign uterine tumors.

So does this mean soy products are unsafe? Actually, no. Soy is a huge part of Asian diets, which are generally considered to be very healthy. However, as the study notes, in Asian countries, exposure to soy happens in the oppposite way as it does here in the US. Most babies in Asia are breastfed and then go on to consume tofu, soy sauce and other soy products throughout their lifetime. American babies are more likely to be fed soy formula during their first year of life, and only eat small quantities of soy products thereafter.

So why are soy formulas so popular in the US? Some people think soy formula is healthier for babies than milk-based formula, but that's actually untrue. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics only recommends soy formula for a small percentage of babies, including those whose parents are strict vegans, those with a rare disease called congenital galactosemia and another small group with a true lactose intolerance. Many parents switch their baby to soy formula if they appear colicky or gassy, when in reality, many babies who react poorly to cow's milk formula will also have trouble with soy protein. In those cases, a hypoallergenic formula is called for, not soy milk.

The truth of the matter is, African-American women have higher rates of uterine fibroids than any other ethnic group. This study didn't look at the connection between black women and soy formula, but if you're a black woman and considering using soy formula, you may want to keep your eyes peeled for further studies.

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See's Candies Giveaway

2010-02-01T07:40:00.000-05:00

I have a sweet giveaway, just in time for Valentine's Day over on Blacktating Reviews: a two-pound box of See's Candies chocolates. Enter now, the contest ends on Friday!

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Do antidepressants delay milk coming in?

2010-01-27T09:47:00.000-05:00

A new study that will be published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that women taking the most commonly prescribed antidepressants (Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft) during pregnancy had a delay in their milk coming in. Because breasts are seratonin-regulated glands, the theory goes that these antidepressants, which are selective seratonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), can impact seratonin regulation in the breast. According to the study:

Researchers examined the effects of SSRI drugs on lactation using laboratory studies of human and animal cell lines and genetically modified mice. Furthermore, an observational study evaluated the impact of SSRI drugs on the onset of milk production in postpartum women. In this study of 431 postpartum women, median onset of lactation was 85.8 hours postpartum for the SSRI-treated mothers and 69.1 hours for mothers not treated with SSRI drugs. Researchers commonly define delayed secretory activation as occurring later than 72 hours postpartum.

I know that several people who read this blog are on SSRIs and were on them while pregnant and breastfeeding. Did you find this to be true? Did it take longer than the typical 3 days for your mature milk to come in? The only person I "know" who has openly discussed her use of an SSRI during pregnancy and breastfeeding is Rebecca Walker. In her book, Baby Love, Walker actually talks about how she made tons of milk, and while her son was in the NICU, she had pumped so much that she filled up their tiny refrigerator very quickly. Perhaps that is the difference, that because she was pumping from the beginning and so frequently, and without the expectation that her milk would come in quickly, she was able to successfully breastfeed. Is it possible this would need to be standard protocol for moms on antidepressants? Is the take away that moms should be informed of this possibility and be encouraged to pump? The authors of the study admit that more human research is necessary before any recommendations can be made for moms taking SSRIs.

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Review: Bravado's Allure Underwire Nursing Bra

2010-01-19T09:55:00.000-05:00

Check out my review of one of Bravado!'s newest bras, the Allure Underwire Nursing Bra, over at Blacktating Reviews.

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How to Help Haiti

2010-01-15T14:09:00.000-05:00

I've been talking a lot the past few days, with anyone who will listen, about how to help in Haiti. In my city, and probably yours, too, various organizations, radio stations, churches and synagogues are asking for donations to send to Haiti. Everyone's heart is in the right place, but if you want to help the people of Haiti and the relief efforts there, it is best to send money. That is the message from the Red Cross and President Bill Clinton, who is the United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti. So if you can, donate money. The easiest way to do this is to text "haiti" to 90999 on your cell phone, which will donate $10 to Red Cross.

I'm also noticing that people are asking for donations of infant formula to be sent to Haiti. Infant formula is not appropriate in emergency situations. Please tell your friends and family members not to send infant formula to Haiti. Artificial feeding increases the risk of infection, disease and death during an emergency. Donations of infant formula to areas hit by natural disasters has also led to decreased breastfeeding in the past. Mothers who are perfectly capable of breastfeeding will often stop and begin using formula when it is provided during emergencies. According to a study by UNICEF , 42% of infants were fed formula after the earthquake in Indonesia, compared to 27% pre-quake. People who send infant formula to Haiti are well-meaning, but misguided. Please explain to them that this is a dangerous practice. For more information on breastfeeding during emergencies, please see this World Health Organization podcast or the International Lactation Consultant Association's position paper on this issue.

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Review & Giveaway: Simply Breastfeeding & Breast Pumps & Briefcases

2010-01-14T10:25:00.000-05:00

Check out my updated review of Shari Criso's Simply Breastfeeding DVD and Breast Pumps & Briefcases CD. One of my readers will win a copy of each! Enter at Blacktating Reviews.

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The Art Star & The Sudanese Twins

2010-01-06T09:59:00.000-05:00

I was looking for new DVDs to purchase recently and when I saw this cover, my heart stopped.

Yes that is a very white woman breastfeeding two very dark-skinned children. The documentary is called The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins and it's about artist Vanessa Beecroft and her attempt to adopt these twins from the Sudan. From what I can gather online, she was on a trip to the Sudan and ended up breastfeeding the twins after meeting them in an orphanage. Although the babies were in an orphanage, their parents were alive. This, apparently, didn't stop Ms. Beecroft from attempting to adopt them (and why should it, I mean, Angelina Jolie and Madonna did the same thing, right?)

Anyway, I think this documentary will be very interesting and I am curious to see how breastfeeding and race are handled in the film. I have it at home and will try to watch it this weekend and post my thoughts to the blog. Has anyone seen this documentary or heard of it or the artist? Please share your thoughts in the comments!

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Best of the Best 2009

2009-12-31T14:00:00.000-05:00

So 2009 is almost officially over and what a great year it has been! My blog turned 1 in April and my son turned 2 in December. I attended my first blogging conference and joined Twitter. I worked harder on this blog than almost anything else this year and I’ve met some incredible people because of Blacktating and gotten some incredible opportunities as well.

Everyone seems to be posting a year-end best-of list, so I figured I would compile my Top 15 Posts for 2009. Here they are, in no particular order.

Breast Milk: Breakfast of Champions!

Life Photo Archive

Attachment parenting, breastfeeding...and hip hop?

Salma Hayek opens up about weaning and cross-nursing

Mothers using HIV drugs to stop lactation

How to treat a cold while breastfeeding

Interview with Erica Eisdorfer, author of The Wet Nurse's Tale

Blogging & Breastfeeding on Back Talk

Unbuttoned coverage on NPR

This is how you do it

Lesbian, transgender and breastfeeding..oh my!

Formula ads: how far is too far?

Women of color movers and shakers in breastfeeding support

Wendy Williams: I couldn't breastfeed

Guest post: Becoming your own advocate

Bettina of Best for Babes also had a great idea to compile a list of the Top 50 Breastfeeding Blogs and the Top 50 Breastfeeding Posts of 2009. Here is a list of some of my favorite breastfeeding bloggers, and I'd love to hear yours!

Sustainable Mothering
Hobo Mama
Mama Knows Breast
Breastfeeding 1-2-3
PhD in Parenting
Mommy News
Adventures in [Crunchy] Parenthood
Breastfeeding Moms Unite!
The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog
One Hot Mama
One of THOSE Moms

Please leave a comment telling me what other breastfeeding blogs you read or if there are any particular posts about breastfeeding that spoke to you this year.

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Quote of the Day: The Pioneer Woman on Motherhood

2009-12-27T01:38:00.004-05:00

I am sure most of you have heard of Ree Drummond, the fantastic cook behind the food blog The Pioneer Woman. I recently bought her new cook book, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl and I noticed that Ree managed to bring up breastfeeding more than once! Here's a quote from the book, on new motherhood.

"One of the hardest things about becoming a mother for the first time was the stark realization that I was absolutely, wholly responsible for another human being's survival. I had this baby, this human baby, in my little house in the country and it woke up in the middle of the night. Like, after I went to sleep! It wanted to eat, it seemed. Night after night, I staggered to its crib with my eyes glued shut and sat on the rocker in its room and dutifully attached its mouth to my throbbing, engorged breast and allowed it to root around and drink the milk, real milk, from my bosom. And I cried. I cried a lot.

Slowly, though, during the course of the coming days and weeks, I began coming to terms with the fact that there was no getting around it: without me, this child would not survive. If I didn't feed it, nobody would. Well, I'm sure Marlboro Man would have if I'd asked him to, but in all my postpartum desperation, I wasn't about to deal with washing bottles on top of everything else."

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