Baby taken from mother
Friday, February 7, 2003,
By Steven Hepker,
Staff Writer,
" Tesha Redman was born in Foote Hospital at 5:57 p.m. Tuesday, shortly after her mother appeared on the "Dr. Phil" show in a segment on fat children. State social workers seized the 6-pound, 13-ounce girl Wednesday night on an order from Probate Judge Susan Vandercook. "It was based on the fact Miss Redman has not made sufficient progress," Vandercook responded Thursday to objections from Amanda Redman's lawyer, Richard Hitt. Tesha is the second child Vandercook has taken from Redman and placed in foster care. Jerad Ostrander, born when Redman was 16, weighed 120 pounds at 3 years. Social workers said the boy was dangerously obese and that Amanda used food as a parenting tool. She was cited for abuse and neglect, and Jerad was placed in foster care in October 2001. Redman is allowed limited, supervised visits with Jerad, who weighs about 50 pounds now. The infant, who is healthy, was placed in the same foster home....
"It is fundamentally unfair to deprive her of her newborn child," Hitt said, pleading for the court to return the infant at least until the hearing. Hitt said that if Jerad was taken because his weight was dangerous, the danger has long passed, and there is no danger of overfeeding a newborn. Redman said she wanted to nurse her baby, but was not allowed.... [I find this story disturbing on so many levels... - JC]
Friday, February 07, 2003
County Searches for Clues to Breast Cancer Rates
Run Date: 02/07/03,
By Rebecca Vesely,
WEnews correspondent,
" TIBURON, Calif. (WOMENSENEWS)--On a sunny Saturday morning, more than 2,000 volunteers fanned out over the affluent suburbs north of San Francisco to conduct a door-to-door search for clues to the mystery plaguing this community: Why are so many women here getting breast cancer? Marin County has a breast cancer rate nearly 40 percent higher than the national average. Breast cancer diagnoses in Marin climbed 37 percent over the past decade, compared to just 3 percent in other urban California counties....
...
"I just don't believe that the high rate of incidence of breast cancer is due to later childbearing," says Marcia Rubenstein, who lives in Tiburon. "It's got to be something environmental. Maybe it's toxins leached in the soil."...
So far, researchers have not found a smoking gun linking environmental factors to cancer in the area. Two state senators plan to introduce legislation early next year that would fund a pilot program to monitor breast milk for chemical contaminants--the first of its kind in the nation. The hope is that breast milk could provide some clues as to whether pesticides, detergents, plastics or other chemical products are contributing to breast cancer." [It concerns me that people reject research which indicates delaying childbirth as a risk factor for breast cancer. Will they reject research showing environmental contaminants in breast milk? Will women breastfeed if they hear about chemicals in their breastmilk? It will be very important to communicate relative risk vis a vis infant formula. - JC]
Run Date: 02/07/03,
By Rebecca Vesely,
WEnews correspondent,
" TIBURON, Calif. (WOMENSENEWS)--On a sunny Saturday morning, more than 2,000 volunteers fanned out over the affluent suburbs north of San Francisco to conduct a door-to-door search for clues to the mystery plaguing this community: Why are so many women here getting breast cancer? Marin County has a breast cancer rate nearly 40 percent higher than the national average. Breast cancer diagnoses in Marin climbed 37 percent over the past decade, compared to just 3 percent in other urban California counties....
...
"I just don't believe that the high rate of incidence of breast cancer is due to later childbearing," says Marcia Rubenstein, who lives in Tiburon. "It's got to be something environmental. Maybe it's toxins leached in the soil."...
So far, researchers have not found a smoking gun linking environmental factors to cancer in the area. Two state senators plan to introduce legislation early next year that would fund a pilot program to monitor breast milk for chemical contaminants--the first of its kind in the nation. The hope is that breast milk could provide some clues as to whether pesticides, detergents, plastics or other chemical products are contributing to breast cancer." [It concerns me that people reject research which indicates delaying childbirth as a risk factor for breast cancer. Will they reject research showing environmental contaminants in breast milk? Will women breastfeed if they hear about chemicals in their breastmilk? It will be very important to communicate relative risk vis a vis infant formula. - JC]
Mmegi Online ::> BHP studies look beyond the HORIZON
Mmegi.bw, ERNEST MOLOI, 2/7/2003 11:02:25 AM (GMT 2)
"BOTSWANA is poised to start clinical trials for a preventive AIDS vaccine in the first quarter of this year. The task - a grand design under the aegis of the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) - is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of America. The trials will be carried out in the United States and Botswana The vaccine to be tested in Botswana was not developed by researchers at the Botswana Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership (BHP). But much of the continuing work of BHP researchers studying the HIV-1C viruses, which is prevalent in Botswana; and the immune response genetics of the population, has and will continue to contribute to scientists developing HIV vaccines in the country and the world....The BHP laboratory is one of the most sophisticated facilities in Africa dedicated to HIV treatment and research. Other completed studies include 'Genetic Analysis of HIV-1C in infants', which offers a better understanding of how HIV is passed from mother to infant. By this study, viruses from HIV infected infants is compared to those from blood samples, breast milk and 'cervico-vaginal fluid' from their mothers. The viruses from different sources are then analyzed for 'replication potential and gene sequence.' In the study, researchers hope to identify the signature patterns that indicate the route of transmission of HIV from mother to child. The information will be used to develop interventions that can improve the prevention of mother to child transmission. Yet another ongoing study on the PMTCT, known as the Mashi Study (Milk) started early 2001. It is investigating the possibility of adding a second anti-retroviral drug, nevirapine- to the current national program, which offers zinovudine (AZT) to HIV-infected pregnant women. Alongside the study, the BHP through the financial help of the US-based National Institute of Health (NIH)- is running an Infant Health Outcomes Study to investigate the "effects of infant feeding patterns on the health and vigour of infants." Through the study, researchers are monitoring the "rates, etiologies and outcomes of diarrheal and respiratory diseases and bloodstream infections among infants born to HIV positive mothers, who breast feed or formula feed, and the association between infant outcomes and the immunologic factors in breast milk."
Mmegi.bw, ERNEST MOLOI, 2/7/2003 11:02:25 AM (GMT 2)
"BOTSWANA is poised to start clinical trials for a preventive AIDS vaccine in the first quarter of this year. The task - a grand design under the aegis of the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) - is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of America. The trials will be carried out in the United States and Botswana The vaccine to be tested in Botswana was not developed by researchers at the Botswana Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership (BHP). But much of the continuing work of BHP researchers studying the HIV-1C viruses, which is prevalent in Botswana; and the immune response genetics of the population, has and will continue to contribute to scientists developing HIV vaccines in the country and the world....The BHP laboratory is one of the most sophisticated facilities in Africa dedicated to HIV treatment and research. Other completed studies include 'Genetic Analysis of HIV-1C in infants', which offers a better understanding of how HIV is passed from mother to infant. By this study, viruses from HIV infected infants is compared to those from blood samples, breast milk and 'cervico-vaginal fluid' from their mothers. The viruses from different sources are then analyzed for 'replication potential and gene sequence.' In the study, researchers hope to identify the signature patterns that indicate the route of transmission of HIV from mother to child. The information will be used to develop interventions that can improve the prevention of mother to child transmission. Yet another ongoing study on the PMTCT, known as the Mashi Study (Milk) started early 2001. It is investigating the possibility of adding a second anti-retroviral drug, nevirapine- to the current national program, which offers zinovudine (AZT) to HIV-infected pregnant women. Alongside the study, the BHP through the financial help of the US-based National Institute of Health (NIH)- is running an Infant Health Outcomes Study to investigate the "effects of infant feeding patterns on the health and vigour of infants." Through the study, researchers are monitoring the "rates, etiologies and outcomes of diarrheal and respiratory diseases and bloodstream infections among infants born to HIV positive mothers, who breast feed or formula feed, and the association between infant outcomes and the immunologic factors in breast milk."
Lawmakers discuss breastfeeding
WTHR Indianapolis, Lynda Moore/Health Reporter, Indianapolis, Feb. 6, 2003
"A public breastfeeding at a public hearing. The mother chose a legislative hearing room to make her point. But did she violate the law? A new bill would make sure she didn't. House Bill 1510 would allow all women the right to breastfeed their babies in public, anywhere a woman has a right to be.
Susan Para wished that was law a few years ago when she was refused service at a mall photo shop. "I was told they would not be taking my pictures because I breastfed my kid and they refused to reschedule an appointment for me."" [Imagine breastfeeding your newborn while sitting in a legislature hearing room, waiting to testify about your right to breastfeed in public. I hope this woman felt proud and not cowed. According to this Chronicle-Tribune.com article on the same issue, "Currently, women who breast-feed in public in Indiana can be charged with public indecency, a Class A misdemeanor publishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $5,000 fine. In some cases, it can be a Class D felony, which carries a standard sentence of 18 months in jail and up to a $10,000 fine." - JC]
WTHR Indianapolis, Lynda Moore/Health Reporter, Indianapolis, Feb. 6, 2003
"A public breastfeeding at a public hearing. The mother chose a legislative hearing room to make her point. But did she violate the law? A new bill would make sure she didn't. House Bill 1510 would allow all women the right to breastfeed their babies in public, anywhere a woman has a right to be.
Susan Para wished that was law a few years ago when she was refused service at a mall photo shop. "I was told they would not be taking my pictures because I breastfed my kid and they refused to reschedule an appointment for me."" [Imagine breastfeeding your newborn while sitting in a legislature hearing room, waiting to testify about your right to breastfeed in public. I hope this woman felt proud and not cowed. According to this Chronicle-Tribune.com article on the same issue, "Currently, women who breast-feed in public in Indiana can be charged with public indecency, a Class A misdemeanor publishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $5,000 fine. In some cases, it can be a Class D felony, which carries a standard sentence of 18 months in jail and up to a $10,000 fine." - JC]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)