VOA News - Breastfeeding May Prevent Diabetes: "Breastfeeding May Prevent Diabetes By Amy Katz


Washington, DC

29 December 2005




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Breastfeeding of infants has long been hailed as the best way to give babies the nutrients they need.? Now a new study shows it may provide an important health benefit to mothers.? As Amy Katz reports, the study says nursing may reduce a woman's risk of developing diabetes in the future.

Alison Cape breastfeeding her daughterAlison Cape has been breastfeeding her daughter Charlotte since she was born.? 'I am planning on breastfeeding until I cannot do it any longer,%u201D she says, %u201Cwhich, I am hoping to go a full year, as I work, you know.? I'll go as far as I can.'"

http://www.knoxstudio.com/shns/story.cfm?pk=PILLOW-01-01-06&cat=WW: "
By LISA ZAGAROLI
McClatchy Newspapers
January 01, 2006
WASHINGTON - When new moms have difficulty getting their arms in the right position to breastfeed their babies, Rebecca Garcia steps in with nursing aids that often solve the problem. So the lactation consultant from Walla Walla, Wash., was stunned to learn that one of her most popular nursing cushions was pulled from the market by a government agency that decided it could be a suffocation risk to sleeping babies. 'It'd be hard to get a baby to balance on that thing even if you were to try to,' said Garcia. 'It seemed like a bogus threat.' The Boston Billow hadn't been linked with any injuries or deaths when it was recalled in 2004. But the Consumer Product Safety Commission decided the 'nursing pillow' was too similar in design to an 'infant pillow' that was associated with baby deaths more than 15 years ago..."

Baby Wrap 101 - New York Times

By TINA KELLEY
Published: December 15, 2005

"PEOPLE stopped on the sidewalk to point. Behind the window of Starwich, a sandwich shop on the far western reaches of 42nd Street, a bonanza was unfolding - folding and unfolding, actually - for women who preferred to wear their babies using a long swath of fabric. At least 25 women helped one another try on wraps from around the world, the mei tai from China, the Mexican rebozo, the Korean podaegi and the kanga from Kenya, among others. Aside from using the fabric as a fashionable way to feature their infants, who are, after all, the most winning fashion accessories imaginable, they saw baby-wearing as a wise, age-old practice. Babies who are worn by their parents cry less and are more engaged in the world around them, according to experts on raising children...."

Martek profits fall, CEO to retire -
Washington Business Journal
2005-12-15
Rachel Sams Contributing Writer


Martek Biosciences reported fourth-quarter earnings of $5 million, down from more than $35 million in profit last year. The Columbia-based bioscience company also disclosed that CEO Henry 'Pete' Linsert Jr. will retire next summer. Linsert has been CEO since 1989. He will remain chairman of the firm, the company said. Martek said its president, Steve Dubin, will succeed Linsert as CEO. ..."

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Render&c=Article&cid=1132872611111&call_pageid=991479973472">TheStar.com - Modern wet nurses step in for friends
Nov.25, 2005. 01:00 AM
LAURA PRATT
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
Genine Natale has pressed the hungry mouths of five tiny babes to her breast in the years since she became a mother. Only two of them were her own.In three separate instances, Natale, who is a Toronto teacher, nursed other women's babies. And she is far from alone in this experience. The practice of wet-nursing is alive and well in the modern world.In each case, Natale breast-fed children who were not her own in maternal response to an infant's need. Once, she was babysitting her brother's son Mick, who was about three months old. Still flush with the milk her body was producing for her son, 10-month-old Vincent, Natale made a choice to comfort her inconsolable nephew in the most natural way she knew."

Abbott Labs Wails About Ruling on Baby Formula Ads: "

November 15, 2005


NEW YORK -- A unit of Abbott Laboratories made a stinging response on Tuesday to a decision by the National Advertising Review Board that condemned its advertising for Similac Advance baby formula.
The NARB said the Abbott unit's advertising was %u201Cconfusing at best%u201D and wrongly gave consumers the impression that Similac boosted babies' immune systems."

Channel3000.com - Health - Madison Area Breast Milk Depot Begins: "Madison Area Breast Milk Depot BeginsPOSTED: 10:40 pm CST November 6,
2005MT. HOREB, Wis. -- The very first Madison area breast milk depot is up and running in Mt. Horeb.Sunday mothers and children gathered in Madison to learn about how to donate extra or unused breast milk to other babies in need."

KPHO Phoenix - Tucson Jumps on Breastfeeding Debate Bandwagon
(CBS 5 News) - Another Arizona city is taking up the issue of breast feeding in public. It started with Chandler and a breastfeeding mother at a public pool. Now, the Tucson City Council plans to discuss whether women have the right to breastfeed anywhere they want in public. Right now Tucson protects nursing mothers on all city property. Next Tuesday, however the council will discuss whether the city should continue this policy. The Chandler City Council may vote Thursday on whether mothers will be fined for trespassing if they refuse to leave city property after a complaint."

Breaking News: Breastfeeding Is Associated with a Lower Risk of SIDS According to The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine
: "Breastfeeding Is Associated with a Lower Risk of SIDS According to The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine
10/14/2005 2:26:00 PM EST

Contrary to even the recommendations of its own Section
on Breastfeeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released an
ill-advised and ill-informed statement from its Task Force on SIDS (1)
(sudden infant death syndrome). Recommendations that advise against
parent-infant bed-sharing and support the generic use of pacifiers
imply a 'truly astounding triumph of ethnocentric assumptions over
common sense and medical research,' according to Nancy Wight, M.D.,
president of The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine. These
controversies, and many more, will be addressed in the upcoming, new
peer-reviewed journal Breastfeeding Medicine (www.liebertpub.com/bfm),
the Official Journal of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine
(www.brmed.org).

Current research from the CDC (2), as well as AAP's existing
policy statement on Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk (3), note
that breastfeeding is associated with a lower risk of SIDS. Since
1992, SIDS has decreased as both co-sleeping and breastfeeding have
increased. Sleeping near one's baby or in the same room has been shown
to reduce the risks of SIDS and more broadly promote maternal and
child health by facilitating breastfeeding. As exclusively breastfed
infants feed frequently through the night, breastfeeding is thought to
reduce SIDS by the same proposed mechanism as supine sleep and
pacifiers, namely less deep sleep and frequent brief awakenings.
Breastfed babies do not need artificial pacifiers to get stimulation
since they already have the protective effect of suckling during the
night."

Now, Mumbai's babies have a breast milk bank - India News - Webindia123.com
Mumbai October 05, 2005 3:36:15 PM IST
" Realising the significance of a mother's milk for an infant, a Hospital in Mumbai has set up a 'Breast Milk Bank'. It provides the much-needed alternative to many women who are not in a position to lactate, or to secrete milk.Due to various physical conditions or circumstances a mother may not be able to provide her child with the all-important nutrient resulting in the baby's under development and ill health. Considering such desperate situations, the neo-natology department of the Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital in Mumbai started this Milk bank...."

- Forbes.comFat Content of Breast Milk Increases with Time
"TUESDAY, Sept. 6 (HealthDay News) -- The longer a mother breast-feeds, the higher the fat and energy content of her breast milk.However, experts are not sure what this finding, which appears in the September issue of Pediatrics, signifies...."

Second opinion: Take it to the bank, breast milk is best: "
By ANDRE PICARD
Globe and Mail
Thursday, August 25, 2005 Page A13
Earlier this month, a California company launched the world's first commercial breast-milk bank. Prolacta Bioscience plans to obtain breast milk from lactating mothers around the United States, pasteurize it, and sell it to hospitals for the treatment of low-birth-weight babies. "Human breast milk has 100,000 different components and we only really know what a few thousand of them are and what they do," Elena Medo, chief executive officer of Prolacta, said at the launch of the venture. "It's an enormous area of discovery. I'm sure there's a reason for every one of those components and I'd like to know half of them in my lifetime." Dr. Medo, a scientist and entrepreneur, is saying what mothers have been saying for millenniums: Breast is best. The tragedy of this story is that a company is commercializing breast milk at a time when Canada has virtually abandoned its very successful network of not-for-profit breast-milk banks...

Neighborhoodtimes: Nursing mothers have rights, too: "
By HILARY FLOWER
Published August 14, 2005
"I usually don't run afoul of authority figures much these days, but recently I got myself into some hot water at North Shore Pool. Here's how it went down: 'I'm sorry, ma'am, but you can't do that here.' I was nursing my 6-month-old baby to sleep while I chatted with my friends and watched my older children swim. I thought it might help to let her know that Florida Law protects mothers' rights to nurse in public..."

East Valley Tribune | Daily Arizona news for Chandler, Gilbert, Tempe, Mesa, Scottsdale : "Debate puts breast-feeding in the spotlight
By Mary K. Reinhart, TribuneAugust 13, 2005Four-month-old Aiden Milliron may be horrified in a few years to realize he was at the center of so much fuss about breasts. But his mother's insistence that she be allowed to breastfeed him in public has galvanized support among nursing mothers and could very well change state law. By thrusting breast-feeding into the public spotlight, Aiden's hungry tummy is causing people to examine their views about the practice and setting up an emotionally charged debate encompassing motherhood, public health, indecent exposure, private property and family values. And it's revealed more stories of nursing mothers being asked to leave department stores, ballfields and other public places...."

The Seattle Times: Local News: Local efforts aim to promote breast-feeding by poor women: "Wednesday, August 10, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
Local efforts aim to promote breast-feeding by poor women
By Kyung M. Song
Seattle Times staff reporter

"Jill Von Bruck breast-fed each of her sons, Alex and Aaron, for nearly 2-1?2 years. The Woodinville mother said she did it not only because of the nutritional value of breast milk, but also for the bonding benefits.
'My mother thinks breast-feeding is disgusting,' said Von Bruck, 32, who was raised on formula. 'I don't understand how someone would not nurse. That's what breasts are for.'
Von Bruck is an exception in America, where at least 80 percent of mothers wean their babies off breast milk before they are a year old. And as an African-American mother, nursing her boys until their preschool years practically made Von Bruck an oddity...."

People's Daily Online -- Beijing orders Nestle to recall questionable milk powder
UPDATED: 17:19, June 23, 2005
Beijing orders Nestle to recall questionable milk powder
"Beijing food safety office on June 22 released monitoring results of infant formula milk powders on the market. Nestle's milk powder 1 was again tested with higher-than-standard iodine content. The office ordered Nestle to recall all milk powders with high iodine content. However, it also said the high iodine content discovered would not result in direct harm to the human body. This is the first official statement on the Nestle issue...."

Genes May Affect Nutrients in Breast Milk: "
A woman's genes could affect the nutrients in her breast milk, say researchers.
By?Miranda?Hitti
WebMD Medical News Reviewed By?Brunilda ?Nazario,?MD
on Tuesday, May 17, 2005


Researchers Say Women's Genes Could Have Impact on Contents of Fat and Nutrients in Breast Milk
This story is part of WebMD's coverage of the Digestive Disease Week 2005 conference. Other stories include:
Statins May Cut Risk of Some Cancers | Antidepressants May Be Tied to Bleeding in Gut | Hepatitis C Drug Rocks Virus in Early Test



More From WebMD
Pregnant? Chart Your Baby's Development
Making the Breastfeeding Decision
Get Pregnancy News and Tips Delivered


May 17, 2005 -- A woman's genes could affect the nutrients in her breast milk, say researchers from Wake Forest University Health Sciences.

'It is well known that genes control the nutrient levels in cow's milk,' says Wake Forest's Richard Weinberg, MD, in a news release. 'But until now, no one has considered how genes might affect human milk.'

One particular gene variation may enhance breast milk levels of a vital nutrient that babies needenhance breast milk levels of a vital nutrient that babies need for brain and eye development, and another might affect the fat content (and calories) of breast milk, say the researchers.
"

New York Daily News - Home - Mother's milk saves vet set ablaze on bus
Mother's milk saves vet
set ablaze on bus
BY DEBORAH KOLBEN, TONY SCLAFANI and BILL HUTCHINSON
DAILY NEWS WRITERS
"Vietnam War veteran Francis Abrams sits in his wheelchair outside his home in Staten Island after torching attack on bus.
A real-life supermom used a bottle of breast milk to douse an amputee yesterday after his wheelchair was set ablaze by punks on a Staten Island bus, cops said. The nursing mother's fast actions helped save Vietnam vet Francis Abrams, 57, from becoming a human torch, and stopped the fire from engulfing the S-54 bus, police and the victim said. 'It was put out with breast milk,' said a police source, who was awed by the bizarre incident that happened just after 11 a.m. Abrams, who lost his left leg in Vietnam, said he was minding his own business as he rode the city bus to the Staten Island Mall to buy a video of 'The Exorcist.'..."

EDP24 - Norfolk's first 'baby cafe' opens
CELIA WIGG
10 May 2005 06:45
Norfolk's first Baby Cafe was officially launched in Wymondham yesterday.
The pilot project aims to promote the benefits of breastfeeding.
The Baby Cafe is based at the Town Green Centre from 10am-noon on Mondays, and enables pregnant women and those with new babies to socialise with other mums, and find out how they coped with breastfeeding. Expert advice and help is also on hand...."

Call for action on static Australian breastfeeding rates
Medical Research News
Published: Tuesday, 10-May-2005
"New laws to protect the rights of breastfeeding women who return to work may be needed if Australia is to meet national breastfeeding targets. This is one of the recommendations in a study of breastfeeding trends by University of Melbourne researchers published in the latest issue of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health. (Vol 29 No 2, 2005) It found that breastfeeding rates have remained unchanged since 1995, even though there is a national and international push for babies to be fully breastfed until they are at least six months old. ..."

Accra Daily Mail - Online: "Exclusive breastfeeding affecting sale of baby food
GNA | Posted: Thursday, April 28, 2005
Promotion of exclusive breastfeeding of babies for the first six months in the Ho municipality is affecting sales of infant formulas in the municipality.
Despite the general decline in sales, shops still continue to stock and hang out promotional signs about such infant formulas.
This picture emerged during a Breastfeeding Promotion Regulation Monitoring exercise in health facilities, shops and among lactating mothers in Ho.
Officials of the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the media "

FOXNews.com - Health - Fortified Formula Boosts Infant Development
Monday, April 25, 2005
By Salynn Boyles
Fox News
"Breast milk may be best, but there is more evidence that women who can't breastfeed can give their babies a boost by feeding them formulas fortified with the omega-3 fatty acids. The baby formulas, which contain the fatty acids DHA and ARA, have been available in the United States for a little more than a year. In one new study, full-term infants (those born after 37 weeks of pregnancy) who were fed a fortified baby formula showed clear benefits in terms of visual development compared with infants fed nonfortified formula. In another, preterm infants gained weight faster and showed enhanced brain development when fed fortified formulas. Neither study compared fortified baby formulas with breast milk, however, although one did use breastfed babies as a reference group. Both were paid for by Mead Johnson Nutritionals, the maker of a best-selling DHA/ARA fortified formula.... [Many online news sites pull headlines for articles related to the main article. This one has two headlines alongisde: "Fuel Chemical Found In Breast Milk" and "Breastfeeding May Promote Healthy Weight." - one positive and one negatve. - JC]
"

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Joanna Moorhead: One long experience
After 13 years of breastfeeding, the time has finally come to hang up my drop-cup bra
Joanna Moorhead
Wednesday April 20, 2005
The Guardian
"Like their 15 minutes of fame, everyone should have their claim to rarity. So here is mine: I'm a long-term breastfeeder. That could mean I'm one of the 43% of mothers feeding for more than six weeks, or one of the 29% still carrying on at four months, or even one of the 14% hanging on in there at nine months. But the truth is I don't know exactly how small the minority is that I'm in, because I have been breastfeeding for 13 years - and no one seems to be collating the figures that far down the line.... "

The China Post: "DOH head apologizes over infant formula issue (Updated 01:11 A.M.)
2005/4/21
The China Post staff and CNA
The head of the Department of Health (DOH) apologized yesterday over the way the department handled the issue of suspected tainted infant formula produced by French manufacturer Celia and reassured the public that the contaminated products did not enter the Taiwan market...."

WKYT 27 NEWSFIRST & WYMT Mountain News - Kentucky Father Campaigns For Breast Milk
"JB Hawes says he's looking for breast milk from any healthy woman willing to donate. 'To justify what I have, all the blessings I've received, I try to give back as much as possible', says Hawes. Three years ago, Hawes picked up a lady who was hitch-hiking. Four months ago, he saw her pregnant. 'She called and she was crying and didn't know what she was going to do with the baby and I said, well, would you let me adopt it?' He picked up Aden at 3 days old. Hawes refuses to give Aden anything but breast milk. He says breast milk makes the little boy a lot happier. When his supply ran scarce he begin advertising. He's received 75 responses that he both screens and interviews. 'Basically, I'm trying to find mothers who really are, in my opinion, true mothers', says Hawes. Fifty five bags of breast milk were delivered to Hawes last week by two willing donors in Louisville..."

The Australian: Breast is yet to come for US babies [April 11, 2005]
"Geoff Elliott, Washington correspondent
April 11, 2005
BREASTS – more specifically, my wife's breasts – have been a contentious issue since we arrived in Washington DC. Everywhere we go they seem to come up – after they come out.
Breastfeeding, that's what this is about. I knew from previous travels here that there was a bit of prudishness about the place but I wasn't prepared for a debate about breastfeeding. I thought that one had been done and dusted...."

Two New Studies Show Fatty Acids DHA and ARA Significantly Aid Infant Development
Thursday April 14, 2:27 pm ET
"COLUMBIA, Md., April 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Infant formula supplemented with DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and ARA (arachidonic acid) significantly benefits infant development, according to two new studies. One study showed benefits to visual acuity in term infants, while the other demonstrated enhanced growth and higher Bayley mental and psychomotor development of preterm infants. Both studies used Enfamil Lipil® infant formulas from Mead Johnson Nutritionals, which contain levels of DHA and ARA similar to median worldwide amounts reported for breast milk (0.36% DHA and 0.72% ARA of total fatty acids)...."

WYTV - Breast Feeding Addressed by Bill
Breast Feeding Addressed by Bill
Columbus
Associated Press
"The Senate on Tuesday unanimously approved a bill that would entitle mothers to nurse their babies in any public place where the woman is otherwise allowed. Senator Patricia Clancy sponsored a similar bill that cleared a House committee in December, when she was a representative. It didn’t get a full vote before the end of the year and died. Ohio lawmakers as recently as 1997 insisted they shouldn’t get involved in the issue...."

The Australian: Milk's up, and mums can bank on it [April 08, 2005]: "Milk's up, and mums can bank on it
Paige Taylor
April 08, 2005

THE frustration is small but real - joyful first-time mother Carmel Tustin is among thousands of Australian women whose babies' special nutrition needs exceed what one human body can produce.
Mrs Tustin's twins, Grace and Thomas, who were born 11 weeks early and need eight daily feeds of high-protein milk, are doing well at Perth's King Edward Memorial Hospital on a mixture of their mother's milk and cow's milk formula. "

NH tests water for lead, cooper content: "
MNSUN - News
(Created 4/7/2005 9:19:47 AM)
"In 2004, the city of New Hope tested drinking water for lead and copper content in a number of homes, as required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. More than 10 percent of the homes tested were above the federal action level for lead in drinking water. More lead and copper testing is scheduled for 2005. Lead seldom occurs naturally in water supplies, but enters water primarily as a result of corrosion of materials in household plumbing that contains lead. Exposure to too much lead can create significant health problems, particularly for young children and pregnant women. "

Scientists disagree over whether breast is best for AIDS babies
Taipei Times
DPA , JOHANNESBURG
Thursday, Apr 07, 2005,Page 9
"Breastfeeding, a practice that is encouraged internationally, is under scrutiny in Africa where little research has been undertaken on this method of nourishing infants in a time of AIDS. Breast milk carries the AIDS virus. It is widely accepted that an estimated 15 percent of infants who are breastfed by infected mothers contract the virus. Yet breastfeeding is still widely promoted as the safest option in Africa, where AIDS is rife and where the sanitary conditions needed for the preparation of artificial infant foods do not prevail..."

SitNews - Column: Time for Congress to get serious about WHO's excesses By James K. Glassman
By James K. Glassman
Scripps Howard News Service
April 04, 2005, Monday
"Paul Volcker's report last week on the oil-for-food scandal uncovered shocking incompetence and venality at the United Nations. But if Congress really wants to reform the agency, the place to start is the World Health Organization (WHO), which, in the latest absurdity, has embarked on a campaign to drive baby formula underground - and, eventually, off the face of the earth. The big losers if the WHO is successful will, of course, be the world's poor - the same victims of WHO blunders in fighting HIV/AIDS and malaria...."

Scoop: E.sakazakii to become a Notifiable Disease
Tuesday, 5 April 2005, 12:33 pm
"A potentially fatal form of meningitis in premature babies linked to contaminated milk powder should be made a notifiable disease according to a report released today. The internationally peer reviewed report into Government agencies' response to infant formula contamination follows the death in July last year of a premature Waikato infant who died of meningitis. The death was caused by Enterobacter sakazakii sourced to powdered infant formula used in providing care for the baby.
Along with any notification of any instances of the disease, the report also recommends each notification be investigated and efforts made to trace and isolate the source of infection. In 2004 the Ministry and the New Zealand Food Safety Authority advised all neonatal intensive care units again..."

Baby - Premature: Lactation program increases rate of breastfeeding at Pregnancy & Baby
Lactation program increases rate of breastfeeding
Pregnancy and Baby
"A lactation program targeting mothers of very low birth weight babies (VLBWB) can be successful in raising the rate of breastfeeding among this group. Mother's milk is well documented to be the optimal source of nutrition for newborn babies; however, mothers of very low birth weight (VLBW) babies (those who weigh less than 1,500 grams -- approximately 3.3 pounds) are among the least likely groups to initiate and sustain lactation. Now, a study published in the Journal of Obstetrics, Gynecologic and Neonatal Nursing shows that a lactation program targeting mothers of very low birth weight babies (VLBWB) can be successful in raising the rate of breastfeeding among this group. The Mother's Milk Club at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago is a lactation program that helps mothers whose children are cared for in the Rush neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). All mothers have access to the support and educational components in the program, and special services have been implemented to address the unique needs of low-income women with VLBW infants. Additionally, the women are invited to return to weekly luncheon meetings for continued lactation assistance after they are discharged from the hospital..."

Growth factor in baby formula could reduce necrotizing enterocolitis, most devastating GI disease in preemies:
Growth factor in baby formula could reduce necrotizing enterocolitis, most devastating GI disease in preemies
03 Apr 2005
Medical News Today
"Could it be that the most widespread and devastating gastrointestinal disease affecting premature babies could be conquered simply by adding a common polypeptide, epidermal growth factor (EGF), to infant formula? And if so, exactly how does it work, and why? Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) affects some 10,000 infants annually in the U.S., and over 90% are formula-fed before onset of NEC. At greatest risk are small, premature infants, and infants fed concentrated formulas. Estimates of mortality vary widely, up to 40%. International rates of incidence and mortality are thought to be similar. Although there is no effective treatment, the incidence of NEC among formula-fed babies is estimated at six to 10 times higher than breast-fed babies, indicating important direct benefits of mother's milk..."

Daily Times - Site Edition
Woman breastfeeding tiger cubs in Myanmar
"A lactating woman in Myanmar has volunteered to breastfeed a pair of endangered Bengal tiger cubs recently born at a Yangon zoo and separated from their aggressive mother, the Myanmar Times reported.
The two week-old cubs, a male and a female, were taken from their mother Noah Noah after she killed the third cub in her litter, prompting veterinarians to engage in alternative childcare, the semi-official weekly reported in its edition to be published. Hla Htay, 40, a relative of a Yangon Zoological Gardens staffer and a mother of three including a seven-month-old baby, stepped in when she learned the cubs needed breast milk to survive. “I felt sorry for them so I decided to feed them before their teeth grow,” she told the newspaper..."

KLTV 7 Tyler-Longview-Jacksonville, TX: Baby formula among growing criminal cargo traveling by interstate
"CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. Officers expect to find marijuana or cocaine being smuggled over interstate highways. But increasingly they are finding an unexpected illegal cargo: stolen baby formula. Federal agents say the profits from this trade are funding organized crime. In some cases, the operations are suspected of supporting terrorist groups..."

Thefts of baby formula spur wide investigation: South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "Thefts of baby formula spur wide investigation
By Jim Buynak
Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted March 21 2005
"MOUNT DORA -- What started out as a simple trespass call at a supermarket has turned out to be part of a nationwide investigation into a baby-formula theft ring. Four illegal immigrants were arrested by Mount Dora police last month on charges of stealing about $3,000 worth of baby formula from area stores. 'It really started as a trespass call from Winn-Dixie,' said Sgt. Robert Bell. 'They just wanted them out of their store' because store managers suspected the four were shoplifting...."

Earth dads give breast milk a try - Sunday Times - Times Online
The Sunday Times - Britain
March 13, 2005
Earth dads give breast milk a try
Lois Rogers, Medical Editor
"FOR MANY men fatherhood is not quite the same unless they have shared the experience as far as possible. A survey has found that a third of modern fathers admit to tasting their wife’s or girlfriend’s breast milk. The researchers discovered that it is fairly common for fathers to drink breast milk several times, especially with subsequent children — even though they did not particularly like the taste. ..." [Only a third? - JC]

Ivanhoe's Medical Breakthroughs - Study Shows Antidepressants Safe for Nursing Mothers
Reported March 8, 2005
Study Shows Antidepressants Safe for Nursing Mothers
By Amanda Jackson, Ivanhoe Health Correspondent
"ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Thirteen percent of women experience postpartum depression. Many breastfeeding women, however, elect to not take antidepressants because of fear of exposing the infant to the drug through her breast milk. Now, a new study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Clincial Pharmacology and Therapeutics in Orlando, Fla., shows antidepressants are safe for nursing mothers to take. Researcher Amy Lee, MSc, of the University of Toronto/Hospital for Sick Children, explains that previous short-term studies suggest there is minimal exposure of the drugs to nursing infants and they are not considered a risk. However, women become confused because their doctors often warn them of antidepressant use because of the lack of long-term neurodevelopmental studies. In fact, the American Association of Pediatrics states, 'Exposure to maternal psychotropic medications through the breast milk may be of concern to the nursing infant.'..."
"

Breastfeeding 3-year-old is not a problem
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
BY DR. KENDALL SPROTT
For the Star-Ledger
"My grandson is almost 3 years old and still breastfeeding. My daughter-in-law doesn't seem to mind. She is a good mother, but I feel he's a little too old to be nursing. I've tried to gently raise the subject, but she just plays it off. I don't know if I should butt out. What do you think?
"Breast milk is the ideal food for babies and breastfeeding is the natural method of transferring the milk. Psychological advantages of breastfeeding benefit both the mother and child....Breastfeeding beyond the first year of life is not unusual and breast milk is still an excellent source of nutrition....As long as the mother feels comfortable in providing her breast, it is usually not a problem, psychologically, for either of them....The most important conclusion you made is that she is a good mother.... I suggest that you continue to be supportive and not try to discourage the activity...."

HeraldNet: Best for babies: "
Published: Tuesday, March 8, 2005
"By Debra Smith
Herald Writer
When Marlene Cooper's first child arrived, the 20-year-old mother was too stressed and overwhelmed to breast-feed. Julie Busch / The Herald
Marlene Cooper of Edmonds breast-feeds her 2-month-old daughter Domina. Cooper feels breast-feeding is beneficial for her daughter as well as their relationship. "You become a lot closer with the child. with bottle feeding you're not as close," Cooper said.The Edmonds woman was working at a fast food restaurant. The job, which she planned to return to, didn't exactly make pumping breast milk easy. Cooper, now 28, knows breast milk is better for babies and cheaper than formula. When she became pregnant with her second daughter last year she was determined to give breast-feeding a try. For Cooper, breast-feeding wasn't easy at first. She took her daughter home less than a day after she delivered. Like many babies, little Domina slept through most of her stay at the hospital, providing few opportunities for Cooper to master breast-feeding. Once she got home, Cooper's nipples cracked and bled. She sought help from a lactation specialist and learned her baby wasn't latching on properly....

"

No more baby formula? Texas lawmakers are considering a bill that would ban hospitals from giving new moms free formula.
El Paso News and Television : KTSM-TV NewsChannel 9
Monday, March 07, 2005 — "Breastfeeding advocates say the free formula sends a contradictory message to moms who want to breast feed -- and makes it an easy alternative. They say hospitals should give out more information about breastfeeding to encourage them -- but some hospital educators say moms should abe able to make their own choices.
"Not all moms are comfortable with the breastfeeding, so some of them go towards formula, so we have to..."

The Globe and Mail: No substitute for milk
By STEPHEN STRAUSS
Saturday, March 5, 2005 - Page F8
"One of the continuing debates in anthropology is over agriculture's effect on population growth. One line of thought argues that the arrival of agriculture triggered a population boom as a fallout of the creation of the world's first true baby food. The rationale is that when mothers were able to feed their children substances such as corn or oat gruel, the age of weaning may have fallen to as early as six months from three or four years. ...."

ZNet |Activism | Managing Activism: PR Advice for "Neutralizing" Democracy [This is PR Watch's John Staubers' review of a book written for PR Practitioners. Stauber says it's a good primer on how to recognize the tactics industyr uses for "dividing and conquering activists through "partnering" and co-optation by industry." In his review, Stauber details the author's description of the first Nestle boycott and how it was neutralized by the corporation. - JC]

"...Deegan's book tries to put the best face on the practice of 'managing activism,' which may explain why she avoids mentioning the Washington-based PR firm of Mongoven, Biscoe and Duchin (MBD), one of the worldwide leaders in this particular PR subspecialty. As we have documented previously, MBD grew out of the successful effort by one of its founders, Jack Mongoven, to defeat the large religious-lead boycott campaign aimed at the Nestlé corporation for its deadly promotion of infant formula in the third world. In activist lore this boycott is touted as a major victory, but in the corporate world it is understood that industry really won the day by pulling the rug out from the campaign. By making selective concessions to the activists, Nestlé succeeded in negotiating an end to the boycott. Later, activists were dismayed to discover that its infant formula marketing practices are continuing with only token changes. Third world children continue to die, but today their plight receives little attention, and activists have found that a boycott, once terminated, is not easily turned back on...."

Perchlorate found in dairy and breast milk samples from across the country
Public release date: 22-Feb-2005
Contact: Michael Bernstein
m_bernstein@acs.org
202-872-6042
American Chemical Society
"In a new study of breast milk and store-bought milk from across the United States, scientists at Texas Tech University found perchlorate in every sample but one. The results suggest that this thyroid-disrupting chemical may be more widespread than previously believed. The report was published Feb. 22 on the Web site of Environmental Science & Technology, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society. Perchlorate occurs naturally and is also a primary ingredient in solid rocket fuel. The chemical, which has been showing up in many segments of the environment, can interfere with iodide uptake in the thyroid gland, disrupting adult metabolism and childhood development. The researchers, led by Professor Purnendu Dasgupta, Ph.D., of the university's department of chemistry and biochemistry, analyzed 47 dairy milk samples purchased randomly from grocery stores in 11 states, and 36 breast milk samples from women recruited at random in 18 states. Every sample of breast milk contained perchlorate, and only one sample of dairy milk contained no detectable levels... "

The Globe and Mail: The bra-haha that went global
Globe and Mail, By JULIE TRAVES
Saturday, February 19, 2005 - Page M3
"When Erika Ross lifted her shirt and unsnapped her bra to nurse her newborn daughter last month in Dufferin Grove Park, she never expected that people across Canada, the United States and even Finland would end up weighing in on it. But the innocent gesture unwittingly drew her and others in her community-minded Dufferin-and-Bloor neighbourhood into a passionate international debate on breastfeeding in public. During the past six weeks, moms and "lactivists" from around the world have weighed in, using e-mail and on-line message boards. There's also talk of activists across North America planning a rally in Toronto during World Breastfeeding Week this August, possibly at the park where the bra-haha began. Dufferin Grove is normally the kind of park that urban activists dream about. In the summer, there's a giant sandbox, a farmers market, and dance and theatre festivals. In the winter, the ethnically and economically diverse residents mingle over organic meals at the park's rink house...."

Gorilla Foundation rocked by breast display lawsuit / Former employees say they were told to expose chests
San Francisco Chronicle
Patricia Yollin, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, February 18, 2005
"Two former employees of the Gorilla Foundation, home to Koko the "talking" ape, have filed a lawsuit contending that they were ordered to bond with the 33-year-old female simian by displaying their breasts. ..."

KIROTV.com - Money - Outdated Baby Formula Found On Store Shelves
Bebe Emerman KIRO 7 Consumer Investigator
POSTED: 3:38 pm PST February 16, 2005
"Many mothers breast-feed their infants, but many others can't or choose to use prepared baby formula to give their babies the nourishment they need. Consumer Investigator Bebe Emerman exposes why the packaged formula you're feeding your infant may be dangerous to his or her health. Millions of Washington babies depend on formula as their main source of nutrition. That's why it's the only food the government says must be pulled off store shelves after a certain date. But, as our investigation reveals, too often, local stores are ignoring the rules and selling old, outdated formula -- and there doesn't seem to be anyone around to stop them...."


MORE ON THIS STORY
Info from FDA
Outdated Forumal Info


Like many moms, Martha Ritola depends on commercial infant formula to keep 5-month-old Sydney happy and healthy.

'It's easy for me to feed her, it's easy for dad to feed her,' Ritola said. 'It's very accessible. You can go to about any stores including drug stores and they're going to have some kind of either generic or name brand formula that you're going to assume is safe for your baby.'

But is it? We sent our hidden camera into 28 grocery, drug and variety stores all over the Puget Sound region.

We combed the shelves, checking pull dates on dozens of cans of prepared infant formula.

What we found was scary.

Six of the stores had out-of-date formula for sale. That's more than 20%. In some cases, it was just a few weeks.

But hold on! The date on one can reads Jan 1, 2004, but we bought it in May -- which making it almost six months past the pull date.

'Considering that formula is the supplement for a child I guess that's the most upsetting thing,' said Rebecca Porter.

We asked members of this new parents group what they thought of our findings."

NIP AND DUCK: "
New York Post Online Edition: health
By ALISHA BERGER
February 15, 2005 -- "I showed Gov. Pataki my breast. In public. And he didn't bat an eye. I'm not a flasher — I'm a nursing mother. And generally a modest one. But when I decided to breastfeed my 15-week-old daughter, Anya, I quickly learned that to avoid being cloistered in my apartment for the next six months, I was going to have to take my milk to town. The idea terrified me. I imagined well-intentioned strangers approaching for a glimpse of the baby only to discover that my pink bundle of joy was milking me like a Jersey cow. And it hasn't always been easy. At Thanksgiving, my sister-in-law's European family shunned me. They actually fled the living room when I decided to unbutton for a post-Turkey feeding. My sister-in-law forbid me to nurse in front of her family after that — a decree she's refused to budge on...."

Breast-Feeding Could Provide Jury Exemption (washingtonpost.com)
(Free registration required)
By Rosalind S. Helderman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 15, 2005; Page B01
"RICHMOND, Feb. 14 -- When Pamela Greene told a Fairfax County judge she was breast-feeding her 4-month-old daughter last year, she expected to be excused from jury duty. Instead, the judge informed Greene that breast-feeding wouldn't be a problem: The court would take plenty of breaks. What followed was a two-day ordeal in which Greene said she spent every spare moment sitting on a toilet in the jury room restroom pumping breast milk. It was hard to get access to a refrigerator to keep the milk cold, and the bathroom felt unsanitary, she said...."

The Globe and Mail: Flame retardants building up within us
By ANDRÉ PICARD
PUBLIC HEALTH REPORTER
Globe and Mail
Tuesday, February 15, 2005 - Page A19
"Those dust bunnies lurking under the bed may not be as innocuous as you think. New Canadian research shows that household dust is the principal source of exposure to flame retardants, a class of chemicals that has sparked a heated debate among scientists, some of whom believe regular exposure may lead to serious learning and developmental problems. Toddlers in particular are ingesting significant amounts of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), according to a study to be published in a forthcoming edition of the journal Environmental Science and Technology. "Dust is the greatest route of exposure to brominated flame retardants," said Miriam Diamond, a professor in the department of geography at the University of Toronto. "It makes a lot of sense. Toddlers are close to the ground, which is where many of those flame retardants are -- in carpets, in furniture. The chemicals accumulate in the dust." In her paper, Dr. Diamond estimates that the average urban Canadian ingests 155 to 1,965 nanograms daily of PBDEs, with the highest levels found in babies but decreasing as people age. (A nanogram is one-billionth of a gram.) But breast-feeding infants have much higher exposures, from 24 to 28,680 nanograms daily. Earlier research found that flame retardants are commonplace in the breast milk of Canadians but concluded that despite high levels, women should continue to breastfeed because the known benefits outweigh the known risks...."

Nursing mothers exempt from jury duty under bill (HamptonRoads.com/Pilot Online)
By CHRISTINA NUCKOLS, The Virginian-Pilot
© February 10, 2005 | Last updated 9:28 PM Feb. 9
"RICHMOND — Pam Greene raised her hand when the judge asked members of the jury pool if they couldn’t serve. She asked if she could approach the bench to explain, and five attorneys – all men – followed her. Embarrassed, the Falls Church woman told the judge that she was breast-feeding her 4-month-old child. “The judge said, 'Well, we provide plenty of breaks,’” Greene recalled. “At that point, I’m feeling really intimidated so I said, 'Well, OK.’ ” Greene was surprised by her experience last year, especially since the judge was a woman. She decided to ask her state delegate to change Virginia law to automatically exempt breast-feeding mothers from jury duty. “I made it work because I had to make it work,” she said in a telephone interview. “But the whole thing was just a pain....”









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So far, most state lawmakers have been sympathetic. The House of Delegates approved the bill two weeks ago, and a Senate panel endorsed it Wednesday. The full Senate is expected to vote on the measure next week.

Virginia law already exempts from jury duty any parent with children up to age 16 who require continuous care. While that covers many breast-feeding mothers, some women return to work before their children have been weaned from breast milk."

NBC5.com - Health - HealthWatch: Banking On Breast Milk
NBC5.com, UPDATED: 11:03 am CST February 9, 2005
"CHICAGO -- It's a drink so beneficial that its claims include protection against infections and allergies, and even the possibility of making you smarter. In a special HealthWatch report Tuesday night, Nesita Kwan reported that women all over the world make this drink for their babies every day. It's breast milk. Now, Kwan said, some women who can't produce breast milk are choosing to buy it. The benefits of breast milk are so numerous that a new kind of bank is springing up in this country; the breast milk bank. The concept may seem a little odd to those who aren't accustomed to the idea, but Kwan said a growing number of women say mother's milk is so good that it's worth it at almost any price. The image of a baby cuddled at the breast completes the romantic ideal of motherhood, but the science behind this intimate act increasingly shows that mother's milk is the perfect first food. 'Nothing can substitute,' said human milk scientist Paula Meier, with Rush University Medical Center. Kwan said that Meier and other scientists lead world class programs to encourage breast feeding. But nursing isn't always an option, such as in the case of Bahia Reneau, a Naperville mother who adopted her son, Landon. She tried formula milk, but it caused cramps and constipation. So, believing that breast milk is best, she and her husband are choosing to buy it from someone else. 'Within a day, he actually had a huge bowel movement. He goes every day now,' Reneau said. 'He's definitely ... just very happy and calm and real easy....'"

Scotsman.com News - Top Stories - Women feel 'forced' to breastfeed
Wed 9 Feb 2005
ALISON HARDIE
HEALTH CORRESPONDENT
MOTHERS are being put off breastfeeding their babies because of the "bullying" attitude of health workers, Scotland’s national breastfeeding adviser admitted last night. Health officials had hoped to persuade 50 per cent of all mothers in Scotland to breast- feed by 2005. But according to Jenny Warren OBE, the national breastfeeding adviser, the figure has stuck at around 38 per cent mainly because too many women are rejecting the "Breast is Best" message after feeling "pressurised" over the issue. Many women report that midwives and health workers "force" them to breastfeed and hamper them in their choice to go directly to formula milk..."

Surprises in New Breastfeeding Guidelines
By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Medical News
Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD
on Monday, February 07, 2005
"Feb. 7, 2005 -- Updated breastfeeding guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) have some new additions that may come as a surprise. The guidelines appear in February's issue of Pediatrics. Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life is still strongly recommended. The AAP also encourages continued breastfeeding for the next six months and even longer as long as it is mutually desired by mother and child...."

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Baby weight charts 'can lead to overfeeding'
Sarah Boseley
Saturday February 5, 2005
The Guardian
"Parents could have created health problems in later life for their babies by overfeeding them because charts used to measure their growth were based on wrong assumptions two decades ago, the World Health Organisation said yesterday. The growth charts used in every baby clinic in the country were drawn up in the US, but have now been found to have been based on babies fed mainly on formula milk. Based on those figures, babies who are breastfed can appear to be growing poorly from as early as two or three months old when they are in fact perfectly healthy..."

baltimoresun.com - Kellogg deal boosts stock of Martek nearly 13%
Breakfast-cereal king agrees to use fatty acid made by Md. biotech
By Tricia Bishop
Sun Staff
Originally published February 5, 2005
"Shares of Martek Biosciences Corp. rose nearly 13 percent yesterday after news that the Kellogg Co. plans to fortify food with one of the Columbia biotech's products as early as next year. Martek announced the deal yesterday morning, but only described the partner as a Fortune 500 consumer-product food company. Kellogg, the Battle Creek, Mich., company that is the nation's top breakfast cereal manufacturer, was revealed as the company in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.... "

AP Wire | 02/04/2005 | Couple accused of profiting from untested baby formula
Associated Press
"FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - A Palm Beach County couple was accused of using untested baby formula to persuade people to buy stock in their company. Brian Bishop, 57, and his wife, Patricia Bishop, 58, with addresses in Lighthouse Point and West Palm Beach, have been charged with 75 counts including mishandling food in interstate commerce, securities fraud, and money laundering. The couple appeared in U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday. Brian Bishop will be detained until his hearing next week because he's considered a flight risk. Patricia Bishop is set to be released on a $150,000 bond. They did not say anything on their behalf and did not have defense attorneys present..."

The Telegraph Online
Mothers’ milk
By JESSIE SALISBURY, Telegraph Correspondent
Published: Friday, Feb. 4, 2005
"LYNDEBOROUGH - Jennifer Connel always assumed she would breast-feed her babies. “Breast-feeding is something only mothers can do,” she said recently while cuddling her second son, 6-week-old Preston. “It is the bonding time between you, and your child is getting the nutrition he is supposed to have.” But as fate would have it, Connel can’t breast-feed her sons. In 2002, Connel was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy. “I wasn’t married, but I knew I wanted children and I knew I wanted to breast-feed,” she said. “That was the most depressing thing about the cancer - I wouldn’t be able to.” A year later, married to Brandon Connel and expecting son Grayson, now 13 months old, she began searching for sources of human milk...."

BBC NEWS | Health | Babies 'overfed on formula milk'
Last Updated: Friday, 4 February, 2005, 12:34 GMT
By Ania Lichtarowicz
BBC World Service health reporter
"Many babies are being overfed in the first few months of life, says the World Health Organization. New data show growth charts have over-estimated how much weight babies should gain - leading to over-use of formula feed. A second study suggests we need to boost our physical activity levels. Both studies were discussed at a meeting organised by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the International Obesity Task Force...."

New Statesman - Arts - Diary - Annalisa Barbieri
Annalisa Barbieri
Monday 7th February 2005
"It is said you are never more than ten feet away from a swinger in London, but in Primrose Hill it seems they are within even easier grasp, writes Annalisa Barbieri. I like to start the week talking about breasts - and thus it was that I did. There we were Monday morning, ten women sitting around a table at University College Hospital, talking about breasts. Our breasts, your breasts and, more specifically, breastfeeding: the most emotive subject on earth. One woman pulled out a knitted breast to show how to express milk and we all fondled it fondly. We were there to talk policies: UCH is intent on becoming more breastfeeding-friendly, something I feel passionately about and support fully. The levels of ignorance and misinformation about breastfeeding are scandalously shocking, and women are lied to daily. Someone - cough, cough - high up in government needs to address this, because breast milk is truly magical and should be promoted with the same aggression as artificial milk. Even though it is illegal to advertise or promote infant formulae for babies of less than six months, the milk companies get round it in all sorts of sly ways. That night I squeeze my F-cup cleavage (I am still breastfeeding) into a Diane von Furstenberg dress and go out. One has to spread the word however one can...."

KFYR TV North Dakota's NBC News Leader: Breastfeeding Bill
"There's no law against breastfeeding in public... but many nursing mothers say they're treated like there was. A bill before the state senate would clearly indicate that breastfeeding in public is not indecent exposure or a nuisance. The bill comes as a relief to women who say they've felt ostracized at restaurants or other places. Jasmine Mielke/Mother of Two: 'I am sorry if some people find breastfeeding offensive or inappropriate in public. But it is my experience that breastfeeding mothers make every effort to be discreet. It is hardly my intention to make a spectacle of myself by delivering the best method available to quiet the hunger pangs of my crying baby.'..."

Best Places to Breastfeed? Best Music for Pumping? Nursing Moms Sound Off at www.medela.com: "
Press Release Source: Medela, Inc.
Tuesday February 1, 8:00 am ET
MCHENRY, Ill., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Where's the best public place to breastfeed in Boston, Boise and Birmingham? What music leads to faster let-down: the latest hit from the Black Eyed Peas or the symphonies of Beethoven?..."

CBS News | NIH To Ban Consulting Deals | February 1, 2005?10:30:02
"(CBS) In response to growing criticism, the National Institutes for Health is set to ban its research scientists from accepting consulting deals and any other form of income from drug companies, the Los Angeles Times reports. The newspaper, citing unidentified sources, said new rules will prohibit NIH staffers from accepting income from any biomedical company. And employees who now hold stock in such companies will be required to dispose of it. Four congressional committees have held hearings into conflicts of interest at the NIH. One criticism of the deals scientists have struck with drug companies is that their financial relationship with the firms is seldom disclosed...."

The Observer | UK News | Why big babies are not so healthy
Sunday January 23, 2005
The Observer
"A Chubby baby has been seen for years as the epitome of good health, but new research on the way children grow is set to overturn the belief that big is beautiful. A six-year study by the World Health Organisation into how more than 8,000 children across different continents put on weight in their first years has revealed that those given the best start in life - by being breast-fed and having non-smoking mothers - ended up significantly lighter than the optimum weights suggested by current guidelines. Child growth charts are now based largely on studies that mostly looked at babies fed on formula milk. The new work suggests that for years experts across the world have been significantly overestimating how many pounds babies should weigh.... "

A gift to remember
Family still touched by generosity of milk donations in 1984
By MARK BONNE, Rockford Register Star
"In the infancy of his life, Matt DeVries depended on the kindness of strangers. Until this week, he never fully understood the extent of their kindness. DeVries was born 21 years ago with a birth defect that kept him in the hospital and fed intravenously for three months. In that time, Matt's mother, Jacki Rose-DeVries, quit producing breast milk. When the time came to remove the IVs, no one could find a formula Matt could hold down. Enter the strangers...."

ThePittsburghChannel.com - Call 4 Action - Call 4 Action: Breast Pump Policies
POSTED: 5:45 pm EST January 19, 2005
"Women who use breast pumps to release milk do it for comfort reasons, but also to ensure that the milk is continually produced for their babies. Call 4 Action reporter Meghan Jones says employers must provide a place for working mothers to do it. However, women are on their own when they're outside their homes or offices. Tricia Gray, who works in the health care industry, uses a breast pump to express milk when she's away from her 4-month-old daughter, Cameron. A closed door and an electrical outlet is all she needs...."

DOCS HOPE THIS LADY'S BREAST MILK HELPS CURE CANCER
New York Post Online Edition: news
By SAM SMITH
"January 16, 2005 -- It's not just babies sucking down breast milk anymore. In small but growing numbers, adults are swigging it themselves hoping for a miracle cure for cancer and therapy against a host of other ailments. Based on European research showing breast milk is a potent cancer killer in the lab and beefs up immune systems of organ-transplant recipients and others, about 50 Americans pressed their doctors for milk prescriptions last year, up from nearly zero five years ago. Len Capp, 60, of South River, N.J., was one of the intrepid few. When he was diagnosed with prostate cancer three years ago, Capp's doctor wanted to operate immediately, but based on research Capp uncovered, he convinced his doctor to wait — and to write him a prescription for breast milk. 'I forced the prescription,' said Capp, who had to sign a waiver with a North Carolina milk bank to supply him with unpasteurized milk, something they typically don't do. The milk was shipped frozen overnight...."








Capp drank two breast-milk fruit shakes a day, about 8 ounces of milk."

The Globe and Mail: Study links kids' cancers to moms' exposure to pollutants
Globe and Mail, By ANDRÉ PICARD, Tuesday, January 18, 2005 - Page A17
"Most childhood cancers are likely caused by pollutants expectant mothers are exposed to during pregnancy, according to a new study. Those at greatest risk live close to busy roads and industrial areas, researchers found.In particular, they found children born of mothers living near "emission hot spots" of particular chemicals were two to four times more likely to develop leukemia and other childhood cancers before age 16. "Most childhood cancers are probably initiated by close, perinatal encounters with one or more of these high-emission sources," said George Knox, a professor emeritus at the University of Birmingham in Birmingham, U.K. Emissions that appear to raise cancer risk the most include carbon monoxide created by burning fossil fuels (notably gasoline used by vehicles) and 1,3-butadiene, also a by-product of internal combustion engines. Researchers also looked at the effect of various other industrial and environmental pollutants, including particulate matter, nitrogen oxides (both of which are associated with oil burning), as well as dioxins, benzene, and benz(a)pyrene. These chemicals can be found in engine exhaust, and smokestack emissions from various industrial and refinery processes. Dr. Knox said these chemicals -- many of which have been shown to be carcinogenic in animal tests -- are likely breathed in by the mother and passed on to the baby through the placenta. But he said that "effective direct exposure in early infancy, or through breast milk, or even preconceptually, cannot be excluded...."

Cindy Lange-Kubick: Breast is best -- for babies - Lincoln Journal Star
"I love it when the word breast is slipped into a front-page headline, because it guarantees the story will be well-read. But on the off chance you missed last Friday's piece — "Supporters applaud breast-feeding bill" — I'll fill you in. If passed, LB104 would protect the right of Nebraska's mothers to breast-feed in public. It seems ridiculous that such a law would be needed, but we Americans are funny when it comes to breasts. We like our Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue breasts. And our Victoria's Secret breasts. And our giant Internet porn site breasts. We like breasts to sell Buicks and breasts to promote football games and breasts to serve us hot wings and cold beer..."

ABC 7 News - ABC 7 Medical: Breast Milk On-Line
 uesday January 11, 2005 5:50pm
Reporter: Kathy Fowler  
-WJLA Script-

Anchor:
THE PRACTICE OF WOMEN SHARING BREAST MILK IS NOTHING REALLY NEW. IT'S BEEN GOING ON FOR CENTURIES.

BUT WHAT IS NEW.... IS THE PHENOMENON HERE IN THE U.S. IN WHICH WOMEN, OFTEN PERFECT STRANGERS ARE EXCHANGING BREAST MILK THROUGH THE INTERNET. ..."
"

Herald.com | 01/10/2005 | New moms need to transition back to work: "
BY AMY JOYCE
Washington Post Service

"WASHINGTON - After her son was born 14 months ago, Denise Lane-White returned to her job as a patent attorney with a bit of trepidation, like many mothers who return from maternity leave. But also like many moms, she was looking forward to getting back to work, although she knew the transition would not be simple after 12 paid weeks of maternity leave and two weeks of vacation time. "It was actually a little easier than I expected,'' she said. ``I missed the intellectual stimulation of my job. I maybe also prepared myself for being totally devastated. I was sad, and I missed my baby during the day. But it wasn't the [all]-encompassing devastation I expected.''..."

Grieving mom finds recipient for special gift
Toledo Blade
Sunday, January 9, 2005
By LUKE SHOCKMAN
BLADE STAFF WRITER
"Brenda Canada knew her baby probably would not survive but in the midst of her grief decided some good must come from her son's death. Five months before Christian was to be born, doctors told Mrs. Canada and her husband, Mike, that the child had severe kidney abnormalities and he likely would not live more than a few minutes after birth. The Wauseon-area couple began praying for a miracle but knew the odds were against them. So Mrs. Canada vowed that the death of her son, who was due to be born Christmas Day, would not prevent her from giving a special gift to someone else's baby. "We didn't want to live with any regrets," Mrs. Canada said. "We wanted to help other babies." She had heard about programs in some parts of the country that collect excess breast milk from mothers and distribute it to babies..."

Xinhua - English
Cloned cows with human genes born in Shandong
www.chinaview.cn 2005-01-08 21:16:26
"BEIJING, Jan. 8 -- Two cloned cows containing a human gene, which is an important component in breast milk, were born in east China's Shandong Province. ..."

Public Outcry Over Public Breast feeding
Jan. 6, 2005
www.waff.com
"Breastfeeding in public . . . Its literally created a public outcry.  Monday we told you about a woman who was asked to move to a private area because she was breast feeding in a public area at a Huntsville museum. Nearly 200 people have posted their opinions and the messages have been viewed by close to four-thousand people.  Some people have been for . . . others against. Amy Heflin said, "I've never been asked to leave anywhere because of feeding my baby."  Jenny Jacks works at the Earlyworks Museum...."

Yahoo! News Photos - Tsunami Impacts Children, FamiliesPhotograph: "Fauwzi, a 20-year-old tsunami survivor, breastfeeds her 2-year-old son Zikri, at a refugee center on the outskirts of Banda Aceh, Sumatra island, Indonesia, Thursday Jan. 6, 2005. " [The USBC web site has a link to UNICEF's information on infant feeding in emergencies, provided by Miriam Labbok.]

Breastfeeding Rates Need Improvement
Too Few Babies Breastfed at 6 and 12 Months, CDC Reports
By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD
on Wednesday, January 05, 2005
"Breastfeeding infants well into their first few months of life is too rare in the U.S., particularly among blacks and socially disadvantaged groups. The news comes from a CDC report that shows breastfeeding rates fall short of national goals. It's not that breastfeeding is uncommon. More than 70% of American babies have been breastfed at some point. That's close to the target set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The department's goal is to have at least 75% of mothers breastfeed their babies in the early postpartum period. The HHS also wants to have at least 50% of mothers continue breastfeeding until their babies are 5 to 6 months old...."

Vanguard Online Edition : EDUCATION: Let the milk of human kindness flow that our children may live(3)
EDUCATION: Let the milk of human kindness flow that our children may live(3)
"By ADENIKE O. GRANGE
Thursday, January 06, 2005
Being the text of an inaugural lecture delivered by Prof. Adenike Grange of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Wenesday, Dec. 1, 2004. Grange is also president of the International Paediatrics Association. The second instalment taken last week specifically addressed protein-energy malnutrition in children, and ended with a treatment of nutrients in human milk, with an explanation of degradation in quantity as the infant grows. READ ON.
Non-nutritional Factors in Breast Milk
Human milk contains many non-nutritional substances such as hormones and growth factors. Hormones in human milk include cortisol, somatostatin thyroid hormones, oxytocin, and prolactin. Growth factors include epidermal growth factor, insulin, and lactoferrin. Other substances such as long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids may relate to growth. In addition, human milk contains others factors that are inducers of certain biological processes, MS. The Significance of these hormones and factors for growth patterns, however, is not understood. Breast-fed infants have lower plasma concentrations of insulin than formula-fed infants, which might result in less fat deposition and fewer adipocytes developing. The other bioactive factors that are present in breast milk might modulate growth factors that are known to inhabit adipocyte differentiation...."

WSJ.com - Mothers Who Share Breast Milk
As of Tuesday, January 4, 2005 
By SARA SCHAEFER MUÑOZ
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
January 4, 2005; Page D1
"Amid mounting evidence of the health benefits of breast-feeding for infants, a movement is quietly growing among parents: sharing or even selling breast milk. The idea is to provide milk for adoptive mothers and women who cannot nurse because of illness or some other reason. Instead of turning solely to infant formula to feed their children, these women are tapping into informal networks of friends, acquaintances and in some cases strangers found on the Internet. While there are milk banks where parents can purchase donated breast milk that has been pasteurized and screened for disease, infants who are very sick and cannot nurse get priority. In addition, banks require a doctor's prescription, and the milk can be very expensive -- about $100 a day...."