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Food for thought - baby and breast


Normal Newborn Behavior and Why Breastmilk Isn't Just Food

What is a normal, term human infant supposed to do?

First of all, a human baby is supposed to be born vaginally. Yes, I know that doesn't always happen, but we're just going to talk ideal, normal for now. We are supposed to be born vaginally because we need good bacteria. Human babies are sterile, without bacteria, at birth. It's no accident that we are born near the anus, an area that has lots of bacteria, most of which are good and necessary for normal gut health and development of the immune system. And the bacteria that are there are mom's bacteria, bacteria that she can provide antibodies against if the bacteria there aren't nice.

Then the baby is born and is supposed to go to mom. Right to her chest. The chest, right in between the breasts is the natural habitat of the newborn baby. (Fun factoid: our cardiac output, how much blood we circulate in a given minute, is distributed to places that are important. Lots goes to the kidney every minute, like 10% or so, and 20% goes to your brain. In a new mom, 23% goes to her chest- more than her brain. The body thinks that place is important!)

That chest area gives heat. The baby has been using mom's body for temperature regulation for ages. Why would they stop? With all that blood flow, it's going to be warm. The baby can use mom to get warm. When I was in my residency, we would put a cold baby "under the warmer" which meant a heater thingy next to mom. Now, as I have matured, if a baby is "under the warmer," the kid is under mom. I wouldn't like that. I like the kids on top of mom, snuggled.

Now we have a brand new baby on the warmer. That child is not hungry. Bringing a hungry baby into the world is a bad plan. And really, if they were hungry, can you please explain to me why my kids sucked the life force out of me in those last few weeks of pregnancy? They better have been getting food, or well, that would have been annoying and painful for nothing.

Every species has instinctual behaviors that allow the little ones to grow up to be big ones and keep the species going. Our kids are born into the world needing protection. Protection from disease and from predators. Yes, predators. Our kids don't know they've been born into a loving family in the 21st century- for all they know it's the 2nd century and they are in a cave surrounded by tigers. Our instinctive behaviors as baby humans need to help us stay protected. Babies get both disease protection and tiger protection from being on mom's chest. Presumably, we gave the baby some good bacteria when they arrived through the birth canal. That's the first step in disease protection. The next step is getting colostrum.

A newborn baby on mom's chest will pick their head up, lick their hands, maybe nuzzle mom, lick their hands and start to slide towards the breast. The kids have a preference for contrasts between light and dark, and for circles over other shapes. Think about that...there's a dark circle not too far away.

Mom's sweat smells like amniotic fluid, and that smell is on the child's hands (because there's been no bath yet!) and the baby uses that taste on their hand to follow mom's smell. The secretions coming from the glands on the areola (that dark circle) smell familiar too and help the baby get to the breast to get the colostrum which is going to feed the good bacteria and keep them protected from infection. The kids can attach by themselves. Watch for yourself! And if you just need colostrum to feed bacteria and not yourself, well, there doesn't have to be much. And there isn't because the kids aren't hungry and because Breastmilk is not food!

We're talking normal babies. Breastfeeding is normal. It's what babies are hardwired to do. 2009 or 209, the kids would all do the same thing: try to find the breast. Breastfeeding isn't special sauce, a leg up or a magic potion. It's not "best. " It's normal. Just normal. Designed for the needs of a vulnerable human infant. And nothing else designed to replace it is normal.

Colostrum also activates things in the baby's gut that then goes on to make the thymus grow. The thymus is part of the immune system. Growing your thymus is important. Breastmilk= big thymus, good immune system. Colostrum also has a bunch of something called Secretory Immunoglobulin A (SIgA). SIgA is made in the first few days of life and is infection protection specifically from mom. Cells in mom's gut watch what's coming through and if there's an infectious cell, a special cell in mom's gut called a plasma cell heads to the breast and helps the breast make SIgA in the milk to protect the baby. If mom and baby are together, like on mom's chest, then the baby is protected from what the two of them may be exposed to. Babies should be with mom.

And the tigers. What about them? Define "tiger" however you want. But if you are baby with no skills in self-protection, staying with mom, having a grasp reflex, and a startle reflex that helps you grab onto your mom, especially if she's hairy, makes sense. Babies know the difference between a bassinette and a human chest. When infants are separated from their mothers, they have a "despair- withdrawal" response. The despair part comes when they alone, separated. The kids are vocally expressing their desire not to be tiger food. When they are picked up, they stop crying. They are protected, warm and safe. If that despair cry is not answered, they withdraw. They get cold, have massive amounts of stress hormones released, drop their heart rate and get quiet. That's not a good baby. That's one who, well, is beyond despair. Normal babies want to be held, all the time.

And when do tigers hunt? At night. It makes no sense at all for our kids to sleep at night. They may be eaten. There's nothing really all that great about kids sleeping through the night. They should wake up and find their body guard. Daytime, well, not so many threats. They sleep better during the day. (Think about our response to our tigers-- sleep problems are a huge part of stress, depression, anxiety).

And sleep... My guess is everybody sleeps with their kids- whether they choose to or not and whether they admit to it or not. It's silly of us as healthcare providers to say "don't sleep with your baby" because we all do it. Sometimes accidentally. Sometimes intentionally. The kids are snuggly, it feels right and you are tired. So, normal babies breastfeed, stay at the breast, want to be held and sleep better when they are with their parents. Seems normal to me. But there is a difference between a normal baby and one that isn't. Safe sleep means that we are sober, in bed and not a couch or a recliner, breastfeeding, not smoking...being normal. If the circumstances are not normal, then sleeping with the baby is not safe.

That chest -to -chest contact is also brain development. Our kids had as many brain cells as they were ever going to have at 28 weeks of gestation. It's a jungle of waiting -to-be- connected cells. What we do as humans is create too much and then get rid of what we aren't using. We have like 8 nipples, a tail and webbed hands in the womb. If all goes well, we don't have those at birth. Create too much- get rid of what you aren't using. So, as you are snuggling, your child is hooking up happy brain cells and hopefully getting rid of the "eeeek" brain cells. Breastfeeding, skin-to-skin, is brain wiring. Not food.

Why go on and on about this? Because more and more mothers are choosing to breastfeed. But most women don't believe that the body that created that beautiful baby is capable of feeding that same child and we are supplementing more and more with infant formulas designed to be food. Why don't we trust our bodies post-partum? I don't know. But I hear over and over that the formula is because "I am just not satisfying him." Of course you are. Babies don't need to "eat" all the time- they need to be with you all the time- that's the ultimate satisfaction.

A baby at the breast is getting their immune system developed, activating their thymus, staying warm, feeling safe from predators, having normal sleep patterns and wiring their brain, and (oh by the way) getting some food in the process. They are not "hungry" --they are obeying instinct. The instinct that allows us to survive and make more of us.

Dr. Thomas


I ve posted this not to cause a stir, but I found it a really interesting read. I breastfed my boy, but I didnt put him that much on my chest for a snooze, I guess that is why he was so unsettled in the hospital the first few days! Because I was putting him down, and maybe he was cold and scared! It is very interesting to read how very primitive everything is reallyand very basic instinct ... My 2nd baby (a girl) is due in October, I will defo cuddle her more when tiny, hehe!

Hope you re all well!
xx


[Modified by: fooxoo on 04 August 2010 11:24:08 ]

Replies

  • well thats very interesting reading and he makes perfect sense!!!

    I unfortunatley had to give up breastfeeding my ds at 12 weeks due to a very bad infection that I had, i'd taken several courses of antibiotics which didn't clear the infection up and then had to go on a medication which I was not allowed to bf on.
    However I never stopped close chest contact. I remember the first night he was born and he slept on my chest all night in hospital and it was the most delightful experience and I still love the feeling now and he'll be 3 next month!!!
    I bath with him all the time and he'll climb on me and lay on my chest cuddling in the bath and I sleep naked and he always comes in bed with mum and dad in mornings and have close cuddles.
    I believe skin to skin contact is very important and I can see that my 3 year old boy is a very loving caring child who showers people with affection.

    I also believe his sleep theory!! Babies aren't meant to sleep through the night from birth!!! its only our need for babies to sleep through that we put so much emphasis on it!! yes sleep deprivation is kind of torture, my lo didn't sleep for more than 3/4hours until he was nearly a year, but we just get on with it

    good article!!
  • Claire a bella - good going for breastfeeding and sad that you got the infection and had to stop. I was very fortunate to breastfeed till 15 months, my boy hasnt even had a bottle ever lol!

    I am just a bit sad about the cuddling for the first few days ... my labour was basically 3 days long and I was so exhaisted that I thought I d squash or drop him if he slept on my chest and I in turn fell asleep ... I find it a pity that fathers are not allowed to stay the night at hospitals here in uk (you can in latvia where I am from, just rent a cot for dad for 40 quid), at least if daddy were to stay over he could cuddle the baby when mum is having a snooze!

    We have great cuddles, I m just sad for thsoe first few days. Hugo is now almost 2, and in the mornings he sleeps with us in the big bed. We also co-slept with him for the first few weeks, we als take baths with him together and so on! :P

    Atm he is sitting on my lap and cuddling my arm lol!

    I ll pay more attention to chest-to-chest cuddles when little girl is here.

    And I agree about sleeping through as well, they are not meant to! Breast milk can only sustain them for abour 4 hours max, I was very fortunate that Hugo started to sleep from 11pm - 6am from around 10 weeks, but it was not by my doing, but his, he kind of started not to wake up for the 3am feed ...

    I just hope Hugo will not be of the very jealous type and let me cuddle his sister or will even want to cuddle her himself lol! image
  • interesting read xx My DS2 is breastfed but he won't lie on me at all unless breastfeeding he's too nosey think the tigers would have gotten him by now as he likes to squeal at everything lol
  • Where dod you find it? Who is Dr Thomas? Would like to know more! V interesting!

    Em x
  • http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=102023499855981 - about the Doctor. image

    Hope she posts more interesting things!
  • really enjoyed reading this, thanks x
  • That was really interesting and made a hell of a lot of sense. My lo took all his naps on me until he was 12 months old (and too heavy for me to support!). It was something i felt really bad about, that i wasn't doing my job properly-that a good mummy would be able to get their lo to nap in their cot - turns out i was protecting him from all those tigers-yay for me!!

  • Very interesting article. I have breastfed my son for 10 months and it is only now that he is starting to self wean. BF for me has always been totally normal and the article reassures me that when I need to co-sleep with him because he is upset and needs comfort, that too is normal. My son has also woken up at least once every night since he was born and I am just getting on with it. No tigers in this house!!

    Thanks.

    C.x
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