December 2003

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2004

Extra breastfeeding prevents cancer!
Thousands of women might be spared the agony of breast cancer if they extended the period for which they suckle their babies.
Research published on Friday suggests that for every year of her life spent breastfeeding, a woman's risk of the disease drops by 4.3%
This is on top of the 7% reduction she enjoys for every baby to which she gives birth.
If women in the UK breastfed on average for an extra six months each, 1,000 cases of breast cancer - and hundreds of deaths - would be prevented each year.

However, experts say that too few women in this country are breastfeeding their babies - partly because too little support is available to help them start.

Belinda Phipps, the chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust, said: "Currently, only one in five UK mothers are still breastfeeding after six months - we know that many give up before they want to. "It is clear that UK women are still not getting the information and support they need to breastfeed their babies. "We need to see a real shift away from the current bottle-feeding culture in the UK to one where breastfeeding is completely accepted."
The latest study was carried out by analysts at Cancer Research UK, who pooled data from dozens of different studies into the benefits of breastfeeding. Differences in childbearing and breastfeeding habits could partly explain why rates of breast cancer are so low in the developing world. On average women in the developing world breastfeed for approximately two years, and have six or seven children, as opposed to two months per child and two or three children in the UK. Professor Valerie Beral said: "It's long been known that breast cancer is common in situations where women have few children and breastfeed for short periods. "We've shown that these factors alone account for much of the high rates of breast cancer in these settings."
Fellow researcher Dr Gillian Reeves said: "Even if women in the West were to breastfeed each of their children for an extra six months, this could prevent 5% of breast cancers each year." Breast cancer is now the most common cancer in women - there are well over 30,000 cases each year, and mortality is approximately a third. A spokesman for Breakthrough Breast Cancer said: "This study has indicated a relationship between breastfeeding and a lower risk of cancer -but more research is necessary to clearly establish a causal link."

~Tuesday is Chat day~
All members are welcome to join in on weekly chats.
Chat times are...
Daytime: 2-4pm EST
Night: 8-10pm EST
If you go to chat and you are all alone, then post a reminder on the board, and someone will join you :)
Make sure to use your current user name so we know who you are!
~Happy Chatting~

~Breastfeeding friendly product~
Lansinoh

Lansinoh is the safest, purest product for you to use to sooth sore cracked nipples. No nursing mother should be without. There is no need to let it dry or wash it off before you nurse. It's pure enough to apply, and then nurse right away. It tastes sweet and most babies don't mind it.
Read how Lansinoh got started.

~Recipe of the month~
Frizzle's un-cabbage rolls

This is a recipe I made up when my computer was at the doctors getting fixed :) It was really yummy.

1 chopped cooking onion
1 chopped orange bell pepper
1 chopped yellow bell pepper
Half a head of cabbage chopped to bite size
1 large can whole italian tomatos

In a pot with a TSP of butter add the onion and pepppers. Let them fry together for 5 minutes on high, then add the cabbage to the pot and them up for another 5 minutes.

Now add the can of tomatos (tomato juice and all)with some salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 30 minutes mixing often.

Tranfer everything into an oven safe dish and cover with tinfoil and cook at 375 for 45 minutes.. remove tinfoil and up the heat to 400 for another 10 minutes.
Voila! :-)

Member spotlight
Princess Aurora

1. What is your earliest memory of breastfeeding?
When I breastfed my child. I had never really ever heard about breastfeeding, or even seen someone.

2. Where did you grow up?
Kentucky

3. How do family and friends react to your nursing?
Fairly supportive, but they didnt expect me to continue after she was through with the infant stage. Boy did I surprise them!

4. What is your dream job?
I love love love being a sahm. Some day after my children are grown I would like to help other moms with breastfeeing education, or something in that realm.

5. Do you have problems nursing in public or in front of people?
At first I was sorta shy especially around the males in my family, but I did it proudly!

6. What is your favorite thing about being a mom?
I love having a child that I need to care for. Its brought out the most wonderful instinctual part of being a woman. It's a magical feeling.

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