Saturday, November 10, 2007

Breasteeding Only Makes *Some* Kids Smarter

Can I get a gene analysis on the side for my 10 month old? Because if he doesn't have the right fatty acid gene control going on, then I just endured 6 weeks of breastfeeding with thrush, aka baby sucking milk through broken glass, for nothing. Not to mention the 2+ years my little girl practiced Kama Sutra nursing in her playgroup while the other parents (ok, dads in particular) squirmed politely. Interesting Duke Univ. study about how only kids with a particular version of a gene showed an IQ boost with breastfeeding. Now *that* info would be worth a needle stick at birth! Not that the all-night snack bar isn't beautiful in a Sears and Sears treasure-every-bonding-moment kind of way...and I know, I know, there are a myriad of other benefits (economic, immunological, developmental). Good to know that (as usual) some benefits of nursing involve a toss of the coin, though....

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

God bless those who can breastfeed and breastfeed easily. To the point of breastfeeding being less expensive, that was not exactly the case for me. I spent a small fortune on pump rentals, herbal milk supply remedies, feeding devices, breastfeeding pillows and bras, books and CONSULTANT fees ($$) for a brief period of breastfeeding. I'd do it again, cause I'd want to be able say I gave it my best shot, but I have to question the money saving aspect that so many people espouse. Perhaps over the long haul, yes, but there is still plenty of money a breastfeeding mom can spend on breastfeeding.

JessTrev said...

That's *such* a good point, Anon. I really never questioned the economic benefit -- since I was focusing so narrowly on the cost of formula, which seems so expensive to an outsider. But you're right, I too rented a hospital grade pump not once but twice, bought outright a Medela pump, purchased lots of nursing accessible clothing, and have gotten advice from lactation consultants several times via emergency phone calls (none of which was cheap). Absolutely true about the potential for spending lots of $ on bfeeding.