Here is another use for breastmilk – testing for breast cancer. And if you are nursing or are planning to in the coming year, you might just consider volunteering for this research program.

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst are looking volunteers who:

• are breastfeeding or pumping breastmilk
• who have had a breast biopsy previously or who are scheduled to have one soon
• willing to donate breastmilk and answer a questionnaire

The purpose of the study funded by Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, is to investigate whether mythelated genes, which are indicators of pre-cancerous changes in breast tissue can be detected in cells found in breastmilk. The methylation process in breast cells can proceed towards cancer development. Thus, detecting methylation amounts to early detection of breast cancer.

Currently, the most commonly used screening method for breast cancer is mammography. However, the method presents some limitation, including discomfort, invasiveness, and radiation exposure.

Testing using breastmilk has the advantage of being non-invasive. In addition, unlike biopsy, breast milk gives a representative sample of cells from all the glands in the breast rather than just an isolated area of the breast.

For those of you who are interested in cancer prevention advocacy, then this is a good chance for you to show your support. More information can be found in the research program’s site www.breastmilkresearch.org.

I didn’t want to do it. I really wanted to hold out until 6 months to introduce solid foods. Breast milk has all the nutrients she needs right now, and she’s growing up fast enough as it is. Why rush things?

But after sleeping five to seven hour stretches for weeks, Ashley woke up hungry every two hours for two nights straight. I may have let it go on longer, feeling her every two hours and letting her sleep with us, if I didn’t have to work during the day. But there I was, not quite desperate for a full night’s sleep but knowing I couldn’t do this for much longer. I called the pediatrician.

The doctor said there’s a slim chance she teething, but it’s more likely she’s just ready for solid foods. In the past week, Ashley has become much more active—kicking at her toys in her baby gym, wiggling every time I put her down. She’s constantly in motion so I’m sure she’s burning calories like mad. She may be blessed with her father’s metabolism, which would be any female’s dream — lucky kid!

So on Saturday, we placed her in her high chair, snapped on her Winnie-the-Pooh bib and gave Ashley her first taste of cereal. I selected Gerber Organic Oatmeal, as the doctor said rice cereal or baby oatmeal were fine. I eat oatmeal about three times a week for breakfast so I figured the flavor would be “familiar” to her. I’ve read that babies pick up the taste of foods Mom eats in breast milk and during pregnancy.

She ate two mouthfuls and didn’t seem thrilled, mushing it around in her mouth and opening and closing her lips together, a little frown on her face. But I’m optimistic. She’s very young – not even four months yet—so I didn’t think she would accept any solid food at all the first time. If your baby rejects the first solid food, you should wait a week before you try again. But I interpreted two tastes as just short of overt rejection.

I tried again that night – another two mouthfuls. The next evening at dinner, though, she took four tastes, and even licked her lips. She still hasn’t smiled though, and I don’t think she likes the taste of the formula I use to water down the cereal. I never got the hang of pumping breastmilk, unfortunately.

The author of Super Baby Food, which I’m using as a feeding guideline for the first two years, says you don’t have to start a baby on cereal. Another food, watered down to a thin, milky consistency, is just as good. So I may try sweet potatoes next weekend.

Helpful tips for offering solid foods for the first time:

• Iron-fortified cereal is recommended as a first food because allergies to it are extremely rare. My pediatrician said she’d never heard of a case.
• Introduce a new food at breakfast, so if an allergic reaction occurs, it’s less likely to happen in the middle of the night.
• Wait 3 – 5 days before offering a different food, again, to test for allergic reactions.
• Smile and act upbeat when you give your baby food for the first time. She will pick up on your enthusiasm.
• Food can be served room temperature or lukewarm, the same temperature you would serve formula.
• I put the food in a baby bottle and used the bottle warmer to heat it. If you microwave food, stir carefully to avoid any “hot spots.” Microwave heating is not recommended except in a pinch.
• Don’t expect your baby to love it the first time. She may make faces. Go slowly to give her a chance to absorb this new experience.
• If baby turns her head or closes her mouth, stop. She may need to be burped and then you can try again. But if she refuses food twice, pack it up for that meal.
• Don’t forget to take lots of pictures of baby’s first meal!

Milk always came very easily from my breasts when the time came for my baby to latch on. There was more than one instance where the milk flowed out like a mini faucet and my husband stared transfixed while I giggled at the amazing things my body could do. On the other hand, my milk production seemed to come to a screeching halt once I brought out a pump.

I was lucky to be able to stay home with both of my babies so technically I didn’t need to pump. It would have been nice, though, to be able to leave for more than an hour at a time when the babies were young without my husband calling me on my cell phone and frantically telling me to come home because the baby was trying to nurse on anything she could get her mouth on.

I tried to pump. When my breasts were engorged the pumping came pretty naturally and helped me to feel a little less like my breasts were going to explode. Once that was over I still tried to pump once a night just to build up a little stockpile in the freezer just in case we ever needed some extra or if my baby ever took to a bottle.

Then my husband got orders to Iraq. I was home with a five month old all by myself and was scared out of my mind. Every time I tried to pump there was barely a trickle, and never enough to put into the freezer. I know that nursing moms are supposed to relax and think about their babies when trying to pump breastmilk, but I guess I was having relaxation issues.

I gave up on pumping. I never liked it anyhow, and I guess I was just one of those moms who never got the hang of it. If I could have pumped like a champ then I’m sure I would have had more time to myself because the babies could have enjoyed some feedings from other people via bottle, but it just never happened for me.

A gastronomist in the Swiss city of Winterthur announced earlier this week that he will serve traditional Swiss dishes in his restaurant that will be special and unique. He will substitute the usual cream or fresh milk in the recipes with breastmilk. He actually started advertising for breast milk donors.

His announcement sparked heated discussions in all sectors – the health authorities, the restaurant association, and the consumers of course. The food safety authorities were at a loss – human breast milk is not on the list of milk of animal species approved for human consumption. Yet, nobody can deny that breastmilk is fit for human consumption. Breastmilk is the best food for our babies. However, there is the question of quality control and safety. Some diseases, including HIV, can be transmitted from the mother to the child through breastmilk.

Fearing a backlash, the chef made a statement yesterday that he won’t push through with his gastronomic plans. No breast milk on the menu. But the idea was sown and it won’t be the last time that people will try it out again.

After doing a bit of research, I found out that the Swiss chef wasn’t the first one to come up with the idea.

An article from smh Australia way back in 2003 reported about a restaurant in Chnagsha, China which served dishes prepared with breastmilk from 6 peasant women who, aside from supplying milk to the restaurant, were also breastfeeding little children of their own. The report sparked outrage all over China after the owner announced his intention of expanding his business to specially prepared “breast milk banquets.”

Tell us what you think. Would you sell your breastmilk for gastronomic purposes? Would you eat in a restaurant serving breastmilk-prepared dishes?

Two groups of researchers from two dairy countries report about the additional benefits of human milk that other dairy substitutes cannot provide. Swiss and Australian researchers identified special proteins that can help fight gastrointestinal (GI) infection by removing dangerous microbes (e.g. bacteria and viruses) in the GI tract of infants. These two sugar-based proteins called MUC-1 and MUC-4 are not found in cow’s milk. The presence of these proteins in human milk may partly explain the protective properties of breastmilk. The study results will be published in the September issue of the Journal of Proteome Research, an official publication of the American Chemical Society.

In spite of the many studies (see this previous post) indicating the benefits of breastmilk, long-term breastfeeding rate in the US is still low. There are many reasons for this, some of them due to demographics, but also partly due to lack of breastfeeding support from maternity clinics. Even the attitude of some pediatricians may play a role when they push for vitamin supplementation for breastfed babies.

Let’s hope this attitude changes for the sake of future generations.

When my first baby was a newborn I remember wondering if my breastmilk was enough when it came to liquids. It seemed a little odd that my baby didn’t need any water or any other type of liquid, so when I asked my doctor for clarification she said in no certain terms: “No water, no way, not yet.”

Babies who are under six months old just don’t need any extra water to drink. Water can actually harm them in a number of ways, and can even lead to some serious medical issues like seizures and other undesirable events. Once in a while a group of pediatricians will send out a press release or get an article published that reminds parents to not give young babies water to drink. The latest article I read was issued through Reuters and it reiterates the valid point that breastmilk or formula is sufficient for young babies unless there is another condition present that merits additional liquids.

I know how weird it may sometimes seem to only give babies breastmilk or formula because after all, as adults we’re used to a wide variety of foods and drinks so why wouldn’t a baby require more? Just remember that younger babies have insides that are still maturing, and for them the milk or formula is completely sufficient.

Instead of giving your baby water to drink, give her plenty of water to splash in the tub. She’ll like that better anyhow.

We all know about the controversy over stem cell research. As well as other sources, the most well-know type of stem cells are those found in human embryos, which are destroyed to harvest the stem cells.

Scientists have made great advances in finding ethical sources of stem cells, but now Australian researchers have discovered a potential goldmine of stem cells – in breastmilk!

Unborn babies are basically made from stem cells, the placenta supports stem cells, umbilical cord blood contains stem cells (and companies exist who will save and store that cord blood for your baby) so researchers wondered if the next step of a baby’s development – birth, and nursing after birth – might involve stem cells too. They tested breastmilk, and discovered it did indeed contain stem cells.

Scientists still don’t understand much about what the function of these stem cells are, but breastmilk is ethical, widely available and inexpensive for researchers to use. If the breastmilk stem cells can be used in place of embryonic stem cells, then scientists will potentially be able to use them in therapies for an enormous range of diseases like cancer, kidney disease, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Nice work, Australian scientists!

Source – Science Alert: Breastmilk Contains Stem Cells