Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Powdered formula could cause premie deaths

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/1279129,aurora-baby-formula-risks-au111308.article

The Chicago Sun Times just wrote an article stating that powder formula could have caused the death of multiple babies by giving them meningitis (and other bacterial diseases).

The story begins with a family who had pre-mature twins november of 2007. The twins were given Enfamil powdered formula while in the NICU and one of the boys passed away due to meningitis. On his death certificate there was a note from the Illinois Department of Health stating that his formula consumption was associated with his death.

The article says the reason powdered formula is so risky is because it cannot be steralized. The container states "... powdered infant formulas are not sterile and should not be fed to premature infants or infants who might have immune problems unless directed and supervised by your baby's doctor." Mead Johnson since has also come out and said that this product should not be used in any neo-natal care units. The only reason I can imagine that a NICU would use powdered formula even though their is a risk right on the can is that its much cheaper.

This is not an isolated case, there have been reported brain damage and deaths country-wide. Why has no one heard of these stories? Its more than irritating. Unfortuneatly we formula feed and we use powdered formula. We discussed formula options with our doctor and never were encouraged to not buy the powdered type (since my son has a heart defect I worry about potential illness) I can't even imagine losing my child because of a nurse/doctor giving them un-sterilized formula. I'm so sad for the familes that have lost their children.

Vaccine Safety Awareness Form for your doctor

On mothering.com they have a link to a vaccine safety awareness form that you can give to your doctor to read and sign stating that he is aware of all the problems vaccines can cause and that he/she believes vaccines are 100% safe to use on your child. I love this idea for parents who do choose to vaccinate their children and heres why:

1. You HAVE to go over all the possible side effects with your doctor. I know they hand you a sheet at the end of the appointment stating the possible effects but I think most parents just throw that sheet away, plus why bother giving the possible side effect sheet at the end of the appointment AFTER your child has been vaccinated? This way you have to know ahead of vaccinating the risks included.

2. The form has statistics and information from VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System).

3. It holds your doctor accountable

I think having such a form available will get parents to research vaccine safety. Most parents just do what their doctor tells them without questioning them. Educating yourself on vaccinations is important, you should never just take the word of someone especially if they are getting paid to do what they are encouraging you to do (think about it, would you buy a car just because the salesman says its a great car? of course not! You do your research and even if it turns out that you love the car at least you can say YOU made the decision for yourself).

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Breastfeed babies have a reduced risk to sleep apnea!?

http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/bfing_reduces.htm

Yet another reason to breastfeed your child. While reading a forum on mothering.com (a new favorite site I might add) I discovered that breastfeeding reduces the risk of obstructive sleep apnea. Because breastfeeding is SO important to the proper development of the swallowing action of the tounge, proper alignment of the teeth and shaping of the hard palate by not breast feeding your child is at risk to have a V-shaped palate which can cause sleep apnea. OSA (obsructive sleep apnea) causes snoring, daytime sleepiness, periods during sleep where you stop breathing, and in adulthood can cause headaches, depression as well as a HUGE number of problems which are listed in the article.

This study has been around since the 1970s yet, I've never heard that breastfeeding helps to form the palate before. I've always heard the basic health benefits of breastfeeding and how it helps mother and child bond but I have never heard anything to do with the pallate. It got me thinking, if I had never heard that until now how many other women are out there unaware that by choosing to formula feed they are creating future serious problems oral health wise for their children?

I found the following quote from the article interesting, "before the invention of baby bottles and pacifiers, high palates, narrow dental arches, and overjets were rare." Why didn't a health association try to promote breastfeeding instead of pushing for formula? Why when you are sitting at the OB office pregnant and being handed every pamphlet on everything are you not handed a pamphlet on the ill-affects of bottle feeding?

Its just something to think about...

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Advocate for legalizing homebirth CPMs

Hello Iowans! We need to add our voices to those asking Iowa legislators to legally recognize the credentials of certified professional midwives, or CMPs for short. CMPs practice in homebirth settings and can currently be prosecuted for attending laboring mothers who want to have a home birth. We need to legally recognize the credentials of the CMPs to expand the birthplace choices for Iowa familes. It shouldn't be up to the government where we can have our children.


Friends of Iowa Midwives is planning to introduce a bill to licence CPMs in Iowa in the 2009 legislative session, beginning January 12. We need to write our senators or representatives and let them hear our voice. Our opinions matter and they will listen if enough of us make a stand on our beliefs. To find out who your local representatives are, visit this page for the Iowa State Legislature and enter your address:http://www.legis.state.ia.us/FindLeg/

For more information on this issue, you can visit the Friends of Iowa Midwives website:http://www.friendsofiowamidwives.org/ . If you visit the friends of Iowa Midwives site and let them know you wrote a letter you also get a bumper sticker! Whoo-hoo! So please, write a letter and let your representative hear your voice!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Chicken pox cases increase since vaccinations

I saw this article on a chicken pox vac thread on mothering.com and thought it was very interesting. I am personally completely against the vaccine and really only understand parents who choose to get a male child in their teens vaccinated.

The article is about how since 2005 there has been a 41% increase in the # of chicken pox cases in Texas even though there is a requirement to get it by age 8. This article is not anti-vacs so I don't want people not reading because they think its a biased piece.

What I found interesting while reading was the following:"Shirley Schreiber, director of health services with the Northside Independent School District in San Antonio, said vaccinated students who get chicken pox end up staying home the same number of days as they would have without the vaccine."

I find that statement interesting because the reason the chicken pox vaccine came out was to keep parents from taking off work, ask your doctor they'll admit it too. So why bother having the vaccine if your vaccinated child still has to stay home the same number of days? The whole point of the vaccine was convenience to parents and their workplace but its looking like the vaccine isn't really that convenient so why are they still pushing the vaccine!? I'm just lost and confused why we keep pumping our children with chemicals for no reason. Bizzare.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5471556.html

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

co-sleeping study

I saw this on The Human Pacifier and had to share

Scientific Benefits of Co-Sleeping
Popular media has tried to discourage parents from sharing sleep with their babies, calling this worldwide practice unsafe. Medical science, however, doesn’t back this conclusion. In fact, research shows that co-sleeping is actually safer than sleeping alone. Here is what science says about sleeping with your baby:

Sleep more peacefully. Research shows that co-sleeping infants virtually never startle during sleep and rarely cry during the night, compared to solo sleepers who startle repeatedly throughout the night and spend 4 times the number of minutes crying 1. Startling and crying releases adrenaline, which increases heart rate and blood pressure, interferes with restful sleep and leads to long term sleep anxiety.

Stable physiology. Studies show that infants who sleep near to parents have more stable temperatures 2, regular heart rhythms, and fewer long pauses in breathing compared to babies who sleep alone 3. This means baby sleeps physiologically safer.

Decreases risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Worldwide research shows that the SIDS rate is lowest (and even unheard of) in countries where co-sleeping is the norm, rather than the exception 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Babies who sleep either in or next to their parents’ bed have a fourfold decrease in the chance of SIDS 10. Co-sleeping babies actually spend more time sleeping on their back or side 1 which decreases the risk of SIDS. Further research shows that the carbon dioxide exhaled by a parent actually works to stimulate baby’s breathing 11.

Long term emotional health. Co-sleeping babies grow up with a higher self-esteem, less anxiety, become independent sooner, are better behaved in school 12, and are more comfortable with affection 13. They also have less psychiatric problems 14.

Safer than crib sleeping. The Consumer Product Safety Commission published data that described infant fatalities in adult beds. These same data, however, showed more than 3 times as many crib related infant fatalities compared to adult bed accidents 15. Another recent large study concluded that bed sharing did NOT increase the risk of SIDS, unless the mom was a smoker or abused alcohol 16.


I always love when people post information about the benefits of co-sleeping because so many people think it is so dangerous and I often get comments about how I should not be co-sleeping with my son.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Its been a long time











Updates updates! It's been a busy month. We're moving in two weeks for Springfield, Il! I am so excited but that means I'm very busy right now too. Mark is not much of a packer so I've been packing away everything while taking care of the little Mr.

Both Ryland and I were really sick the last week and a half, Ryland had croup (still no idea where he caught it!) so we were dealing with a bad cough and sleepless nights. I'm still really stuffed up and congested. My mother-in-law came over yesterday to help me get some stuff done around the house. We had some touch up paint to do which turned into having to paint the entire living room. The walls were so dirty from all the dust in my condo that there was no way we could get away with doing a touch up here or there.

Ryland is walking! Lucky for me hes not running yet, or even walking everywhere but he can walk from the chair to the couch, or from Mark to me so I consider that walking (5 or 6 steps is walking right?). I can't believe how big he is getting. Every day his personality comes out more and more, it is the most incredible thing to see him figure out something new or be proud of himself for doing something. Tonight he waved at a girl behind us at the cash register we didn't even know he could do that! He's a flirt. I haven't put up new pictures in a while because Mark has limited me on what I can put onto his computer since I had like 200 GB of space taken up of photos and videos.. oops! The pictures on this post are the more recent photos. You can see his teeth. We've got 5 teeth now and I'm pretty sure theres another one coming in.


Thats all for now, I should be asleep!