Johnson & Johnson announced a voluntary recall on Friday, January 27 of a single lot of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort Lotion after a test by the Food and Drug Administration found that it contained an excessive amount of a form of bacteria identified as coagulase-negative Staphylococci. Yuck. So, why not use this opportunity to stop slathering Aveeno and its questionable ingredients on your little one and try a natural brand that’s actually good for him/her like California Baby Sensitive or check out The Honest Company’s new line of baby goods from soaps and lotions to diapers and wipes.
My fellow tumblr mom{e}, “organicmommy” {Yes, you need to follow her asap as you will love her cutie patootie and wieners} made it to the big time. Ergo featured her nonchalantly nursing her little one in the organic Ergo baby carrier in VEGAS on its facebook page. Yep, she’s famous. Isn’t she cute?
This week’s Time magazine cover features Jamie Lynne Grumet, a 26-year-old woman breastfeeding her three-year-old son. Grumet was one of four mothers photographed by Time for a cover story on “attachment parenting,” an approach—outlined by 1992’s “The Baby Book” by Dr. Bill Sears—that recommends extended breast-feeding, co-sleeping and “baby wearing.”
I’m a proud supporter of breastfeeding and doing what you feel is best as a mother… but I do NOT think that child is 3. He’s like 8.
Discuss Mom{e}’s! What do you think of Time’s cover? Is it just an attempt to sell more magazines or is it a step in the right direction for breastfeeding moms everywhere and acceptance of this nurturing practice?
How cute are these little onesies from zulily{dot}com today? Precious! Here’s the link. I wish I had a baby. My favorites are “My Mother Gets Hotter Every Day,” “Produced Locally,” and “Small Footprint.”
What are your’s?
Recent findings from Sweden say that newborn babies are less likely to develop an iron deficiency if the umbilical cord is kept in place for three minutes at birth. Interesting story.
I have no idea how long they waited to cut my baby’s cord, but we’ve never had a problem with an iron deficiency.
What do you think? Did your little one have an iron deficiency?
July is National Cord Blood Awareness Month, so what better time than now to think about banking your baby-to-be’s umbilical cord blood. When your precious bundle of joy finally arrives, it’s hard to think that such a sweet child could ever become seriously ill. But unfortunately, it could happen. And the choice new parents make on the beautiful day their child is born could affect their little one’s health in the future. So, if you’re pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant, here’s some information on cord blood banking and the one thing experts warn about when doing so.
Banking the fetal blood that is found in the placenta and umbilical cord, which is rich in stem cells, is nearly the best “insurance” plan you can take out on your newborn. By saving those precious stem cells, your little one has a better chance at bouncing back if faced with a serious illness like cancer. Why is that? Well, experts say that treatments like chemo and radiation that are used to treat cancer, blood diseases and some immune disorders wipe out the diseased cells in the body. Unfortunately, the “good” cells are also taken out, including the ones that live deep in the bone marrow. “This is where stem cells come in. Many of these children will get a stem cell transplant and hopefully get back to their old selves,” according to Dr. Manny Alvarez of Fox News.
But, experts warn to be diligent when choosing the right company to do the banking. Make sure that the blood bank you choose has the right certification and right quality control. “They must have experience, not only in collecting the cells, but in processing them for transplant treatments. They should also have FDA approval for the highest quality standards,” according to Dr. Alvarez.
Unfortunately, the cost of cord blood banking is still high — around $1,000 to $2,000 for storage with a $100 yearly maintenance fee plus the several hundred dollar fee for the initial cord-blood collection. If cost is an issue, donor cells are available, but it can be challenging to find a match. So, if your child will have a strong family history of diseases like leukemia, lymphoma, severe sickle cell anemia or any other disease requiring a bone marrow transplant, it’s in your child’s best interest to go ahead and cough up the money to bank the cord blood.
Did you bank your baby’s umbilical cord blood? Do you plan to?
(Source: foxnews.com)
It’s been speculated for years that our blood types say more about us than we know ourselves. Ever hear of the blood type diet? Dr. D’Adamo is the brains behind this neutrogenomic diet which states you should eat certain ways whether you’re type O, A, B, or AB. Then there’s the Japanese belief that blood types predict personality and temperament. In fact, blood type horoscopes are routinely published in women’s magazines across Japan, versus the astrology-based ones we read here in America. And now, beyond all of those beliefs, new research is linking a woman’s earlier decline in fertility to her blood type.
The most common blood type in America, type O, may be responsible for women in their 30’s and beyond having trouble conceiving. In the study, which was published in the journal Human Reproduction, among the group of women who sought fertility treatment, women with type O were twice as likely than blood types A and AB to have high FSH levels indicating they had diminished ovarian reserve — meaning their ovaries had very few eggs or eggs that were unlikely to be successfully used during in vitro fertilization procedures. “I don’t want the message to be that women in the healthy population should be petrified that their blood type may predict compromised fertility,” said study author Lubna Pal, who researches reproductive endocrinology at the Yale University School of Medicine. But, if the study goes on to show that all women with type O blood have low levels of FSH, not just those who seek fertility treatment, then those women might start having “the ticking clock conversation” in their early 20’s, Pal said.
While blood type might be a good indicator on fertility, it’s not the only one. Lifestyle factors like smoking, also play a big role in the ability to conceive as well. So, if you’re type O and you’re worried, have your doctor check your FSH levels, but be aware that your blood type isn’t the end all be all of making babies.
What’s your blood type? Do you think blood type has anything to do with diet, personality or fertility?
Breastfeeding is best when possible for the mother and when alcohol and drugs are NOT involved. Duh, right? Evidently, at least one person in the world was unaware that thou shalt not breastfeed baby when severely intoxicated. Unfortunately, this woman’s negligence came at a high price. The life of her child.
Emma Hector, a 30-year-old woman from the U.K., drank nearly a whole bottle of wine on an empty stomach and then decided to nurse her baby. She then passed out and a good while later, her husband came in only to find their sweet 7-month-old daughter suffocated by her mother’s breast with blood in her mouth. Ms. Hector was arrested but later, charges were dropped. And this is all she had to say about it: “It is awful what has happened, and I am not proud of my behavior. No mother should be drinking at all. Since that day I have not taken one drop of alcohol.” Ya think?
I think she should certainly be incarcerated and punished for negligence and murder. I can’t believe something like this could happen. Babies and intoxication don’t mix. So, if you still have drunken nights, be sure to pump before hand (when there’s no alcohol in your system) and get a babysitter. Events like this never have to happen and they never should happen.
(Source: foxnews.com)
I’ve got bad news for the Ambers and Codys out there. Don’t even get me started on all the kids named Travis. New research shows that people with those names are judged pretty harshly when it comes to their future academic success.
A small study focusing on the meanings encoded in people’s names found that names play a big role in understanding how successful students will be according to their peers. Yep, that’s right. People (teachers included) judge you based on your name before they even meet you. Researchers asked a group of 89 undergraduates (most of whom were prospective teachers) to guess on a scale of 1-10 how they thought a student would perform academically based on his/her name. Sadly, the participants tended to judge those with names linked to the lower-class as low educational achievers. Whereas those with regal sounding names like Samuel and Katherine were thought to be academic superstars.
Luckily, if you are an Amber or a Travis, name associations will change over time. As the authors of the study write, “Today’s Alexandra may be tomorrow’s Amber.”
Do you judge people based on their names?
Breastfeeding isn’t only good for nourishing babies and shrinking the uterus, it’s also a great way to solidify the bond between mother and child. A new study offers a new explanation as to why breast-feeding mothers have a greater response to the sound of their newborns’ cries than do mothers who do not breastfeed. And the answer lies in the mothers’…
Brains. Evidently, breast-feeding moms have a boost in brain activity in the regions of the brain associated with mothering behaviors, like empathy. This allows the mother to express greater sensitivity toward her baby and understand how her infant is feeling thus allowing her to respond appropriately. It’s as if these regions of the brain are doing something “to motivate the mother to exhibit more caregiving behaviors,” says study researcher Pilyoung Kim, of the National Institute of Mental Health.
The researchers hope to understand this phenomena more completely by conducting future research on larger groups of people. For now, they hope that by creating a better understanding of this relationship, more people will recognize that it’s important to support mothers who wish to breastfeed. The researchers also hope that this information will help them figure out why some mothers have trouble forming an emotional bond with their children and maybe find a treatment or intervention to help them.
What do you think of breastfeeding? Isn’t it fascinating that breastfeeding might motivate mothers to be better caregivers?
(Source: msnbc.com)
