Wikis related to care

In the past 4 years since becoming a mother and an enthusiastic breastfeeding supporter, I have learned that myths about breastfeeding and formula are running rampant.  I am left frustrated and concerned that our formula culture has won, that our mothering instincts have been trampled by the corporations that would prefer a dollar over a healthy child. Most significantly, I have seen many, many mothers state that their breast milk never came in, or that it dried up after a couple months.  I know that some women genuinely do not produce milk due to Insufficient Glandular Tissue, and I...

by Christine Gross-Loh, author of the new book Parenting Without Borders: Surprising Lessons Parents Around the World Can Teach Us   Hot Topic: Discuss Finnish Baby Boxes in the Community              I’ve long been fascinated by motherhood around the world. What is it like to birth in another country? What’s the lore on starting solids in another culture? How do children play in other countries? How do they sleep and who sleeps with them? How do cultural or societal supports ease the transition to new parenthood? My friend Michele, an American new mother living in Finland, joins...

In my 25 years of being a parent, a student of human development, a human in constant development, an impassioned researcher of the human sciences, and a parent coach engaged with the challenges and triumphs of real moms and dads, I have gathered a superabundance of excellent information. But I’ve also come to recognize that a great gift in this era of information overload is to arrive at the other side of a gazillion helpful facts to a few solid peaceful parenting principles. I wrote Parenting for Peace around seven such solid-gold nuggets -- principles informed by research in fields from...

brought to us by Tummy Calm   Parents are often told by their pediatricians to give their children gas drops to help relieve tummy aches, ease fussiness, alleviate painful bloating, gas pains and even excessive spitting up. But knowing which to give and when to give them can be confusing.   The information below may help you decide what is right for your family, explaining what different formulas are available, and also give you other ideas for treating your little ones’ tummy troubles.   Gas Drops Explained Gas drops are an over-the-counter liquid medication designed to relieve...

Seven babies have died after being fed a formula or breastmilk additive called SimplyThick–designed to help premature babies swallow and keep down liquids. Although the FDA has warned against the use of the product for premature infants, SimplyThick is widely available. Continued use of the thickener led to twenty-one infants developing inflamed intestines, seven of whom died. The [FDA] first warned in May 2011 against feeding SimplyThick to premature babies because it may cause a tissue inflammation known as necrotizing enterocolitis. The FDA is expanding the warning today to...

(Photo courtesy of http://katelyndemidow.blogspot.com/)         I am going to commit a huge natural parenting faux pas and admit something…. I kind of hate co-sleeping. I don’t actually 100% hate it.  There are lots of beautiful things about sleeping with your kids.  But, since I am complaining (I will get back to the good stuff later) I should mention some things that make me think I won’t miss this stage. ~Being squished ~Waking up numerous times a night as each of the four children wander into our room ~Sleeping sucking my stomach in with my arm at a...

Thank you to Marija Mikolajczak for this guest post. It seems like more and more people are hearing about elimination communication.  Maybe this is part of an overall trend of eco-friendly living, or due to an increase in interest in attachment parenting.  Who wouldn’t want to wash (or buy) fewer diapers? And having a closer relationship with your baby sounds great! Sometimes parents get stuck on how to get started with EC, since they may not personally know anyone else who has ever done this, in contrast to those countries where “holding baby out to pee” is the norm. I think an...

There are over 5,659 comments on an article in today’s Huffington Post about San Francisco’s proposed ban on infant circumcision, which could appear on the ballot next November. I recently spoke at length with Spencer Aronfeld, the Coral Gables-based Florida lawyer representing Vera Delgado to seek retribution from South Miami Hospital, owned by Baptist Health. Three months ago, in August 2010, South Miami Hospital circumcised her infant son, Mario Viera, without parental consent. No men in Delgado’s family are circumcised. Mario’s father isn’t circumcised. Delgado had no intention...

The Center for Environmental Health has filed a lawsuit against more than two dozen personal care companies citing misleading use of the term “organic” on their labels. The CEH reports that “Dozens of shampoos, lotions, toothpastes,and other personal care products sold by national retailers including Target, Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Whole Foods and other stores are mislabeled as organic, in violation of California law…Several of the products, including products intended for children, contain potentially toxic ingredients, including chemicals suspected of causing asthma, disrupting...

In much of Europe and Africa it’s common to see naked toddlers playing outside. Most Europeans aren’t as uptight about nakedness as we are in America. But when my almost 16-month-old started taking off her clothes at a recent playgroup, I worried what the other parents would think. Since we keep our house so cold, I’m often surprised at how comfortable Leone is in her birthday suit. The other parents didn’t flinch, even when Leone insisted on doffing the diaper. They seemed to think the baby, with her Buddha belly pooching over her legs, was as cute as I did. In a different crowd I...

Before I gave birth to my first baby I was overwhelmed by the various babycare products I thought I would need.  A crib or cot, a moses basket or bassinette– what’s the difference?  Why would a baby need so many different places to sleep (in the end, my baby’s bassinette became our laundry basket!)?  Bouncy chairs, fancy applique bedding, matching curtains and trash cans, pumps, sterilizers, blankets, blankets and more blankets…  Looking at babycare catalogues boggled my mind as I tried to piece together a list of what we would really need for our little baby. What about a changing...

By Aletha Solter Issue 122 January/February 2004 The term “cry it out” refers to the practice of leaving babies in their cribs without picking them up, and letting them cry themselves to sleep. A modified version of this approach is to go to the baby every few minutes to pat her on the back or reassure her verbally (but not pick the baby up), and to increase the length of time gradually so that the baby eventually “learns” to fall asleep alone. But there is no doubt that repeated lack of responsiveness to a baby’s cries—even for only five minutes at a time—is potentially damaging to the...

The Question of Routine Swaddling By Gussie Fauntleroy Nov 09, 2011 Please see the Special Report: Swaddling Reconsidered for more information and resources on routine swaddling.  Remember the bumper sticker, “What Would Jesus Do?” Here’s a variation on that query: What would Jesus’ mommy do? We are told his mother wrapped her newborn in swaddling clothes. So if it’s good enough for baby Jesus…? Yet simply because a practice has been widespread in various cultures and time periods doesn’t mean it is best for babies. Likewise, even though routine swaddling may have popular authority...

By Lorrie Leigh Eight years ago my first hospital born set of twins taught me everything about how I want to give birth. So, naturally, I had a homebirth the next time around. Over several years, I also became a childbirth teacher, birth and breastfeeding political activist, and apprenticed midwife's assistant with lots of experience under my belt. Twenty-eight weeks into my third pregnancy, a preterm labor episode led to the discovery that another set of twins was in our future. My midwife and I stopped labor a la Spiritual Midwifery (vodka shots) and I set about staying in bed,...

By Paul M. Fleiss  Increasing numbers of American parents today are protecting their sons from routine circumcision at birth, but as their boys grow up, they often find themselves at odds with doctors who cling to old-fashioned opinions and hospital routines.  I often receive calls from distraught parents who say that a doctor insists that their little boy needs to be circumcised because there is something wrong. When they bring their son into my office, I almost always find that there's nothing wrong with the child's penis. Occasionally there's a slight infection, but that can be...

Thank you to Kate Lindello for sharing her experience with postpartum depression in the hopes that it will help other moms.   The following information was originally posted on Kate's blog where you can read more of her writing.    Find support in Mothering's forum for Postpartum Depression.      It's time. I know I mentioned awhile back that once Helen was born I was struggling with postpartum depression and anxiety and that I would be sharing my story with all of you. I knew from the moment I started feeling like myself that I wouldn't keep quiet about it, but I have been...

By Beth Berry     Before you begin your holiday baking, I thought you might want to know about the existence of a product I stumbled upon a few months ago in a Mexican grocery. Passing the jellies and pancake mix on my way to the dried beans, a small glass bottle with a familiar label caught my eye. It was Karo corn syrup – the kind your grandmother uses in her pecan pie – only there was something markedly different about this particular bottle. Above the familiar Karo font was a single word that I never imagined I'd see in conjunction with a brand name of one of the unhealthiest...

By V.K. Harber   All primary caregivers know the drill. Kid’s head hits pillow, adult’s feet hit pavement (so to speak). If  you’re anything like me, naptime is when you run around the house, not unlike a chicken with its head cut off, attempting to do everything you couldn’t do while you were tending to your little bundle of joy. Of course, I’ve also been known to pop a bowl of popcorn and catch up on episodes of Modern Family on Hulu. Just depends on the day.     When I first had my son, despite the fact that every single experienced mother I knew told me to sleep when he slept, I...

I’ve become an accidental expert of traveling with a baby. With family spread over many states along with our habit of house swapping in interesting places, I’ve travelled on 35 airplanes in the last two years with my daughter, Zinnia. Last week, in Part One of Babies, Toddler and Planes. Oh my!  I began sharing my experiences of travelling with a little one. Let’s pick up where we left off. Once on the plane… Keep it fun. The week before we travel I hide a few of Zinnia’s favorite books and small toys. When she sees them again mid-flight she is thrilled to read the same...

Our then four-months-old discovering new books and songs on an eleven hour car ride.   When hearing of our travel plans this summer, friends and family always ask whether I’m nervous about the long flight with a baby. Truth be told, I’m much more nervous about the long car ride taking us to our first destination on our trip. Eleven hours in the car with a baby that’s just learned to crawl, stand, move, and explore has me losing a tad more sleep than the idea of a flight abroad. The problem with car rides (as opposed to train or air travel), is that it requires said baby to...