LLL supporting Hollister

I just sent an e-mail to
Mary Lofton, 847-592-7558 [email protected]
she's in charge of the WBW stuff.

I suggest everyone else does the same and let them know your opinions.

Here's what I wrote:
I just wanted to let someone know of my extreme disappointment in seeing Hollister displayed as a sponsor of WBW activities. It seems to me they have a conflict of interest because although they make breast pumps to facilitate breastfeeding they also make the Plastibell device for infant circumcision. I am disappointed that LLL would accept sponsorship from a company that participates in advancing the mutilation of babies with circumcision. I hope LLL will think of the repercussions of accepting sponsorship from such a company in the future. It is very sad to see the names LLL and Holister appear as though they are in a partnership. I am a huge supporter of LLL, however I am a huge opponent of infant circumcision.

Please reconsider allowing Hollister to support LLL in any future endeavors, they are not a company I want to see LLL endorsing.

Sincerely,

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Boy do I know this is true. I made the mistake of talking about the Metzitzah b'peh (Hebrew for "oral suction") case in NYC before a meeting and I was told in not-so-friendly terms by the LLL leader that I am never to discuss circumcision at the meetings. She made it clear that LLL is about breastfeeding support and does not take a stand on circ. She also denied that the story was true about the ultra-orthodox and this practice.

Needless to say, I was embarrassed and switched to another LLL group.

I found this all so amusing, this only talk about breastfeeding support because other mothers could be upset by my words. At the previous meeting, mothers were talking about other current events like a mother drowning her children by throwing them off a pier. Wouldn't this upset a new mother?

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agreed.

This is kind of sad considering I was contemplating contacting LLL for help in teaching Em to latch and to further my relactation efforts

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Yes, exactly. Respectfully one issue, but give women the facts. Like the above... those are facts, those are not judgemental or unrespectful of cultures/opinions. I'd be pissed if I wasn't give that information and later found out-- and had a notion that I could have prevented problems.

THERE IS NO REASON IN THE WORLD THAT CIRCS ARE DONE TO 1-2 DAY OLD INFANTS EXCEPT THAT IS WHAT WE ARE USED TO.

Geesh. Just delay it till breastfeeding is established.

If it is that darn important to you, make a trip back to the hospital or dr to have it done AFTER BF'ING IS ESTABLISHED.

:

Jessica

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Awesome. I submitted a request. We need one for the NOCIRC booth. We have a Gomco clamp and a Circumstraint- and USED to have a Mogen, but I didn't see it last time I wasthere.

It was the 1983 edition of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding that introduced me to NOCIRC and it it weren't for that, my son may have ended up being circumcised. As I have posted before, my son was left intact and I got some bad advise from his ped about retraction. A reply to my letter to NOCIRC by Marilyn Milos along with a bunch of info is what set me straight and here I am today!

I haven't seen the new editions of TWA but I'm guessing NOCIRC is no longer in the back of the book as a resource for LLL moms. That makes me just want to cry... :

For all the good they do for BF moms, it almost makes me want to send moms away from them-- Just because...

Lily livered cowards!

I agree that they shouldn't deviate from promoting breastfeeding, but just to officially recognise that circumcision does adversely affect bfing... I don't think that's asking too much or that an official stance on JUST THAT PART of circumcision would cause them to deviate from their main goal.

Just my .02

love and peace.

If you're writing letters, you might find this reference useful.

Circumcision Leads to Breastfeeding Complications

Need another reason to skip routine circumcision? For over twenty years, studies conducted by medical doctors and researchers have documented a connection between circumcision and breastfeeding complications. According to findings, the newly circumcised infant expresses noticeably decreased responses to a mother's attempts at engaging their attention. This "subdued" behavior has been linked by several researchers in separate studies to a subsequent struggle in the achievement of successful breastfeeding. Research has also demonstrated that following circumcision, infants suffer from "prolonged periods of non-REM sleep," a symptom that would further contribute to inactive and unreceptive tendencies.

Some of the infants observed in one study were supplemented with formula after circumcision-due either to frustration on the part of the mother from failed breastfeeding attempts or because doctors felt the infant was incapable of postoperative breastfeeding. Because infants usually leave the hospital seven to ten hours after the operation (many leave as early as three to six hours post-op) the long-term negative effects of circumcision on breastfeeding is more difficult to determine; however, "the observed deterioration in ability to breastfeed may potentially contribute to breastfeeding failure."

Despite the fact that "circumcision is a painful, stressful, exhausting, and traumatic experience for many infants," as many as 45% of doctors ignore the recommendation by medical authorities to use an anesthetic during the procedure. Because conclusive benefits of infant circumcision are not evident, there is no danger in refusing or delaying the procedure. The Work Group on Breastfeeding of the American Academy of Pediatrics officially discourages "stressful procedures" such as circumcision and promotes breastfeeding as "primary in achieving optimal infant and child health, growth, and development."

Source: Journal of Human Lactation 19(1), 2003.

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I hadn't thought about that before... I probably would never be able to become a LLL leader just because I can't keep my mouth shut about circumcision (just a personal thing that I hadn't considered , good for you for doing it ). Best wishes with the program!

love and peace.