Wisdom and Births

An interesting and possibly alarming connection... Could the bacteria found in a baby's gut be a link between cesarean sections, infant formula, and Autism?  Current research is demonstrating that the bacteria found in your gut affects your behavior - additionally, research is also demonstrating that infants fed infant formula and delivered by cesarean surgery have altered gut microbiota, is it possible this is a link between cesarean delivery, infant formula and behavioral disorders such as Autism? Such a link could have substantial repercussions on our population's health.  Research from UCLA (1) demonstrates that the brain-gut communication flows in both directions.When women were fed yogurt with probiotics, their brainstem and prefrontal cortex were more active (measured using f MRI), meaning that the rational decision making center of their brain was receiving, interpreting, and responding to messages from the body. Conversely, a group of women who received no probi...

There are so many choices that mothers make which will be debated over, questioned, and even attacked by strangers, coworkers, friends, and even family. How a woman chooses to give birth and feed her child is of particular interest and debate, especially in recent years. Not only is it World Breastfeeding Week and I wanted to highlight a topic, but I just received the 'Birth Plan' for my next doula client and she explicitly states that she does NOT want to breastfeed and does not want any lactation counselors to come talk to her while in the hospital. I knew about this decision from our prenatal appointment, but as a passionate advocate for Breastfeeding, I was motivated to educate her and maybe change her mind with information and positive encouragement/support. I didn't fully accept her decision until I saw it in print... so I had to hang my doula hat for a moment and try to understand.   We ALL know that 'Breast is Best', but do we know that formula IS NO...