December 30th, 2011
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| Photo courtesy of Amber Wolgamott in NC |
Breastfeeding mothers across the country staged a nurse-in at Target stores on Wednesday in reaction to a woman who was treated poorly for nursing at one of their stores. Michelle Hickman was asked to move to a fitting room by employees as she breastfed her baby on the floor of the women’s clothing department in a Houston-area Target. She explained to the employees that it was her legal right to continue breastfeeding in public. When she complained about her experience to corporate headquarters, she was told: “…just because it’s a woman’s legal right to nurse a baby in public doesn’t mean she should walk around the store flaunting it.” When she related the sequence of events to fellow moms, a nurse-in was organized.
Fellow mom Kelly Roth set up a Facebook group for the demonstration and it now hosts over 7,000 members. The turnout at the stores was variable – some stores only saw one nursing mother while the offending store had over 50 breastfeeding women. Hopefully the event helped to raise awareness of the normalcy and legality of breastfeeding a baby in public.
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| Photo courtesy of Amber Wolgamott in NC
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Upon learning of the nurse-in, Target has issued a statement: “We want everyone to feel comfortable shopping at Target. Guests who choose to breastfeed in public areas of the store are welcome to do so without being made to feel uncomfortable. Additionally, we support the use of fitting rooms for women who wish to breastfeed their babies, even if others are waiting to use the fitting rooms.”
Have you ever been to a nurse-in?
Target Nurse-In: Did It Change Perceptions of Public Breast-Feeding? [Time]
December 29th, 2011
Last week there was a seemingly isolated report of a Missouri baby that died due to a bacterial infection. The infection was alleged to be spread by a can of Enfamil Premium Newborn formula sold at Walmart. In response, Walmart, Safeway, and Walgreens (among others) all pulled the batch of Enfamil Premium Newborn formula from the shelves as a precaution. However, bacteria testing of formula samples from the presumably infected batch provided negative results. Yesterday, a report surfaced that a third baby has been sickened by the same bacterial strain. The third infant sickened consumed a different type of powdered formula than the first two, leaving the question of how this fairly rare bacteria could infect three babies in the span of a couple weeks?
Cronobacter sakazakii has been linked to formula in the past, killing 120 infants worldwide since 1958 – a small number considering it’s prevalence in the environment. However, it’s propensity to be found in infant formula was only discovered in the 1980s. Powdered infant formula is a relatively easy breeding ground for the bacteria, which thrives in dry environments. Powdered formula is not guaranteed to be sterile and adding water that is not hot enough to kill Cronobacter helps it to grow. The FDA recommends boiling water and letting it cool before mixing it with powdered formula and research has discovered that water that is heated to 158 degrees Fahrenheit or higher can kill the bacteria. Experts caution caregivers to serve formula within a couple hours after it’s been mixed and to keep all parts of the bottle sterile by washing hands and bottle parts with soap and water before preparing.
Despite the possibility that Cronobacter grew in the powdered formulas that the infected infants drank, there has been no evidence to actually implicate them. The FDA is currently testing water and other possible carriers to find the culprit. Nevertheless, experts say that liquid formula has a lower risk of contamination, so it might be prudent to spend the extra money if possible for right now. The lot number of the formula that was pulled from shelves is: ZP1K7G
Do you use powdered formula?
Third infant reportedly sickened by rare bacteria [CNN]
Enfamil Formula Pulled From Shelves [WSJ]
No bacteria found in powder milk formula pulled from Wal-Mart shelves after newborn baby died from infection [
DailyMail]
Third infant infected as U.S. probes baby formula [BaltimoreSun]
Bacteria Tied to Baby’s Death Linked to Formula Since 1980s [
BusinessWeek]
December 28th, 2011
Nancy Kerrigan’s Kids Skate – Sans Tips from Mom [People]
If bill passes, nursing mothers in Michigan excused from jury duty [DFP]
Doctors split on vaccine strategy to shield babies [reuters]
The Pros and Cons of Inhaled Asthma Medicine for Pregnant Women [CBS]
Pediatricians issue a call to aid children facing ‘toxic stress’ [LATimes]
Middle Childhood Is Peak Time for Learning [NYTimes]
FDA Warns Parents About Doses of Pain Reliever for Babies [ABC]
Dido Celebrates First Christmas With Son Stanley [
People]
