breastfeeding is still recomended!

December 19, 2009

Thank you so much for posting this article on environmental estrogens and

allergy. It's interesting to see more support for the theory that environmental

toxins contribute to rising allergy and asthma.

I searched for where the article said breastfeeding wasn't recommended and

wanted to point out that it doesn't say that at all! The article does say that

environmental estrogens, like many other environmental toxins, may pass through

breastmilk to nursing babies. This needs to be weighed against the many pros of

breastfeeding.

Both my girls have allergies and food intolerances and don't do well on

processed food. Although I didn't try formula when they were nursing, knowing

now that they react to corn syrup, corn starch, and synthetic vitamins it's

clear that formula would have been a disaster for them. My youngest couldn't

tolerate enriched organic rice cereal, even though rice itself was ok! There

are other babies who do better on formula, depending what the individual issues

are.

Formula can also be a source of environmental toxins and there have been several

incidents of serious contamination and even deaths (the tragedy in China being

the best publicized but not the only case). This often goes unmentioned.

For me, the take home message for women who have not yet conceived is to try to

detox before you get pregnant or breastfeeding. If you are pregnant or

breastfeeding, make sure your diet is well balanced and contains enough calories

and minerals, to prevent environmental toxins from being mobilized out of your

tissues and into breastmilk.

It is alarming that breastfeeding infants, being at the very top of the food

chain, are exposed to higher levels of environmental toxins than adults. But

breastfeeding confers so many physiological and psychological benefits that,

from everything I've read and personally experienced, the pros still outweigh

the cons as long as it's working for mother and baby.

Maybe there will come a day when we regulate chemicals in the environment based

on what is safe for nursing babies. Radical concept, I know!

Amy

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