The implication of the Medela Breast Milk Commercial that women will need a breast pump if they plan to breastfeed got me wondering — in the last two months, have you used a pump? Was it electric or manual, or do you prefer to hand express?id you not require a pump or hand expression in the last two months? What is your opinion on whether a breast pump is necessary? As a stay-at-home mother, I used a manual pump with my first child but quickly found that my baby would not take a bottle and I only needed to express …read more

In light of the controversies about breastfeeding photos on Facebook, MySpace and LiveJournal, I am wondering how you feel about the appropriateness of having breastfeeding pictures taken of you and your nursling. Do you have them taken?
Leave a comment!
If you have had breastfeeding photos taken, what do you do with them? Have you shared them with friends, posted them on a blog, or used them for avatars on web sites? Is there an age of the nursling after which breastfeeding photos are no longer appropriate? What about this news story (via Blacktating) that tells how a family’s children were taken …read more

Speaking of sleep, two prominent researchers in the field of breastfeeding are conducting a survey of mothers’ sleep and fatigue. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, Ph.D., IBCLC, Research Associate at the Family Research Lab, University of New Hampshire, and Thomas W. Hale, Ph.D., R.Ph., Professor of Pediatrics, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, invite mothers of infants 12 months and younger (breastfeeding or formula-feeding or both) to participate in the study by answering a survey online [Edited to remove link. The survey is now closed! Thank you for your interest!]. They explain:
In this survey, we will be asking you some detailed questions …read more

The reaction to this “Bond with your baby. Bond with your man” poster was strong and the comments section developed an interesting discussion. I would like to open the question up to everyone — how has breastfeeding affected your sex life? Does your partner enjoy your new bustline, and/or has breastfeeding left you “touched out” at the end of the day? Do you feel the breastfeeding hormones have affected you in any way? Or are you simply too tired as a new parent to make this anything but a moot question?
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Feel free to leave a comment to explain your answer.

Many of us tasted breast milk as infants of course, but have you ever tasted it as an adult? Maybe you were curious like Friends on television, illustrating a point like this professor, using it to treat cancer, or you have a breast milk fetish.
It’s the easiest poll ever!
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To see all past poll results, click here.
Feel free to leave a comment! Have you tried breast milk, why, and what did you think (keep it clean or I won’t approve your comment)?

In a pool of 143 voters, 52 percent had attended a La Leche League meeting and an additional 35 percent are interested in doing so. An overwhelming 91% of those who had attended a meeting found it helpful, while only 9% did not enjoy it.

Here are the complete results:

Please vote in the new poll in the side bar!

I always keep a poll running in the right-hand sidebar of this blog and I enjoy tracking the votes! If you have a particular question you would like featured in the poll, leave a comment on this post and I just might use your question for a future poll! Be sure to browse the past polls and poll results first. I have run over 40 polls so far and the results never fail to fascinate me.

La Leche League recently celebrated its 50th year of mother-to-mother breastfeeding support. I am curious — have you ever attended a meeting?
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Leave a comment with your opinion as well! Has La Leche League been helpful to you? What would you like to see change in La Leche League? Are you a leader and if so, how long have you served?

Nearly 200 voters expressed their opinions on the age, if any, that breastfeeding in public becomes in appropriate. I was glad to see that 35% of voters felt that nursing in public is always appropriate. I was surprised to see 6% of voters say it’s never appropriate. The overall breakdown:

Vote in the new poll in the side bar!

Sixty-four percent of 111 voters said their most recent or only child had only had breast milk and had never had any artificial milk. That left 36% of voters whose child has had at least some artificial milk at some point. Here is the complete breakdown:

Special shout-out to the 11 percent of voters who started off supplementing with formula and made a successful transition to exclusive breastfeeding!
Please vote in the new poll!