Lurk Gleanings

La Ronge was great, and we were not at all badly behaved. More on that later.

I am still nursing my Sprout, and I recently subscribed to a listserv for lactation consultants, La Leche League Leaders, pediatricians, and other professionals. I am, reasonably, lurking, since I am only an expert in my own little mammary sphere. The lurking is fascinating.

Most of what comes past me is not particularly applicable or notable, but occasionally there is a fascinating nugget. Today, I learned that human breast milk is sometimes used as one of the medical treatments for ulcerative colitis. This means that if a person of any age has ulcerative colitis, the doctor might try giving them pumped human breast milk as a way to treat that inflammation. Coincidentally, I am also skimming a book at home by a naturopath, who claims that our north american digestive systems quickly become shocked by our diet as soon as we stop having mother's milk. Maybe he knows what he's talking about, based on this colitis fact.

The other fascinating (although I'm sure upsetting to the mother) thing I learned is that some women have no holes in the nipple for the milk to come out. This means that the baby nurses, the breast fills with milk, but the milk can't come out! Breastfeeding is such a wild and whacky thing - every situation is different. I am stunned and amazed. And so I continue to lurk.

Sprout and I had a funny little chat this morning about what 'mammals' are. Cats are mammals because the baby kittens drink 'mook'. Dogs are mammals because baby puppies drink their mommy's 'mook'. Squirrels are mammals...etc. He stated at one point (he objects to being called a baby, and I still occasionally slip), that he is "the biggest, biggest mammal ever". I said, "No, that would be a whale, and a whale is the size of our house. Are you a whale?" "No. I'm [Sprout]."