Breastfeeding Books

Read more about the article Book Review- Safe Infant Sleep: Expert Answers to Your Co-sleeping Questions

Book Review- Safe Infant Sleep: Expert Answers to Your Co-sleeping Questions

Author: James J McKenna
Publisher: Platypus Media, USA, 2020
Reviewers: Sarah Hudson & Katie Fourie

Sharing a sleep surface with your baby is, and has been, the biologically normal way for babies to sleep. In this book, Dr James McKenna introduces the term ‘breastsleeping’ and puts together decades of research on parent-infant sleep. With a background in biological anthropology Dr McKenna explains the biological basis for human infants to need to be in constant physical proximity with a carer and how this conflicts with the values of Westernised societies which has historically promoted independence at all costs. He shares his observations of the impact of cultural ideology on public health messaging and highlights the issues around the interpretation of the research. While acknowledging that “no sleeping arrangement guarantees full protection” McKenna reassures new parents that elective bedsharing (as opposed to unplanned or ‘chaotic’ as he puts it) is the safest form of bedsharing. McKenna also notes that regardless of how an infant is fed, whether breastfed, mixed fed or formula fed, parents and infants benefit emotionally, physically, and psychologically from remaining in close proximity throughout the day and night.

The book is broken into short chapters some of which, e.g. when explaining very specific research technicalities, can be a little heavy going at times. It is written in a conversational tone with his own experience of navigating this area as a parent trying to reconcile his academic knowledge, his intuition as a parent, and the conflicting messages he received from health professionals along the way. He includes a series of schematics and diagrams that make seemingly abstract concepts easy to understand. The book is well-referenced and there is a section full of resources and further reading for those who are interested in learning more. There is also an appendix of anti-bedsharing campaign posters which were absolutely heart-breaking to look at.

Safe Infant Sleep is a must read for all parents and anyone working with families with young children. It contains essential information that will help to counter the multitude of sleep books that lead new parents to doubt their intuition. It aligns well with the La Leche League philosophies and indeed, provides a scientific basis for parental behaviour promoting breastfeeding and loving parenting during the night as well as the day. We highly recommend this book for group libraries.

Compiled by Katie Fourie, BRC 2021.

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Read more about the article The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding 8th Edition

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding 8th Edition

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding 8th Edition
La Leche League International’s iconic manual has been through many incarnations in its previous
seven editions, but this eighth edition is a complete overhaul to bring it up to date with 21st
Century language, concepts and research.
It is laid out in logical sections to help make this either a book you read cover to cover, or one you
just dip into as needed. Part One takes a mother through her journey from pregnancy through to
birth and the first breastfeed and is called “New Beginnings.” Part Two looks at breastfeeding
from the first few days through to toddlerhood. Part Three deals with sleep, working out of the
home and other separation from the baby, and starting solids, and Part Four looks at issues
outside the ‘norm’ such as premature babies, induced lactation and adoption, multiples along with
a ‘Tech Support” section which is alphabetised for easy reference.
There is a lot of text (about 500 pages) but it is not overwhelming due to the easy-to-read
language. It is supported by black and white photos, and clear line drawings. The text is all
supported by frequent web references, along with a ‘Tear Sheet Toolkit” which is also available
online via www.llli.org > Store > Tear Sheet Toolkit.
Mothers own stories are included – look out for one from our own Barbara Sturmfels at the end of
Chapter 8. This book is heartily recommended for LLLNZ Group Libraries and as a must-have for all
new mothers and mothers to be – a perfect gift!

Original review, printed in Aroha Volume 12 Number 5

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding 8th Edition
By Diane Wiessinger, Diana West and Teresa Pitman
Ballantine Books, USA, July 2010
Reviewed by Donna Henderson, LLLNZ

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Read more about the article The Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk

The Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk

The Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk

This book grew out of Diana West’s previous book, Defining Your Own Success: Breastfeeding After
Breast Reduction Surgery. The sections in that book on strategies for increasing your milk supply
were widely used by mothers and breastfeeding counsellors to help all mothers with low milk
supply and not just those who had undergone breast reduction surgery.
Making More Milk is aimed primarily at mothers who have a low milk supply for whatever reason.
It gives them the tools to be their own detective and to work through possible causes for their low
supply, as well as suggesting strategies to tackle the problem. This book will also be useful for
Leaders and health professionals who are working with mothers who have a low milk supply in
spite of seemingly doing all the right things, like frequent feeding.
The largest section in the book is the one which investigates the possible causes of low milk supply
, and this asks, is it something your baby is doing, is it something you are doing, is it something
about your breasts, is it your hormones, or is it in your mind?
Of course there are also sections on improving breastfeeding management, on supplementing,
and on increasing your milk through the use of various aids such as galactogogues –
pharmaceutical, herbal and homeopathic, and lactogenic foods. Making more milk if you return to
work or study, or in special situations such as prem babies, multiple births, relactation and induced
lactation are also covered.
There are extensive references and a good index but relatively few photographs or diagrams.
There are frequent mentions of useful websites for further information, (including that of the
authors www.lowmilksupply.org), so the book is even more useful if the reader has ready access
to the internet.

Original review, printed in Aroha Volume 11 Number 1

The Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk
By Diana West and Lisa Marasco
McGraw-Hill, New York, USA, 2008
Reviewed by Rosemary Gordon, LLLNZ

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Read more about the article Hold Your Prem

Hold Your Prem

Hold Your Prem is a really valuable book that should be compulsory reading for all paediatricians
and NICU/SCBU staff who are often overly focused on what the machines are telling them the
baby is doing, rather than the baby himself. It is indeed “a practical workbook” which is very well
organised both in terms of chapter order and within the individual chapters themselves.
This book will also be of immeasurable value to the mothers (and fathers) who find they are
involved in a premature birth experience. Pregnant women who come to our meetings may well
have prem babies and could borrow the book if and when they need it. Others may like to read
about prem babies just in case they ever need the information. Others may have had a prem baby
and want to arm themselves with more information in case it happens again.

Original review, printed in Aroha Volume 14 Number 2
A fuller review of Hold Your Prem can be found in Breastfeeding Communiqué 2011

Hold Your Prem
Jill Bergman, with Dr Nils Bergman
New Voices, Cape Town, 2010
Reviewed by Isobel Fanshawe, Robin Jones Greif and Averil Sheehan,
LLLNZ

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Read more about the article Hirkani’s Daughters

Hirkani’s Daughters

Hirkani’s Daughters
Women Who Scale Modern Mountains to Combine Breastfeeding and Working

The unusual title derives from an Indian tale from the 1600s of a milkmaid, Hirkani, who one day
delivered milk to the royal fort, high on a mountain. At dusk the gates to the fort were closed for
security reasons, and Hirkani was trapped in the fort, with her baby waiting in the village below.
Determined to return to him, she climbed down a vertical 1000 ft cliff to get back to her village.
The king was so impressed that he honoured her, and even today, the village is still called Hirkani
Village.
I found myself involved and amazed from start to finish of this book. Many of the stories tell of
women so determined to breastfeed that they went to great lengths and made many sacrifices to
succeed – sometimes with support and other times with none. Also fascinating was the
information about support available in different countries for breastfeeding mothers in paid work.
Many countries have much better legislation and conditions than does New Zealand, where a big
gap exists in that there is no provision for breastfeeding breaks, let alone paid breaks. By contrast
for example, in Slovenia, where 67% of women are in the paid work force, and where the birth
rate is extremely low, there are 365 days of paid parental leave and the mother can use an hour a
day for feeding or expressing, plus there are many other child-friendly benefits.
There is also a section on Breastfeeding-Friendly Employers. Would that all employers were like
the ones mentioned here! For example, I can’t imagine anyone ever wanting to leave the SAS
Corporation in North Carolina, where employees have access to lactation experts, a lactation room
with breast pumps, childbirth and breastfeeding classes, a company-wide recognition of World
Breastfeeding Week, an on-site Montessori daycare centre, and where mothers are paged when
their babies need feeding and can use the breastfeeding lounge any time of day!
There is a New Zealand connection with Hirkani’s Daughters – Dr Judith Galtry has written a
Foreword and Sarah Farquhar, an early childhood educator from Wellington, tells her story. Some
of you may remember their session from the 2004 LLLNZ Conference, which Sarah mentions
favourably in her story.
If you want a book that is full of the ‘how tos’ of combining breastfeeding and working, then this is
not the book for you. Try Nursing Mother, Working Mother by Gale Pryor instead. Although
Hirkani’s Daughters does have a brief section at the end called ‘What Working Mothers Need to
Know’ which contains handy hints, and although there are good ideas contained in each story, the
focus of this book is really on the amazing and inspiring stories of real women from all around the
world who have “scaled modern mountains to combine breastfeeding and working.”

Original review, printed in Aroha Volume 14 Number 1

Hirkani’s Daughters
Women Who Scale Modern Mountains to Combine Breastfeeding and Working
Edited by Jennifer Hicks
La Leche League International, Schaumburg, USA, 2006
Reviewed by Rosemary Gordon, LLLNZ

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