What Does the Hospital Give You?

Nan wrote:

And I'd add tobacco to the list!

Nan

Your not allowed to advertise tobacco here, and the warning
on the packs (which are behind lock and key and you have to
provide ID your over 15 or 16 to purchase) are huge, they
take up almost 1/4 of the packet.


--
Andrea

If I can't be a good example, then I'll just have to be a
horrible warning.

In article ,
Mary W. wrote:

I'm not sure if I'm right or not, but I think my hospital asked if
you were nursing or formula feeding and had different bags
depending on which you chose. The nursing bag (which was
provided by a formula company) didn't have any formula
samples, but it did include a great little cooler, and some
4 ounce storage bottles, ostensibly for pumped milk, even though
they said Enfamil on them.

Ours only gave the bags to breastfeeding moms if they signed the request
for them. There were no non-formula bags, so I took one to get the bag
which was handy and had other stuff (don't remember what all now).

Of course we succumbed to the formula when DD was crying and my milk
wasn't' in yet. Naturally she fell sound sleep and my milk came in right
afterwards, so by the time she woke up four hours later, I was engorged. At
2am she couldn't latch on, I was uncomfortable, DD was screaming, we fed
more formula.

It could have been the end right there, but I went to my neighbor first
thing in the morning and got the phone# of the LC she had recommended. She
was great, made a housecall and got us back on track so with lots of
determination we pulled through but it was *definitely* harder knowing how
fast she'd take the formula and fall happily asleep.

The payoff for sticking it out doesn't really come till weeks later and if
you don't know other women who nursed for any length of time, it's pretty
easy to lose faith in your body and think something's just wrong with you.

-Liz

That's not necessarily true. When companies use marketing ploys, they
typically only 'hope' it will have the result they're looking for.

Formula companies have been doing this for enough years that they KNOW by now
that giving out free formula to new mothers increasing the chance that those
mothers will end up formula feeding in the long run. (AND will end up giving
baby that companies brand of formula.) They are not handing out samples out of
the goodness of their hearts.

If a new mother is waffling about her choice to feed, I agree it makes
it easier, but I think that mother is more likely to take the time and
trouble to trek to the store to buy the formula in the first place.

The point that you are missing though is that there is a large middle group of
mothers that falls between "committed to bfing at all costs" and "waffling" --
that group of "plans to breastfeed if everything works out." Those mothers
might not go out and buy (spend money on) a can of formula before baby is born,
'just in case.' But if they get some for free, sure, they'll take it home and
put it in the cupboard, 'just in case.' And then, come that inevitable day
(or, more likely night) when baby seems fussy or hungry or crying, and mom's
exhausted and her nipples hurt, yeah, that can of free formula WILL seem
awfully tempting. And one bottle can't hurt, right? But one bottle becomes
two, and suddenly baby is even fussier, and is refusing to take the breast, so
one more bottle, and then another -- and suddenly mom finds that her milk seems
to be 'failing' ... and baby is weaned,and she tells everyone that she "tried"
to bf... but it just didn't work out ....

Sure, for some mothers that free formula does no harm. But since it is
unnecessary, is against the WHO code, and is of no benefit to anyone, why give
it at all?
If a mom really wants formula for her baby, she can go out and buy it.


Naomi
CAPPA Certified Lactation Educator

(either remove spamblock or change address to to e-mail
reply.)

"Nan" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 31 Oct 2003 18:58:24 GMT, "Jenrose"
wrote:

Formula packets can be *very* harmful. And people who give brand new moms
formula packets offend me because they are telling that mom, "We don't
think
you can do it."

I think you're reading too much into it, imo.
But okay, then by your thinking, you're offending nursing moms because
you don't think they'll be able to resist giving the baby a sample of
formula, or that they'll be committed enough to get the assistance
they need to continue nursing.

Honestly? Lots of nursing moms *do* and *can* resist. But there are a lot of
very intelligent, capable, savvy women out there who, when confronted with
one or two weeks with no sleep, painful tits, a screaming kid, and a bottle
of pre-mixed formula they "just" have to pop a nipple on and make it all
better, just for a little while... well, they'll tell you themselves that
it's not about how committed or strong willed you normally are, the formula
companies are hitting women when their coping resources are at absolute low
ebb. Offend them? I'm just being realistic, and the research supports what
I'm saying. Give "all" women formula packets in nice "free gift bags" and a
significantly higher number will end up formula feeding, sooner, than the
women who get nothing at all or more breastfeeding-friendly resources.

I'm as cocky as they come about how strong willed and committed I am, and I
came *this* close to bottle feeding my daughter. I happen to come from a
"nursing is the only acceptable option, I don't care if it's not
comfortable" family, and so my assumption was NOT formula, but pumping,
which is why I ended up calling for help rather than using a bottle of
formula. Had I *not* had that family culture to support me, and the right
person to call, then I would have ended up formula feeding, and probably
sooner than I called for help, especially given the sheer volume of
consumable liquids the hospital sent home with us (glucose water and many,
many formula samples.)

So think what you like... I'd rather they ditch the free gift packs entirely
and give women *real* support for nursing.

Jenrose

"Nan" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 31 Oct 2003 12:03:31 -0800, wrote:



They would not give out those packs if they did not work to get mom's and
babies on the formula..
these big companies know what they are doing..

That's not necessarily true. When companies use marketing ploys, they
typically only 'hope' it will have the result they're looking for.
And the typical hope is that someone will purchase their brand of
formula.
If a new mother is waffling about her choice to feed, I agree it makes
it easier, but I think that mother is more likely to take the time and
trouble to trek to the store to buy the formula in the first place.

But the people I worry about are not the die-hard breastfeeders... it's the
ones on the fence. My young neighbor who nursed her first daughter for 2 1/2
years, and almost weaned her second at 4 weeks because they fed the baby
sample formula on a long car trip, almost killing her milk supply. Had I not
been the nosy neighbor I am, her daugher would have weaned within a week or
two. She was saying, "I don't have enough milk" and was preparing formula. I
said, "Nurse more, don't give the formula." And loaned her a breast pump so
she could pump for car trips rather than formula feed for car trips. She
came flying out of the house the next day saying, "It worked! My supply is
back up and I'm pumping lots of milk!"

But most people don't have a lacivist neighbor to pester them into ditching
the bottles. You've got someone on the fence, and that formula packet may
not be the difference between nursing at 6 months and not nursing at 6
months, but it may well be the difference between nursing at 3 weeks and not
nursing at 3 weeks. And every extra day of nursing is a benefit to the baby
in most cases.

Jenrose