breastfeeding

Jamie Lynne Grumet, 26, is pictured on the latest cover of Time Magazine breastfeeding her almost 4-year-old son, in order to promote the attachment parenting method.

Grumet was breastfed by her own mother until the age of six. She told TIME, "You feel comforted, nurtured and really, really loved. I had so much self-confidence as a child, and I know it's from that."

Ms Grumet knows that attachment parenting is perceived as unconventional. She posed for TIME because she believes that the more people see it, the more accepted in will become. She writes on her blog,"Motherhood is hard enough, then to hear constantly how you are caring for your child is 'weird' or makes people 'uncomfortable' is almost too much to handle."

Read the full story at the Daily Mail.

Image Source: Daily Mail

The following information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.

My daughter has always been a big eater. She sucked down both breast milk and formula like it was her last supper, around the clock. By six months old she weighed twenty pounds. Her doctor lovingly referred to her as a “Chubette.” One of my co-workers (the poster-boy for sensitivity in the workplace) said she looked like "the daughter of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man." I wasn’t offended… I was worried!

Many people, including a Circle of Moms member named Valerie, feel that baby fat is nothing to worry about. As she says, “babies come in all sizes.” That being said, weight is a lifelong issue for many. Even in a baby's first year moms are bombarded with weight percentiles. Given all these confusing signals, how much (if at all) should you worry about your baby's weight? Here's a round-up of advice from Circle of Moms members on three common weight-related questions that crop up during a baby's first year.

1. Can A Baby Be Fat?

My daughter's doctor shrugged off my concerns about her weight with, “If she’s hungry, feed her. The weight will come off when she starts walking." A Circle of Moms member named Rachel says the same: “Babies need the extra weight now because when they start crawling and walking they burn so much energy, and they lose some interest in eating.”

As it turned out, Rachel and my pediatrician were completely right: my baby eventually slimmed down. But I needed to hear it from a doctor in order not to worry. Echoing this experience, Circle of Moms member Hannah says talking to your pediatrician is essential: “If there is a problem, they can help you diagnose it. If there is no problem, they can give you the medical reassurance you need.”

2. What Makes Your Baby Bigger?

Breastfeeding

Exclusively breast-fed infants have a tendency to weigh more than formula-fed babies. Since there is no accurate measurement for how much milk your baby gets while nursing, Kristin P.'s doctor likes to see a chunky baby: "My pediatrician said they prefer a breastfed baby to be "overweight," to ensure they [are] getting enough." Several moms in our communities, including Amber P., say you should never ration a baby who is exclusively breastfed: "...more than one doctor has told me that you cannot overfeed a breastfed baby."

Circle of Moms member Guggie D. shares some valuable information from the American Academy of Pediatrics regarding the pressure on breastfeeding moms to put their babies on a schedule. Most health organizations and doctors agree that on-demand feeding is best in the first few months, regardless of a baby's weight, so that they learn to understand their own hunger cues.

Genetics

The height and bone structure that our babies inherit from us play a role in their weight from the start. As a member named Lisa says, "...breastfed infants grow according to their genetics. They self-regulate."

Elle W.'s family bears this out. Her daughter was in the 95th percentile for weight at three months old.But she ws a big baby from the start, as were her parents and grandparents: "My daughter was almost ten pounds, I was over ten pounds, both my parents were over ten pouds. Big babies run in the family ."                  

Overfeeding

Some doctors will tell you that it is possible to overfeed a baby, especially if you are feeding formula. While you should feed them whenever they are hungry, sometimes we have a tendency to push them to finish a bottle or try to get them to eat because we think it's "feeding time." Nicole B. was concerned about her daughter's weight, and her doctor did caution her about overfeeding: "...my doctor said as long as we weren't over feeding her, like having her eat every hour and every time she was the teensiest bit fussy, that she was just growing how she was supposed to."

3. What Should You Do if Concerned?

Most Important - Ask The Doctor

Before you make any changes to your baby's diet or feeding schedules, you should ask your doctor. An overwhelming majority of moms in our communities who worried about their babies being overweight were reassured by their pediatrician that chubby babies are perfectly normal, especially in the first year.

Increase Solid Food

For babies over six months, some moms suggest that introducing more solids (cereal and baby food) might actually help avoid over-eating. Sonia G.'s son was in the 90th percentile at his six month checkup, and her doctor recommended less formula and more food: "[The doctor] suggested I cut back on formula since he should only be drinking (4) eight ounce bottles a day, and feed baby food three times a day so that way baby would still be eating every two hours, just cutting back on [the amount of] formula."

Recognize Comfort Sucking vs. Hunger

Sometimes it's hard to tell if babies are actually hungry or just want to suck. If you feel comfortable with your child using a pacifier, this might be a good time to introduce one. Shannon S. used a pacifier to figure out when her son was actually hungry: "Try a pacifier if you haven't already. [Your baby] could just want to suck and not be hungry. She will reject it if she is really hungry. I had to do that with my son when I wasn't sure if he wanted a bottle or a paci."

The preceding information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.

Image Source: (left) Courtesy of Mo Cooper, (right) bobjudge via Flickr/Creative Commons

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, POPSUGAR.

When you're running what Circle of Moms member Slyvia H. calls "a 24-hour breastaurant," the humorous side of breastfeeding is sure to eventually rear its head. From accidental flashes to inadvertent sprays, our members have shared their funniest (and most embarrassing) breastfeeding stories. Read on; they're bound to make you laugh — or weep!

Flash!

Whether you're scrupulous about covering up or proudly nonchalant, accidental flashes in public are among the most common breastfeeding mishaps shared by our members.

Megan B. recounts the time a breastfeeding session was interrupted by a FedEx guy at her doorbell. “I was in a sports bra with my baby clinging to me underneath,” she explains. “He told me I didn't need to bother signing and ran off pretty quickly.” Lindsay C. recalls the time her daughter pulled the cover off to reveal she was breastfeeding — in a restaurant. The teenage boy who was clearing the table "got quite the eye full and just quickly turned his back and walked off,” she says. “The best part was that my daughter had the hugest grin on her face when she did that."

Sometimes the surprise happens with someone you know. When Sarah M. was nursing her baby under a cover at a restaurant, an acquaintance brashly lifted the blanket to take a peek — and got an eyeful of her naked breast. He had mistakenly presumed that she was feeding the baby with a bottle.

Nice Shot

Quite a few Circle of Moms members have also accidentally confronted strangers with actual breast milk. Nicole, whose daughter Phoebe once unlatched unexpectedly during a nursing session on the bus, reports that as a result “I shot a person with milk.” Christina's fountain burst in the shopping mall. When her husband tried to cover her nursing her 10-month-old daughter, the baby, “who loves to be nosy,” yanked the blanket right off. “Not only did I flash a whole group of people," says Christina, "but milk was spraying like a sprinkler." Luckily she laughed it off, reporting "It was the funniest thing in the world.”

Inadvertent squirts can also be awkwardly intimate. Jenny W.'s aunt was once nursing her cousin when an older gentleman came up to admire the baby and, not realizing that she was nursing, reached down to pinch her cheeks. Just as he did so, Jenny relays, "the milk shot out of my aunt’s breast and squirted the man right in the eye.” 

Loving It Out Loud

Many moms also have stories of tots who simply enjoy their nursing sessions a little too loudly, like Nicole's baby, who will announce that she’s ready to nurse by screaming “'Booba, Booba!' and clapping her hands," or Lerin B.'s 18-month-old, who thinks it's a lark to randomly pull up her mom's shirt and scream "Boob!"

Amy's son expresses his appreciation a little more gently, but no less embarrassingly for this mom. As she shares, he sings “Mnnnnn,” whenever he nurses. “Of course everyone is looking at me and I just turn beet red [and] then he falls asleep.”

Sorry, Wrong Boobs

Finally, who can blame a baby for wanting to feed whenever they encounter a pair of breasts? Jessica R.'s one-year-old likes to nuzzle other women’s breasts and once shoved his face in her aunt’s chest "like he was looking for a drink.”

Then there's Lisbeth R.'s daughter, who actually went searching for a breast milk snack when her family found themselves at a topless beach in Miami. Lisbeth's boyfriend finally grabbed the little one's hand and explained, "No baby, there isn't any milk in those ones. As Lisbeth recounts, everyone within earshot started laughing.

What funny or awkward moments have you experienced as a result of breastfeeding?

Image Source: from_ko via Flickr/Creative Commons

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, POPSUGAR.

Swedish mom Natashja Blomberg has shown her support for breastfeeding in a very public way — but it's not what you'd expect.

As the Huffington Post reports, last week Blomberg was given control of Sweden's official Twitter account. The account is run by a different citizen every week, with the goal of sharing diverse opinions and stirring dialogue. Blomberg chose to do this by posting a series of pro-public nursing tweets and photos to Sweden's 28,000 Twitter follows, starting what some are calling a "Breastfeeding Riot."

Most young Swedes don't share Blomberg's views. A 2011 study found that three out of four 18- to 22-year-olds in Sweden believe nursing moms should cover up in public while breastfeeding. 

Click here for the full story and tweets.

Have you ever been made to feel uncomfortable while nursing in public?

Image Source: alamy via Huffington Post