katie allison granju

Breastfeeding - even partial breastfeeding - reduces risk of SIDS April 30, 2008

New analysis of all the relevant research offers evidence for the protective effect breastfeeding has against SIDS risk.

Does this mean that breastfed babies never die of SIDS? Of course not. That’s like asking whether people who exercise regularly and eat a good diet never die of heart disease.

Breastfeeding lowers a baby’s RISK for SIDS. A baby is less LIKELY to succumb to SIDS if breastfed.

SIDS — the sudden unexplained death of an infant or young child — is the leading cause of mortality among infants aged up to a year. There are around 300 SIDS-related deaths a year in the UK.

Dr Richard Wilson, a consultant paediatrician at Kingston-on-Thames hospital in London and a trustee for the FSID described the findings as “very significant”.

“Everybody knows breastfeeding is an essential life saver for babies in third world countries where there are lots of infections and a lack of sanitation, but in the developed world, we don’t have these problems,” he told AFP.

Until now, the role of breastfeeding as a protective factor against cot death has been unclear because there has never been a study large enough to take into account moderating factors such as class, money and social standing, Wilson explained.

“This conclusion shows that the more breastfeeding you do, the healthier the baby. Even some breastfeeding is better than none, so people only have to have a go at it.”

One meta analysis which comprised the results of 23 qualitative studies found that the overall risk of SIDS was twice as great for formula-fed infants compared with their breastfed counterparts.

ponies are the constant in this family :-) April 29, 2008

LINK

Fat & happy baby April 28, 2008

(Once again, adorable dress by Georgia )

our weekend

renovations continue April 27, 2008

J’s room is even closer to being complete.

More photos

Giant baby rampages through Downtown Knoxville! April 25, 2008

Proof!

(Super cute outfit by Georgia )

public health vs. parenting

Experts told Congress yesterday that an increasing body of research indicates that “abstinence only” sexual health instruction doesn’t seem to prevent pregnancy or STDs among targeted audiences, like teenagers.

Our own Rep. Jimmy Duncan expressed skepticism.

Rep. John Duncan, a Tennessee Republican, said that it seems “rather elitist” that people with academic degrees in health think they know better than parents what type of sex education is appropriate. “I don’t think it’s something we should abandon,” he said of abstinence-only funding.

I think Rep. Duncan is confusing public health strategy with parenting. They are two different things. Public health strategy - meaning what we spend tax dollars on to decrease disease in our populace - should be based on hard science. It’s epidemiological in nature. Does this way of teaching groups of people how to prevent disease work effectively in preventing that disease among groups of people? Yes or no?

Parenting is about more than that. It’s more nuanced. It’s about imparting the cultural or religious values that matter to an individual to his or her individual children. Parenting doesn’t belong in public health campaigns.

But we need both. Children need effective, engaged parenting to learn values, and they need exposure to effective, engaged public health programming to make sure they are able to grow up and live out those values in a physically healthy society.

Locking up the knocked up April 24, 2008

Folks are debating the wisdom of jailing a 7-months-pregnant woman who showed up at a Williamson County hospital seeking medical care, after she was found to have cocaine in her system:

Some health-care officials fear the February arrest and Jones’ possible conviction could cause other pregnant women who use drugs to go without medical care for fear of being tested and then arrested.

“This sends the message to pregnant women: Don’t seek emergency medical care. Don’t trust law enforcement. Don’t seek prenatal medical care,” said Dr. Carolyn Szetela, an assistant professor of professional and medical education at Meharry Medical College.

Others argue that society is obliged to protect unborn children and that the case was handled as it should have been.

“If she used cocaine, she put her baby in jeopardy,” said Brian Harris, president of Tennessee Right to Life. “It is child abuse. It certainly is.”

There is no protocol on how Tennessee hospitals should respond when a pregnant woman is found to have drugs in her system. Hospitals make the decision on a case-by-case basis, according to Craig Becker, president of the Tennessee Hospital Association.

This is a slippery slope. What about a pregnant woman who uses over the counter medications that are contraindicated during pregnancy? What about a pregnant woman who smokes?

more disturbing by the day April 22, 2008

If the adults - mothers and fathers - in this polygamist, FLDS sect are encouraging sexual activity by teenage girls with adult men as part of their religious practice (as it appears they almost certainly are), this is criminally abusive. It needs to be stopped.

The individual men and women who have played a role in this abuse need to be individually prosecuted. Their other, younger children should be put into state custody. I cannot express strongly enough how much I believe the state needs to take a strong, unequivocal stance in going after any of these individual adults in this group who have committed crimes against children in the name of religion.

However, I am increasingly disturbed by the way the state of Texas is handling this matter. The wholesale rounding up and de facto incarceration of hundreds of women and children - none of whom have been individually accused of any crime - is very troublesome.

And the matter moves to a whole new level of disturbing in my mind with word that the state now plans to impose across-the-board DNA testing on these women and children, without parental consent (meaning, the mothers have no choice in the matter), after which ALL THE CHILDREN, including nursing babies and toddlers, will immediately be separated from their mothers.

And in response to criticism over this despicable plan, the judge who is allowing it had only this to say: “But every day in this country, we have mothers who go back to work after six weeks of maternity leave.”

Look, precipitously separating a young child - particularly a nursing baby - from her mother is in itself abusive. So the justification for doing it by the state better be that that particular child is at risk of imminent, provable harm from that particular parent. The standard should be very, very high when making such a radical decision.

This is truly beginning to smack of religious persecution, especially when you compare the treatment of these families with the way children are routinely left in abusive and severely neglectful home environments all over this country by child protective services workers - all in the name of family preservation.

The ACLU needs to be all over this.

And let me say yet again that I am in favor of a thorough, aggressive and prosecutorial approach to investigating the claims of sexual abuse of teenage girls coming out of these polygamist groups. Any individual adult involved in such crimes should go to jail and lose his or her right to parent any other children.

But what’s happening in Texas is wrong.

what a mom wants

These two new(ish) books, “Porn for Women” (keep reading - it’s not what you think!) and “Porn for New Moms” are causing quite a stir with their comic play on the assumption that we still live in a world where men don’t do any traditionally female tasks.

Excerpts:

Porn for Women — Prepare to enter a fantasy world. A world where clothes get folded just so, delicious dinners await, and flatulence is just not that funny. Give the fairer sex what they really want—beautiful PG photos of hunky men cooking, listening, asking for directions, accompanied by steamy captions: “I love a clean house!” or “As long as I have two legs to walk on, you’ll never take out the trash.” Now this is porn that will leave women begging for more!

Porn for New Moms — Hot on the heels of last year’s runaway success, Porn for Women, the female pornographers from Cambridge are now tackling the fantasies of new mothers. What really turns them on? The CWPC locked themselves in the lab for months to find out. And the results are in this scientifically proven, steamy photo collection of hunky guys doing exactly what new mothers want. Prepare to enter a fantasy world, a world where men insist on changing diapers, where guys get up for 3 a.m. feedings, and where they just can’t help but admire mom’s sexy all-sweatpants wardrobe. Page after page of titillating shots and dream-worthy captions will make every mother swoon.

People apparently either find this hilarious or horrifying, depending on what kinds of men they happen to live with.

Me, I live with an Alan Alda kind of fella who does as much or more of the childcare and housework as I do. (No, really. I swear. And he fixes things, too!).

But - naming no names - I know LOTS and LOTS of women friends whose husbands- while otherwise quite lovely human beings - do next to nada around the house or with the mundane tasks of childcare. For those women, this stuff is funny because it’s literally true.

So how about you? What’s your take on the books? Funny? Or insulting and man-hatin’?

baby cousins playing April 20, 2008

life is good April 19, 2008

see, she really does have some hair

you can see it in the sunlight (if you squint)

leo the pup update (pupdate?)

Leo is 9 weeks old now, and I am estimating he’s doubled in size already. I’ll bet he weighs around 20 lbs. He goes back to the vet this week, so we’ll see then.

We could not be happier with him. He’s clearly got a super mellow, laid back temperament - when a nine week old puppy enjoys napping at your feet, you know he’s pretty low key by nature. He’s very responsive and is clearly bonding to all of us. The kids love him. C. likes to yank on his fur, so we have to be careful not to let her do that, but he’ll just wander right up to her and let her pull it - over and over. He actually seems to like it. We’re working on this.

He is doing well with his crate training. He’s not had a single accident in his crate since we brought him home, which is pretty remarkable. I hope it means housetraining will continue to go easily. Fiat & Mabel don’t seem to mind him much - or even really pay him too much attention.

I am really looking forward to having a rather large dog in our family who will politely but quite firmly explain to strangers that they shouldn’t presume to enter our yard or come onto our porch or - heaven forbid - open our front door without our express permission. Leo will be the family member who handles this task.

And here’s a video I ran across that demonstrates the unique Great Pyrenees temperament. He’s hanging out with “his” baby goats, letting them climb all over him, but would certainly not let any other animal bother them. These dogs are a unique combo of gentle and fierce. I like to think that my kids will be Leo’s “baby goats.”

Leo shakes after his first bath.

After the bath

Hoping C. will protect him from further bath activity.

anybody got a dog house they wanna get rid of?

We need a new dog house (or two).

Anybody in the general Knoxville area have a used one they want to sell?

If so, let me know.

Katie