Unexpected Life-Saver

A 25-year-old woman from Denmark was with her husband and son in Turkey.  On their way to the airport they noticed a little pink bundle on the side of the road and acted upon their gut feeling that the bundle was worth investigating.  After having their taxi cab driver turn around and pull over, Maria and her husband discovered a newborn baby girl baking in the sun.  The baby was not responsive despite their efforts to cool her with air conditioning and water.  Maria, who was 31 weeks pregnant decided to act fast and attempted to nurse the newborn.  The baby finally started to nurse and life came back into her.  Maria's small act wound up saving the baby's life and making her an unexpected hero. (Read Post).

From our American culture, in which breast-feeding one's own child has somehow become counter-cultural, the idea of nursing another's child seems absurd.  As I reflected upon this, it reminded me of how beholden we are to the whims of our society and culture.

In ages past, it was custom for the most elite and wealthy classes to employ a wet nurse to sustain their children.  This was especially true for female babies, who were not as important as  male heirs, and therefore would not have been nursed by their mother.  The poorer and less educated classes often did not have the option of employing a wet nurse and therefore nursed their own children.

Currently in this country, due to the readily available and easy access to formula, the trends have turned.  According to the 'Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,' women who have higher incomes, higher education, and are older, are more likely to breast feed their children.  Perhaps this comes from a greater education and awareness of the many health benefits of nursing:

  Benefits for Baby & Mother

• Lower incidence of certain viruses
• Lower incidence of respiratory illness
• Reduction in ear infections, meningitis
• National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences found that breastfed children have a 20 percent lower risk of dying between the ages of 28 days and 1 year
• The immune factors in breast milk guard against invading germs and result in a natural buildup in babies of protections against many forms of illness
• Breastfeeding may protect babies from developing allergies
• Research has demonstrated a connection between breastfeeding and cognitive development (greater intelligence)
• Recent studies show a strong link between breastfeeding and a lower incidence of obesity as a teen or adult.
• The longer women breastfeed, the greater the mother’s protection against breast and ovarian cancers.

As a nursing mother myself, I have faced the question of why I choose to nurse my child from several curious family members, friends, and even strangers.  I have also received the whole gamut of responses when breastfeeding in public (covered of course.)  For me, just as our hero Maria said of breastfeeding the newborn "it felt completely natural."  I can't think of anything more natural than giving my child that which sustains him best, and bonds the two of us closer to one another as mother and child than anything else could.

Maria Kristensen, her three-year-old Lucas, and husband