Both you and your baby are going to sleep terribly, possibly for months, so you might as well get used to the idea.

But don’t freak out—this is totally normal. All you have to do is make sure everyone lives through this tumultuous time. Pretend there’s a zombie war going on outside and your priority is basic survival. Do whatever it takes to stay alive. Believe that this too shall pass.

For those of you in the midst of intense sleep deprivation, you would probably like to take your computer and throw it at my head right now. No one wants to…

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Although the incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) decreased significantly after the launch of the Back to Sleep campaign in 1994, SIDS is still the leading cause of death in children 1 month to 1 year of age. While the cause of SIDS remains a mystery, researchers recently identified a defect in the brain of infants who died of SIDS that may eventually lead to early detection of babies at risk for SIDS.

Published in the February 3, 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers compared the brainstems of 41 infants who died of SIDS with 7 infants who died…

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Perhaps Andrew Wakefield, MD didn’t realize that his 1998 study erroneously linking vaccinations to autism would ignite a decade long controversy. But he should have. If not for the media frenzy fomented by high profile celebrities, the scientific method might have triumphed long ago. Journalists should know better. Yet given the scope of the damage, any claim of vindication would ring hollow. In the end, science prevailed, but at what cost?

After the United Kingdom General Medical Council (GMC) described the actions of Andrew Wakefield, MD, and two of his colleagues as dishonest and irresponsible, The Lancet, a respected medical journal,…

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Stephanie Sanders and Alex Bligh both had trouble with their milk supply in their early weeks of breastfeeding. After trying everything else, both turned to a drug called domperidone and found their supply quickly increased. Both were able to continue breastfeeding their children.

The difference? Alex lives in Dunedin, New Zealand, where she got a prescription from her doctor and had it filled at the pharmacy. Stephanie lives in northeast Georgia and had to sneak around, ordering her supply from the internet—from a company in New Zealand. The pills subtly arrived in an unmarked box.

FDA: Not okay
Stephanie and other American women…

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Today, Mary Rose Tully lost her battle with pancreatic cancer and the people of North Carolina lost a breastfeeding advocate extraordinaire.

Mary Rose was a teacher, lactation consultant, public health advocate, director, administrator, and more. Those closest to her knew her as a daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, and friend. There is no way to express how much she will be missed. But if we measure one’s life by the number of people touched, few have touched more lives than Mary Rose Tully—countless mothers, fathers, and babies among them.

I first met Mary Rose when we served together on the board of…

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Recent changes in the recommended guidelines for mammograms and Pap smears have resulted in confusion and concern among women of all ages.

The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) announced changes in its recommendation for when to begin and how often to have a mammogram only days before the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) announced revisions to its recommendations for when to begin and how often a woman should have a Pap smear. The first created controversy, overshadowing the second—so both beg a closer look.

The mammography guidelines
After reviewing the research evidence, the USPSTF revised mammography guidelines and now suggests that routine…

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Since its October 2006 launch, baby gooroo has transitioned from infancy to toddlerhood through a series of baby steps. The most recent changes are reflected in the redesign of our website, improvements that we hope will make your online experience even better.

At the top of the home page you will find three content buckets—Kids, Parents, News—designed to give visitors quick and easy access to the most popular posts in recent days within each category.

With the most popular social media hubs newly integrated into the site, sharing content is easier than ever before. Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, Digg or Tumblr, parents and…

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A young mother sat at a table in the far corner of a public picnic area in a state park. She held her baby close to her breast, but it took me a minute to realize she was breastfeeding. I decided to politely approach her, because I wanted to thank her for setting an excellent example for other mothers, especially those reluctant to breastfeed in public. As I walked closer to her, the young mother appeared fearful and quickly began to gather her belongings. I was shocked and embarrassed, and only after I explained to her that I had the…

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In a recent family photo, Teresa Brown Jesus, her two sisters, and their eleven children, ranging in age from 20 months to 19 years, appear happy and glowing in crisp white shirts. The adult sisters are nestled on a sofa; cousins hold cousins. One of Teresa’s then-infant twins rests in her cradled arms, his small head turned to her subtly lifted shirt.

In a time when zero support groups existed in her area, when a nurse advised one of the sisters not to breastfeed her twins, the family’s story is downright amazing. Against all the odds, every child in the family…

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Why does a document designed to bring out the best in people too often bring out the worst?

Such is the case with the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (Code).

As individuals react to the decision by the National Alliance for Breastfeeding Advocacy (NABA) in collaboration with INFACT Canada and the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) to cite Medela (maker of breast pumps and other breastfeeding aids) for Code violations, it appears that battle lines are being drawn.

Code Compliance
For those unfamiliar with the ongoing controversy, NABA was asked by the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA) to review Medela’s compliance with the International Code of Marketing…

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When was the last time you went to a movie theater with your kids? If you’re like most parents you probably stopped by the snack bar on the way to your seat. Well hang on, because you’re about to discover the fat and calorie content of those irresistible treats.

So you made your children choose popcorn, the healthy snack. Guess what, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, Regal Entertainment Group, the largest movie theater chain in the United States with 548 theaters in 39 states, uses coconut oil to pop its corn. Coconut oil is 90 percent…

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The blog PhD In Parenting, written by an author who simply goes by Annie, recently asked that very question, along with several others, directly to Nestle. Nestle reportedly controls 40 percent of the world’s baby food market.

Annie’s questions were prompted by Nestle’s decision to sponsor a Nestle Family blogger event, much to Annie’s consternation.  At the center of her opposition is the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, commonly referred to as the Code.

Developed in 1981 by the World Health Organization and UNICEF, the stated intent of the Code is to “…halt and restrict many promotional practices such as advertising, samples…

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