How many mothers and mothers-to-be do you know who complain of back pain? Quite a few, I’ll bet. As a new mother and a chiropractor, I can attest to the toll pregnancy and motherhood put on the back. A study in the journal Orthopedics reported that 50 to 90 per cent of pregnant women will likely experience lower back pain. Normally this pain diminishes after birth but it can persist, especially if preventive measures are not being taken.

There are two essential elements connected to the health of a spine: mobile vertebrae and a properly functioning nervous system. Vertebrae are responsible for the motion of the back, and problems occur when repetitive movements, poor posture, pregnancy, or trauma compromise this motion. Vertebrae also surround and protect the nervous system, so when an area of the back is not moving properly the nervous system is also jeopardized.

Back pain is caused by an accumulation of stress on the joints that can be triggered by an action as simple as picking up your child. As a reaction to the trigger, the body swells or becomes inflamed in that area, causing sharp pain. Back muscles also contribute to the pain by becoming tight or spastic in an effort to protect the spine. During pregnancy and afterwards, the body experiences many changes that can lead to back pain. Here’s why:

Pregnancy: There are three curves in our spine – in the neck, the mid-back and the lower back. The significant weight gain that occurs during pregnancy adds more pressure to the lower back and causes its curve to become more acute. The joints then have a greater potential to become inflamed and cause pain. The same applies to the neck and mid-back because of the increase in breast weight that pulls on the shoulder muscles. There is also an increase in the hormone relaxin, which causes ligaments to relax in preparation for the delivery. Its presence also creates abnormal motion in many joints, causing them to become inflamed.

Post-partum: Back pain can persist after birth. The loss of pregnancy weight once again causes a drastic change in the curve of the lower back. There is also the loss of the relaxin, which as it leaves the body tends to make ligaments tighter. This can cause the sacroiliac joint, the one used when bending forward to pick up a baby or get up from a chair, to not move as well as it should and create pain. Therefore, it is very important to verify that there is proper mobility in the pelvis area after delivery.

Infant and toddler years: Once the baby is born, there are countless mom-related daily activities, whether it is hoisting a car seat, wrestling with a stroller, carrying your toddler, vacuuming, or doing the laundry, that can cause your back to be strained.

Stiffness, usually in the morning, is the first symptom, and warning sign, that the pain may be a chronic problem. Don’t ignore it! As mothers constantly in motion, it is nearly impossible to not put some stress on our backs. There are ways, however, to prevent back pain and keep our backs working as optimally as possible.

Tips for a healthy back:

• Carry a backpack instead of an over-the-shoulder bag, especially if you are filling it with diapers, wipes, bottles, snacks, sippy cups, etc.
• When picking up your child, bend at the knees and bring your child close to your centre of gravity before lifting (this applies to lifting anything heavy). It is important not to hold the baby for prolonged periods on your hip because it will cause undue stress on the sacroiliac joints. It is much better to hold the child right against you with his legs wrapped around your waist equally.
• When reaching for something, make sure you don’t twist from your lower back – try to keep your feet pointing in the same direction as you reach. Twisting is one of the worst motions for the lower back as it does not tolerate it well and can cause serious damage to the disks between the vertebrae, like a discal hernia.
• Front pouches are not harmful as long as the baby is not too heavy and you do not feel discomfort or pain. Try to get a pouch that has a strap around the waist so some of the weight is distributed away form the shoulders.
• Exercise is important! An important component for both pre- and post-natal periods is strong abdominal muscles. They will support your lower back and lessen stress. You can start by doing a low number of crunches and slowly build up. Additional exercises are available from most chiropractic clinics.

Tips if injury or pain occurs:

• Apply ice for 10 minutes and remove for 20 minutes.
• Do not apply heat, as this will increase swelling.
• Try not to stay in one position for a long time – keep moving whenever possible.
• Sleep on your side with pillows between your knees or on your back with your knees up.

If the pain persists, you may want to consult a chiropractor. Chiropractic treatment is a manipulation of the spine to help ease the pain of musculoskeletal problems.

The chiropractor will perform an evaluation of the spine through a multi-component examination. There is a postural exam that allows the chiropractor to see if there are muscular imbalances and abnormal curves in the back and assess the gross range of motion in the lower back and neck to see how the joints are moving. The orthopedic exam narrows in on joints that are not working well. The neurologic tests verify motor strength and reflexes to see if the problem extends to the nervous system. Finally, the chiropractor will feel or palpate the motion of each joint of your back to find the problem area and verify muscle tension. She may also perform a radiological examination, to determine the degree of degeneration in the back, which will help with the prognosis and eliminate any risks during treatment.

The chiropractor will then work on the areas where there is a lack of motion and muscle tension by adjusting the vertebrae. The adjustment is not painful and creates that famous “crack” sound. The noise is caused by the accumulation of pressure in the liquid separating the two surfaces that make up the joints. By doing a quick move to open up the joint the liquid gets transformed into a gas and makes a pop. It is similar to the noise made by a can of soda opening and is definitely not the bones cracking.

The purpose of the adjustment is to restore motion, to reset the mechanism of the muscle spindles, which are needed for stretching and flexibility, and to trigger the secretion of endorphins, neurotransmitters in the brain with pain-relieving properties.

The chiropractor may also give you exercises to strengthen your back and keep it healthy.

No matter what, chronic back pain will simply not just go away. Even if the pain decreases, your motion will still not be as optimal as it was and the pain could easily be triggered again. Address the cause and you will feel much better.

Dr. Valerie Lavigne
Chiropraticienne, DC

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A Child’s First Spinal Exam

• When is it time for a child ‘s first spinal examination?
• Should we wait until children complain of backache before taking them to the chiropractor?

These are two questions which parents frequently ask of their chiropractor. Throughout most communities it is a well-accepted fact that children should have regular dental check-ups to identify problems at the earliest possible time. In this way dentists attempt to identify early tooth decay and alignment problems of the teeth, because they know that the earlier the problem is detected the easier it will be to fix.

Well what about the potential for children to develop spinal problems? Should children be examined at regular intervals during their growing years to identify spinal problems which may progress to become serious, permanent problems. Unfortunately, the generally accepted view in most communities is that one visits a chiropractor for backache or neck pain, and in the absence of these symptoms, it can be assumed that the spine is doing okay.

When evaluating the spines of adult patients, chiropractors frequently encounter degenerative changes in discs and vertebral joint structures which have been ongoing for many years, without any evidence of symptoms. In many cases, it is only when the spinal degeneration reaches an advanced stage that symptoms of pain and stiffness occur. If the spinal problem causing these symptoms could have been detected at an early age, and the problem had been corrected, then a lifetime of misery due to chronic back pain could have been avoided.

Many of the worst spinal problems, which chiropractors detect on x-ray, show evidence of having been present for many years and can be identified, by the degree of degeneration, as having started during childhood. For this reason, it is recommended that a child’s first spinal evaluation should be early in life when the spine is growing and developing at the fastest rate. Orthopedists have identified that the time when the spine is most likely to develop problems, or for existing problems to worsen, is during periods of rapid growth.

Examination of the growth patterns of a child’s spine shows that the time of fastest spinal growth is during the first year of life, when the average length of the spine grows from 24 to 36cm. This is a 50 percent increase in one year, a rate which is unmatched in any other phase of a child’s growth and development. The next fastest growth rate occurs between the ages of one and five years when the spinal length increases from 36 to 51 cm, a 42 percent growth rate. Between the ages of 5 and 10, we see the slowest period of growth, 10 cm in five years, or a 20 percent growth rate.

The adolescent growth phase is most notable for its growth spurts, when a teenager may grow three to four inches in less than a year. The average total growth for the adolescent period is 20 cm in males and 15 cm in females, which represents a growth rate of 25 percent in females and 33 percent in males.

Now, taking all that into consideration, it can be seen that the period of fastest growth is the first year of life. The first year is also a period of considerable trauma when most children are learning to walk. This phase of a child’s development is also the period when the secondary spinal curves are forming in the child’s neck and low back. Because the first year of life is such an important one for spinal development, and because the potential for trauma is high, it is recommended that a child’s first spinal evaluations should be performed during this period. Beyond the first year, the child needs regular check-ups to ensure that the micro-trauma of a child’s daily living,
such as “rough-house” play and falls from bicycles, etc., are not causing spinal problems: problems which might otherwise go unnoticed simply because the child does not complain of symptoms.

Spinal growth and development continues right through until the mid-30s, when the development of the vertebrae in the lumbar spine is finally complete.

When we plant a tree in the garden, we stake and tie it to ensure that it grows straight during its early years. If we don’t do this, and the tree is allowed to bend with the wind for 10 to 15 years then it is impossible to straighten.

Don’t let your child’s spine develop like an unstaked tree. You don’t wait until your children complain of toothache before taking them to the dentist, so why wait until they complain of backache before having their spines checked.

Dr. Valerie Lavigne
Chiropraticienne, DC

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Originally published in ICPA Newsletter:
July August 2002.

For many students, “hitting the books” leads to academic achievement. Students who carry those books in overloaded backpacks may be unknowingly participating in the beginning of a health epidemic.

Scientific research reveals an alarming danger associated with improper childhood backpack use. This research stems from the increasing number of reports of childhood back pain in recent decades. By the end of their teen years, close to 60 percent of youths experience at least one low-back pain episode. And new research indicates that this may be due, at least in part, to the improper use of backpacks on young spines. That’s why Dr. Marvin Arnsdorff and his partner John Carroll created Backpack Safety America/InternationalTM to curb the rising tide of injury due to improper use of backpacks. “Back pain leads to more than 19 million doctor visits per year, according to the U.S. Department of Human Health and Services,” said Dr Arnsdorff. “What will that figure be when the members of the “Backpack Generation” are in their thirties and forties?” An increase in back pain appearing most frequently during the period of rapid growth — ages 11 to 16 is cause for concern.

BACKPACKS’ ATTACK ON BACKS
Watch children in any schoolyard struggle to walk while bent sideways under the weight of an overloaded backpack on one shoulder. You will quickly realize the potential danger of this commonplace item. How exactly does carrying a backpack affect the spine? Common sense tells us that a load, distributed improperly or unevenly, day after day, indeed causes stress to a growing spinal column. The old adage “As the twig bends, so grows the tree” comes to mind. There is a growing concern about the improper use of backpacks and the relatively scarce amount of instructional and preventative information available to young people. It is not the backpack’s fault that kids have not been given the guidelines.

CHECK THE NUMBERS
The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 7,277 emergency room visits each year result from injuries related to book bags. The CPSC also reports that backpack-related injuries are up 330% since 1996. “That is the beginning of an epidemic, one that will cause serious damage to a child’s health for a lifetime,” said Dr. Arnsdorff.

GETTING OUT OF LINE
Hauling a heavy backpack over one shoulder everyday may cause serious postural misalignments. These postural imbalances often trigger a condition called vertebral subluxation. Vertebral subluxations are dysfunctional areas in the spine where movement is restricted or bones (vertebrae) are out of alignment. This disorder predisposes patients to a number of ailments, such as neck and back pain, headaches, and osteoarthritis.

In addition, a recent scientific experiment found that carrying a backpack alters the mobility of spinal bones and can lead to restricted movement-a risk factor for pain. Yet another study used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine the effect of backpacks on the intervertebral disc of the spine, the fluid-filled “pillows” between spinal bones. According to the report, backpacks alter the fluid content of these discs-a risk factor for disc herniation (“slipped” disc) and osteoarthritis.

BACKPACKS ARE NOT JUST CAUSING PROBLEMS IN THE UNITED STATES
The amount of weight carried by children in their backpacks is an important issue that deserves serious consideration. To quantify how much weight children are likely to carry in their backpacks, researchers in Milan, Italy, determined the weight of all the backpacks used by sixth graders at several schools.

The average load carried daily 20.5 pounds, reaching as much as 27.5 pounds, with the maximum daily load averaging 25.3 pounds. Over one-third of students carried more than 30% of their body weight at least once during the week.

A QUESTION OF BALANCE

Research presented at the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation’s annual meeting in San Francisco exposes yet another potential danger of heavy backpacks: they promote falls in students who wear them.

Specifically, students who carried packs weighing 25% of their body weight exhibited balance problems while performing normal activities such as climbing stairs or opening doors, which in turn increases their risk of falls. In contrast, students who carried packs weighing 15% of their body weight maintained their balance moderately well. Those carrying 5% of their body weight were most effective at maintaining balance, compared with their peers who carried more weight. In another recent study, children aged 10 to 13 stood on a platform that measured force. The children stepped from the platform onto a high step and back down to the platform.

The children did this three times — once without a book bag, once with the book bag carrying a load equaling 15 percent of the child’s body weight, and another time with a load equaling 20 percent of the child’s body weight.

The heavier the book bag, the greater the force children exerted to step up. There was also a trend toward greater impact forces when they stepped back down, the study found.

Dr. Mary Ellen Franklin, research supervisor commented, “Your body tries to keep the center of mass between the feet, so with a backpack, the trunk is in a more forward position, placing abnormal forces on the spine.”

“This requires shifting the head forward … but this would mean looking down. You compensate by bringing the head up, which makes part of the neck curve to a greater extent. It’s very stressful on the neck.”

ROLLER BAGS ARE NOT CURE-ALLS
An empty roller bag can weigh up to 80% more than an empty backpack. Factor in that there is a tendency to add more things to a roller bag, it can end up weighing 50 pounds or more. At some point during the day, a child needs to lift that bag, and proper guidelines still should be followed. Students, parents, and teachers are in need of specific safety guidelines necessary to prevent future spinal conditions due to improperly worn backpacks.

BACKPACK SAFETY TIPS
*Make sure the backpack is sturdy and appropriately sized. Some manufacturers offer special child-sized versions for children ages 5-10. These packs weigh less than a pound and have shorter back lengths and widths so they do not slip around on the back.

*Consider more than looks when choosing a backpack. An ill-fitting pack can cause back pain, muscle strain, or nerve impingement. You want to have padded shoulder straps to avoid pressure on the nerves around the armpits. Some backpacks have waist straps designed to stabilize the load. These should be used whenever possible.

*The proper maximum weight for loaded backpacks should not exceed 15% of the child’s body weight. For example, an 80-pound child should not carry more than 12 pounds in a pack. If the pack forces the carrier to bend forward, it is overloaded.

*In loading, it is obvious that excessive backpack weight can cause problems. Prioritizing the pack’s content is very important. Avoid loading unnecessary items. It is important to balance the weight of the contents or the body shifts into unnatural postures to compensate.
*Often ignored is the act of lifting and positioning the pack. Lifting 20 pounds improperly can cause damage.

Follow these simple steps:

• Choose a back pack with padded shoulder straps that fits your child’s size. ( A backpack that’s too large will sag towards the buttocks, stressing the child’s lower back and shoulders.)
• Lighten the load. Children should carry loads no heaver than 15 percent of their body weight.
• Face the backpack before you lift it.
• Bend at the knees.
• Using both hands, check the weight of the pack.
• Lift with your legs, not your back.
• Carefully put one shoulder strap on at a time. Never sling the pack onto one shoulder.
• Use both shoulder straps. Make them snug but not too tight. Carrying the backpack on one shoulder, while fashionable, can cause long-term neck, shoulder, back, and postural problems.
• Use the stabilizing waist strap around the waist.
• Look for signs — pain, red marks from straps, poor posture — indicating if a backpack fits poorly or is overloaded.

This article was contributed by the founders of Backpack Safety America/ International TM, the world’s first comprehensive education program designed to help students, parents and teachers prevent injuries related to the improper use of backpacks among school-age children. Doctors across North America and around the world have presented the program to more than a million students, parents, teachers and administrators. Their informative website offers practitioners, parents and children the opportunity to educate about the need for Backpack Safety measures. Visit them at: www.backpacksafe.com

Dr. Valerie Lavigne
Chiropraticienne, DC

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Reprinted with the permission of Canadian Chiropractor magazine

In 2001, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF made the following recommendations for infant feeding: children should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life and thereafter should receive adequate and safe complementally food while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of age and beyond.(1) The Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS), Dieticians of Canada (DC), and Health Canada (HC) have endorsed these latest recommendations.(2)

As primary health-care practitioners, chiropractors are in position to discuss health and natural methods of healing by different means such as adjustments, nutrition and exercise. Every day in my clinic, pregnant patients ask for help to relieve the stresses of pregnancy. Some ask about the most natural, simplest way to feed a young child. Chiropractors who work in family practices should be knowledgeable in the basics of breastfeeding and be ready to direct patients to the appropriate resources.

Breastfeeding rates fell to an all-time low in the 1970s and ’80s in North America but things are slowly beginning to change as more people are realizing the benefits that breastfeeding brings to both the mother and child.

Breast milk is the ultimate food because it adapts and changes composition as a child ages, which infant formula cannot do.(3) Colostrum, which is the first liquid the mother’s breast secretes after childbirth, is very high in secretory immunoglobulin A, which helps the newborn fight off infections. Later, from the more mature milk, the baby still receives the same amount of secretory immunoglobulin A but it is diluted in proportion to the increased amount of milk consumed. The immunity transfer from the mother is crucial since children take up to five years to fully develop their immune system.

Breast milk is easily digested, therefore resulting in less gas, colic and spitting up.(4) Research shows that breastfed children may have a lower risk of developing asthma, food allergies and eczema,(5, 6, 7) in addition to less frequent diarrhea, and fewer urinary tract, respiratory and ear infections.(8,9,10,11) Breastfeeding may help in the develop- ment of the nervous system and contribute to increased intelligence quotient.(12,13) Breastfed babies might also have a lower risk of childhood cancers, insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, and chronic bowel diseases.(14, 15, 16,17,18) Of greatest importance, breastfeeding affords the baby a closeness with its mother that bottle-feeding does not allow. The breast- feeding child immediately after birth starts to use the senses of smell, taste, and touch.

Research published in Pediatrics in May 2004 claims that the overall mortality rate is 21% lower for breastfed babies compared to non-breastfed, and suggests that the longer babies breastfeed, the lower their risk of dying pre- maturely.(19)

As the baby starts to suckle right after birth, the mother’s body releases the hormone oxytocin, which helps contract the uterus, decreasing postpartum bleeding. Since milk produc- tion burns about 500 to 1,000 calories a day, the nursing mother returns to her pre-pregnancy shape or weight faster than the non-nursing mother.(20) Research shows that breastfeeding may reduce the risk of the mother developing breast, uterine and ovarian cancers.(21, 22, 23)

Nighttime feeding is convenient for the mother because there is no necessity to calculate and mix formula. Breast milk is always available and ready to use, making travelling with a young baby very easy. Nursing allows the mother to relax and rest during the day. It will require her to actually take the time to sit down and bond with her child. There’s an economic benefit, too, since breastfeeding can annually save a family as much as $1,500, the estimated cost of a year’s worth of formula.

Chiropractors in family practice might make available pamphlets that give information on breastfeeding and breast- feeding resources. A breastfeeding-friendly clinic would include a quiet area for moms to nurse, and could even provide supplies such as a feeding pillow, wipes, and even diapers.

La Leche League International (LLLI) was started in the United States in 1965 by seven mothers who wanted to help others learn about breastfeeding. The league offers phone support, monthly meetings and continuing education. In Quebec, a group called Nourri-Source also provides telephone support as well as weekly meetings at community centres where new mothers can come to weigh their babies and ask questions of the nurses who are present.

Women can also contact an international board-certified lactation consultant (IBCLC) whose role is to assist moms and provide them with evidence-based facts to help ensure breast- feeding success. These consultants undergo extensive breast- feeding education and a written examination, and they must re-certify every five years. They typically work in private practice, hospitals or clinical settings.

As the baby gets older, stronger, and more practised, breast- feeding becomes easier and faster with time. A new mother should be encouraged to continue with breastfeeding as long as it is satisfying for both her and the baby.

Assisting the next generation to get the healthiest possible start in life is a rewarding experience.

Dr. Valerie Lavigne
Chiropraticienne, DC

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This year’s theme for the World Breastfeeding Week is: Exclusive breastfeeding: the gold standard,safe, sound and sustainable. The World Health Organization currently recommends exclusive breastfeeding for six months and up to two years with other foods. 1So how can we help a new mother achieve this goal? Educating her on the basics of breastfeeding and helping her to fully understand how the relationship between mother and baby is formed should provide a step in the right direction towards a successful breastfeeding career.

New mothers often think breastfeeding is easy and natural, but if you’ve ever heard stories about difficult latches, thrush, mastitis, cracked nipples or any of the problems associated with breastfeeding, you know that it is really a learned art and sometimes a little help is needed during the learning process. As a new mother or a future new mother, you need to equip yourself with as much knowledge as possible to ensure that your breastfeeding experience is successful from the very beginning. This article will help you understand why “breast is best”, how to get a proper latch, and how to know when baby is getting enough milk.

By choosing to breastfeed, you are giving your child a huge advantage. The health benefits are immense, including a stronger immune system, fewer ear infections2, colds and upper respiratory infections3. Research has also shown a reduction in the incidence of diarrhea4 and asthma5 in breastfed babies, as well as IQ scores that are five to ten points higher than non-breastfed children6. The benefits to the mother are equally encouraging. We have seen a decreased risk of breast 7cancer and an easier recovery from delivery. Not to mention the huge financial savings breastfeeding can bring to the household — it has been estimated that a family of a singleton will save around $1,500 per year when baby is breastfed.

In his 1998 study, Righard estimated that 94% of mothers experiencing breastfeeding problems had incorrect positioning and latch-on8. The single most important breastfeeding skill to understand is how to put a baby to the breast efficiently. This is called latching the baby. When a baby is well latched, she is massaging the milk ducts and thus able to extract milk. If the baby is not positioned properly on the breast, she will not be able to create the stimulation necessary to empty the milk ducts and therefore produce more milk. Remember, it is baby who regulates how much milk is made, not mom! Simply put, the more often the breast is emptied, the more milk will be produced. Understanding this basic skill is the first step toward successful breastfeeding.

Latching on:
To latch your baby effectively, you should be seated comfortably in a chair or on a couch. Once the general concept of latching is understood, you can then breastfeed in various positions. Your back should be well supported and reasonably straight; your feet should also be well supported on the floor or on a footstool. This is supposed to be a fun experience so try to relax as much as possible!

It is important to understand that latching means it is the baby who is going to the breast, not the mother putting the breast into the baby’s mouth. When baby comes into contact with your chest she will move into an instinctive position. This is described by Glover (2000) as the baby tilting her head back and leading with her jaw and mouth to the breast9; her mouth is wide open, tongue down and over the bottom gum line to take the breast. This results in the baby having a large amount of areola/breast tissue in her mouth. Her chin should be firmly pressed against the breast and she should be able to breath freely through her nose. Remember that it is BREASTFEEDING NOT NIPPLE FEEDING – the baby needs to have this large amount of the breast in her mouth to be able to stimulate the milk ducts.

How can you help your baby with this process? Let’s look at the cross cradle position with baby on the right breast. First, you will hold your baby’s neck between your left thumb and index underneath the ear with a solid grip. The baby will be chest to chest with you and you will be supporting her back and shoulder with your left arm straight. With your right hand, gently squeeze your breast in a “C” or “U” shape, making a kind of “hamburger” to facilitate the latch. The nipple should be pointing towards the top lip. Then the game of patience begins — you will need to wait for baby to open her mouth WIDE. When this occurs you will quickly pull her towards you and place her on the breast, rolling the nipple under the top lip. Both lips should be flanged out.

You should then see baby starting a sucking pattern with small sucks that stimulate the milk to come down. After let-down, the sucking should look like open-pause sucks: the baby will pause mid-suck, her chin dropping down a fraction — she is now transferring milk and swallowing. It is important to be able to recognize the difference between sucking and swallowing.

To facilitate latching, you should put your newborn to the breast as soon as possible after birth. This is easily accomplished if mother and baby room-in together. There should be no time restriction placed on nursing – put away your watch and let yourself be guided by baby’s cues. The early cues include rooting (when you stroke her cheek and mouth, baby will turn her head to seek the breast with an open mouth), placing her fists in her mouth or making sucking motions in her sleep. The breast should be offered as soon as baby exhibits any of these signs of hunger. As long as your baby is sucking in an open-pause-close rhythm, she should remain on the breast. Crying is a late cue, so by this time the baby is VERY hungry and latching can be a little more difficult. To help baby get more milk and keep her actively sucking on the breast, you can do breast compressions: you will hold the breast, compressing it for 5 seconds and then releasing. Usually within a few compressions, baby will start another rhythmical sucking pattern. Remember, it is not normal to have pain! If pain occurs the baby is not well positioned and this could result in damaged nipples. In addition, no artificial nipple should be introduced in the first six weeks.

When do you know if baby is getting enough milk? First, you need to recognize the open-pause sucking rhythm. This tells you that baby is transferring milk and swallowing. Secondly, what goes in must come out — baby should be producing about six to eight wet diapers daily and having three to five bowels movements.

It is also important to recognize when your baby is going through growth spurt. Baby will change her feeding pattern and probably start nursing significantly more often. This is your baby’s way of telling your body that she needs more milk. Growth spurts usually occur at around three weeks, six weeks, three months and six months old. Your baby’s feeding pattern will eventually go back to normal after these periods of what feels like non-stop nursing.

Throughout your baby’s development and growth there are key times it is essential to bring your baby in for a spinal evaluation. Right after birth is so important because of the potential traumas to the spine and cranium from birth. Any difficulty you may be having breastfeeding your little one may be caused by misalignment of the spinal or cranial bones. These would include difficulty in latching on, what seems to be discomfort when the baby nurses or a baby favoring one breast or the other. By evaluating your baby’s neck, musculature and nervous system, your doctor of chiropractic can ensure that the sucking mechanism is functioning well therefore allowing the baby to open as wide as possible. Your doctor of chiropractic will also help in situations when a baby refuses to suck or clamps down too fast on the mother and is not maintaining a big open mouth. Your doctor of chiropractic will perform a spinal evaluation to detect any subluxations and will also concentrate on the jaw area because of its involvement in the sucking mechanism. A craniosacral evaluation can also help detect any problems around the cranium that may have resulted from the delivery process and could have an impact on breastfeeding.

If problems do occur, contact a certified lactation consultant and your doctor of chiropractic for help. These two professional will be able to assess what is causing the problem. You can also contact your local La Leche League group for advice and mother to mother support. If you do not yet have a Family Chiropractor, check out this website for one near you: www.icpa4kids.org . Do not wait! The faster your problems are addressed, the faster they are solved.

Breastfeeding is one of the best things you can do for your baby so enjoy every minute of it. They really do grow up fast! Don’t be shy to get some help to ensure a proper start and continued success in this wonderful experience you will share with your baby.

Reprinted with the permission of Pathways Magazine: www.icpa4kids.org

Dr. Valerie Lavigne
Chiropraticienne, DC

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