even Maxy knows this! (this is a pic from the other day - Max grabbed a part from my pump, lifted his shirt, and made the appropriate sound effects!) But what is the best way to ensure that the breast milk has enough Vitamin D? Vitamin D is all the craze now in the medical field. A deficiency in it has been linked to cancer, depression, suppressed immune response, on and on... It has also been discovered that breast milk may contain inadequate levels of vitamin D.
Kinley and I are participating in a study at U of R about breastfeeding, vitamin D, and the best way to ensure adequate levels. The researchers believe that it is the mother who is deficient in vitamin D, then by extension the breastmilk is. Kinley takes a vitamin D supplement which is standard and recommended by the AAP for all exclusively breastfed babies. I have been given a mega-dose vitamin D supplement as well as a standard prenatal vitamin. However - one of our supplements is a placebo, containing no vitamin D.
We will have 7 monthly appointments - involving blood draws, DEXA scans, height, weight, vital sign measurements, and urine tests. I also have to keep a detailed log of my sun exposure, activity level, and my nursing and/or pumping frequency. Kinley is also not allowed to have anything besides breastmilk until 6-7 months old - which is what we were planning anyways! Don't worry - we are being compensated for our participation!
We had our first appointment today and it wasn't too bad - there was LOTS of paperwork to fill out, and Kinley wasn't a big fan of the blood draw, but other than that the appointment went well. Kinley and I both had bone density scans - and they gave me a print out of Kinley's. She has the cutest skeleton! She weighed 10lbs 13oz (up 8oz from last week) and was just over 22.5in long (up 1/2 an inch from last week!) Boob juice does a baby good!
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