By Nancy Campbell
Above Rubies

God's plan for women is to be nurturers in the home and nurturers in society.
When do we start nurturing? At the moment of conception. As soon as we know
there is life within our womb, we should begin nurturing and loving the developing
baby. Once the baby is born, we begin nurturing the babe at the breast. God
created us with breasts to nourish babies. This is His divine plan.

In Exodus 2:9 Pharaoh's daughter said to Moses' mother, "Take this child, and
nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages." I believe God says these same
words to every mother as He gives to us the gift of a child. Entailed in these words
are the nurturing and training of the child from infancy to adulthood. But the very
first task is to nurse and nourish the baby at the breast. God gave breasts, not
only for the beauty of a woman's figure, but to function. When a mother chooses
not to nurse her baby, she does so to her own detriment, apart from the fact that
her baby does not receive the perfect food that he/she is meant to receive.
Breastfeeding is a biological function of our womanhood. We are benefited when
we use this function.

Genesis 49:25 talks about the "blessings of the breasts, and of the womb."
The most common word for women in the New Testament is 'gune' which means
'woman, wife'. However, one time a different Greek word is used, translated from
the word 'woman', and it is very significant.
It is the word, 'thelus'. It comes from the Greek root word, 'thele' which means
'the nipple of a woman's breast, to suckle, to nurse'. It is the true picture of a
woman, created with a womb to nurture life and breasts to nourish that life. Now
where does God use this word?

This word is used in Romans 1:26,27, For this cause God gave them up unto vile
affections: for even their women (thelus) did change the natural use into that which
is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman,
burned in their lust one toward another....” In this scripture, God spells out the
consequences of women who turn away from the way that He has created us,
including the biological function of breastfeeding.

Now please don't get me wrong. I know that some women have not been
successful with breastfeeding because of lack of knowledge or even physical
disabilities (through ignorance I wasn't totally successful in my first attempt either.).
But it is when we blatantly refuse to nurse that we go against nature and God's
plan for us as women. It goes on to say that when men saw women turn away from
their God given function, they turned to unnatural lusts. The rejection in our hearts
of our womanly functions of pregnancy, childbirth and nursing is a root of
homosexuality.

Even the animal kingdom do not turn away from their natural function to nurse and
nourish their young. Lamentations 4:3 NIV says, "Even jackals offer their breasts
to nurse their young, but my people, have become heartless like ostriches in the
desert."

When we breastfeed, we embrace our womanhood and the way that God so
intricately and wondrously designed our bodies. We are also blessed with many
blessings. Here are some of the blessings we receive when we nourish a baby at
our breast.

1. PROLACTIN.
When a mother is nursing her baby, the hormone, prolactin, is operating. This is a
very strong 'love hormone' which bonds the mother to her baby. Animal studies
with this hormone are most interesting. When it is injected into a rooster, it will
make the rooster become clucky and mother chickens! How about that? A female
animal that is nursing her young in the wild will fight to death any intruder upon her
young, whereas after weaning, she does not show this protection.
The mother who is nursing her baby is bound to her baby. She finds it hard to
leave her baby with a baby-sitter. This is God's plan. He does not intend for
mothers to leave their babies after a few months to pursue their career. They
already have a more important career. Breastfeeding ties them to one another.

2. OXYTOCIN.
This hormone, which is released by the pituitary gland, is the hormone that
stimulates the mother's letdown or milk-ejection reflex (the tingly sensation you feel
when the milk lets down). This is a wonderful hormone that has a calming affect
upon the mother. Every time the milk 'lets down' she experiences a feeling of
relaxation and calm and sometimes sleepiness comes over her. God is good.
When we do things His way, we get His benefits. He knows that mothers need this
calming hormone and He has graciously provided it for us.

I am not a calm person by nature, but after nursing my babies for many years, the
continual release of oxytocin had a major calming affect upon my whole
personality. The more children I had, the more I noticed it. Many mothers notice an
increase in tension after weaning their babies. My daughter, who is very similar to
me, is now nursing her baby and we see this calming effect upon her. My other
daughters look on and say, "Mother, that 'relaxin' (as they have nicknamed the
hormone) sure works, doesn't it?"

A dear young mother who I know very well had just given birth to her third baby
when her husband had an accident with very serious head injuries. They didn't
think he would live through the night, but with prayer he did. The doctors then said
that if he lived he would be a vegetable. It was a traumatic time for this young wife.
Well-wishing friends advised her to wean her baby because it would be too much
for her to cope with, especially as she had to drive an hour and a half to the city
each day to visit her husband. But her wise mother encouraged her to continue
nursing. Every day she went to the hospital, taking her baby with her, and
continued to nurse her through the long difficult months. It turned out to be her
greatest blessing.

The hormone oxytocin helped to keep her calm through all this time. By the way, I
should tell you the end of the story. Because of the prayers of God's people
across the world, this husband, who they said would be a vegetable, is alive today
and doing well - and they have since had two more children.

A study cited by Dr. Niles Newton, Professor of Behavioral Sciences at
Northwestern University of Chicago says "mothers who were exclusively
breastfeeding their infants had higher levels of oxytocin during feedings than
mothers who were breastfeeding and giving formula supplements."

Randee Romano writes about a study, which "indicates that the secretion of
oxytocin is a conditioned response, meaning that a mother's body may produce
oxytocin in response to familiar sights, sounds, or activities, not just from the direct
stimulation of breastfeeding. In a small sample of nursing mothers, all showed an
increase in oxytocin before the baby was put to breast. This will not surprise
mothers who feel their milk let down when their babies cry. In fact, half of the
women in the study experienced this. An increase in oxytocin levels was also
measured in 30 percent of the mothers when their babies became restless and in
20 percent of the women as they were preparing to nurse."

Oxytocin is known as the "hormone of love". Dr. Niles Newton says, "Oxytocin also
triggers nurturing behaviour.... Both men and women release oxytocin with
orgasm. Married couples, after lovemaking, and nursing mothers, after
breastfeeding, all reported lower levels of anxiety and depression than a group of
mothers surveyed after a bottle-feeding. Even eating triggers oxytocin release,
which is another reason to share family mealtimes."

3. NATURAL CONTRACEPTION.
“Just a minute," I hear you say. "I know many women who have conceived while
breastfeeding!" Yes, I agree with you. But it depends how they were breastfeeding.
If we do it God's way, we will have natural child spacing.
Well, what is God's way of breastfeeding? As a young mother I was confused.
Over thirty years ago, rigid four-hourly scheduling influenced me. This limited
amount of nursing was not enough to stimulate milk supply and by three months I
had sadly weaned my baby. I nursed twins for six months, but it was not until my
fourth baby that I found the successful way of nursing my baby. Oh, why wasn't
there some older woman around to teach me?

I found that to ensure an ample milk supply, that I needed to feed my baby more
frequently, in fact, not just when he/she was hungry, but when he/she was
miserable and needed comforting. But then I felt guilty as accusing voices spoke,
"Oh you will spoil the baby if you feed him whenever he wants a feed." Now what
should I do? I so wanted to do it God's way. Then God showed me through His
Word. Every answer is in the Word of God, isn't it?
In Isaiah 66:10-13 God is talking about Jerusalem and likening her to a nursing
mother. So when we read what He says, we get God's understanding of a nursing
mother. As you read this passage you will see no mention of food. What do you
see?

"That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations: that ye
may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. For thus saith the
Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the Gentiles like a flowing
stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled
upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye
shall be comforted in Jerusalem."

Did you notice the words - "satisfy, console, delight, comfort?" We see here that
nursing is not an alternative way to feed a baby, e.g. bottle feeding versus
breastfeeding. No, it is total mothering to meet every need of the child. So the
breast is used, not just to satisfy hunger, but also to satisfy, delight, console and
comfort.

When a mother nurses her baby this way, she will be nursing many times a day
and even in the night. This amount of sucking stimulation will hold back ovulation
and therefore she won't conceive. They have made a study of mothers who nurse
this way. The average return of menstruation for these mothers is 14.6 months,
which means they would have their babies about two years apart. However, some
don't commence menstruation until 2.5 years while some will start at 6 months. It is
also usual for the first period or even the first two to be sterile. In Hosea 1:8 it tells
us that after Gomer weaned she conceived and bore a son.

It is interesting that this passage in Isaiah 66 it also hints at the hormone, oxytocin.
It says that as she gives suck, she will have peace flowing over her like a river.
THAT WHICH IS ENOUGH

We have already talked about the understanding of God, El Shaddai. Let's look a
little closer at this word, shaddai.
'Sha' means 'that which is or he who is'
'Dai' means 'enough'
Therefore the meaning for breast is 'that which is enough'!

Isn't that wonderful? The breast is total provision for the little babe as he/she
nurses. When nursing a baby, we don't have to give supplement bottles, we don't
have to give solids, we don't have to give pacifiers - the breast is enough to satisfy
the physical and emotional hunger of our baby. God's understanding of the breast
is that it is enough!

Now I must reiterate that this natural contraception, which is God’s plan, requires
total mothering. You will need to:

a) Nurse your baby for emotional as well as physical needs. Yes, you'll be
nursing more frequently. But don't worry! Just put your feet up and have another
rest and don't fret! Remember, you are doing a great job! You are nurturing a
precious life. There is nothing more important that God wants you to do at this
moment!

Psalm 71:3 says, "Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually
resort." Even as a grown man, David looks to the Lord for a habitation, to where
he can come at any time. I think he is subconsciously thinking back to his early
nursing days with his mother, when he could come to her at any time. She was
totally available as he constantly resorted to her for sustenance. It is a picture of a
true nursing mother, isn't it? In fact, have you ever watched the little lambs or
calves feed from their mothers out in the fields? They have total access to their
mothers. They will drink a little and leave it, and then go back and drink again
whenever they need.

b) Satisfy the sucking need of your baby. I am surprised to see so many
babies with pacifiers in their mouths. A pacifier is a mother substitute. Babies are
born with an incredible sucking need, which must be satisfied. God intends the
mother to satisfy that need. Not only does this increase the bond of mother and
baby, but also it holds back ovulation. If your baby uses a pacifier, it will be likely
that you could still conceive during breastfeeding.
My first three babies were scheduled. Two sucked their thumbs and one sucked
her bottom lip. My last three babies were totally nursed. None of them sucked any
substitute or needed anything else (even a ‘cuddly’) to satisfy them. They were
totally satisfied and nurtured by the breast.

c) Don't start solid food until six months. There is absolutely no necessity to
do this before this time. Some babies won't be ready until nine months. You are
only substituting an inferior food for the most perfect food God intends for your
baby. And if you do, it will also limit your nursing and thus hasten the onset of
ovulation. In fact, babies don't need extra food until they have teeth and can
masticate.

d) Don't use a bottle. Don't give water in a bottle or orange juice. It is totally
unnecessary. If your baby is thirsty, nurse from your breast again. Don't ever give
a supplement. If you think your baby is not getting enough, increase the nursing.
Increased nursing will always build up a dwindling milk supply. It is the sucking
stimulation that increases your milk. It is impossible to run out of milk if you feed
your baby frequently enough. Babies will often have a hunger spurt at about six
weeks and again around three months. They fuss and cry and want to feed more
frequently. The mother may think she is running out of milk, but what is happening
is that the baby is saying, "I need a bigger supply now," and so he fusses so he
can feed more frequently to build up the supply again. So the law of supply and
demand always works. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule, and if
you notice that your little baby has continual dry diapers, you’ll know that
something is wrong and you must take action.

e) Nurse during the night. The goal of modern mothers it to get their baby to
sleep through the night. A 'good' baby is determined by whether he sleeps through
the night or not. But night nursing is necessary for holding back ovulation, which
means that this is God's intention. Even Paul, when describing himself as a
nursing mother toward the Thessalonian new Christians, talks about "laboring
night and day." (1 Thessalonians 1:7-9) Night feeding is not so bad, especially if
you take the baby to bed with you. In fact, it is a very precious experience.
A word of caution. Breastfeeding should not be used for the primary purpose of
contraception. It is an added blessing that comes with breastfeeding. Ultimately our
trust must be in the Sovereign Lord who opens and closes the womb. If a mother
conceives sooner than expected, it is God’s will to bless her with another gift from
Himself. Every conception is a blessing, even if the timing may not seem right to us.

Another note. It seems that in our modern day that there is a minority of women
whose periods return very quickly even though they nurse night and day and don’t
use pacifiers or solids. Some statistics say it is about 5 per cent and that these are
women who have higher estrogen levels. I have also wondered if our high intake of
meat (that is injected with growth hormones, chemicals and drugs) could be
responsible. However, this is only my thought, not documented fact.

Biblical Understanding of Nursing:
We have discussed Isaiah 66:10-13. Let’s look at 1 Thessalonians 2:7-9. Here we
notice how Paul uses a number of similarities with a nursing mother....
Gentle "we were gentle among you."
Nourishing the word "nurse" means "nourisher" in the Greek.
Cherishing "cherishing her children."
Loving "affectionately desirous of you."
Available "we were willing..."
Sacrificing "we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only,
but also our own lives..."
Night nursing "laboring night and day."

4. WE TEACH OUR CHILDREN TRUST.
Psalm 22:9,10 says, "Thou art He that took me out of the womb: thou didst make
me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. I was cast upon thee from the
womb: thou art my God from my mother's womb."
Right from the very beginning, we as mothers have the privilege of showing to our
children a little of what God is like. In the womb the child's trust is in God for
sustenance through the mother. Then as the little babe nurses at his/her mother's
breast, this baby learns to trust. He/she knows that life, sustenance, and comfort
will always be there. Nursing a babe at the breast is a powerful work. Not only are
we nourishing our baby, but also we are teaching them, right from birth, what it
means to trust in God.

5. MOTHER'S HEALTH.
We usually think of the baby's health when we think of breastfeeding, but most
people don't realize that it is also advantageous for the mother's health. We were
created by God's design to function as nourishers by using the breast. When we
don't do this, our whole body is at stake.

Read these findings:
* Eight case studies gathered from different countries have been conducted which
prove that prolonged breastfeeding is a preventative measure against breast
cancer. Herbert Ratner, Editor of Child and Family says, "If breastfeeding reduces
the risk of breast cancer it will be found in women whose babies are totally
breastfed for the first six months and with more than one baby. The state of
prolonged amenorrhea caused by breastfeeding could very well be the factor
associated with the hormonal state that protects against cancer. In this day and
age, when supplementary feeding and the early introduction of solids is popular,
most breast-feeding is token, not total, and is not associated with the customary
prolonged amenorrhea of the totally breast-fed infant."

* Reported in the Science News, October 1992, by Kathy Facelmann, Malcolm C.
Pike from the Southern California School of Medicine, Los Angeles "blames the
epidemic rates of breast and other female cancers on a fact of modern life: The
average American woman starts menstruating at age 12 and typically gives birth to
one or two infants. Pike estimates she will ovulate a whopping 450 times during her
lifetime. By contrast, a woman who lived 200 years ago would have started
menstruating at age 17 and would have delivered and breastfed about eight
babies. Thus our foremothers ovulated fewer than 150 times during their lives.

Pike argues that pregnancy and lactation provide a crucial resting period for the
ovaries, the female sex glands that produce not only eggs, but also several
powerful hormones, including estrogen and progesterone. Each month, a woman's
body readies itself for pregnancy.

The ovaries secrete estrogen and progesterone, which tell the breast cells to
begin dividing in preparation for milk production. In years past, women went
through this cycle less frequently because they were more often either pregnant or
breastfeeding."

* "Women who have a full pregnancy before the age of 18 have one third the
breast cancer risk of a woman whose first child is delayed until after age 30, or
never has a child. One interesting angle on the breastfeeding issue is that the
Tania women in Hong Kong, who traditionally only nurse with their right breast,
have more cancer in their left breast." Mark Renneker, M.D, Understanding
Cancer 24.142.

* "The observed protective effect of lactation on risk of breast cancer can be
interpreted in a number of ways. The hormonal changes of lactation (i.e. increased
prolactin and decreased estrogen production) may in some way inhibit breast
tumor initiation or growth. During lactation, ovulation often ceases or is less
frequent, which may also protect against breast cancer. There could be direct
physical effects on the breast associated with lactation that might protect against
breast cancer, such as changes in breast ductal epithelial cells in lactation or
mechanical 'flushing-out' of carcinogens." McTeirnan A, Thomas D.B. Evidence for
a protective effect of lactation on risk of breast cancer in young women: results
from a case-control study. Am J Epidermiol 1986;124:353-8.

* A recent CASH study involving about 9,000 women revealed that the women with
the least breast cancer were those who had the most children and thus a longer
breastfeeding experience. CASH researcher, Peter Layde, M.D. reports, "We
found that women who breastfed a total of two years or more had nearly a third
less breast cancer than women who did not breast feed."

6. BABY'S HEALTH.
If your baby is healthy, this is a blessing for you as a mother. A healthy baby is
easy to care for; a sick baby is a constant worry. The best way to keep your baby
healthy is to give it the perfect food that God has planned. Cow's milk is a perfect
food - but only for cows! It was never intended for human babies! The cow is a big
animal with four stomachs. It weighs about 90 lbs. at birth and in only two years it is
a whopping 2,000 lbs. This is not the kind of food that is required for the human
baby who weighs about 6 - 8 lbs. at birth and is only 100 - 200 lbs. twenty years
later!
The baby uses 100 per cent protein from the mother's milk. Less than 50 percent
can be absorbed from cow's milk or formula so that baby has to take twice as
much, which is extra work on the kidneys. Nursing mothers should not take any
notice of the large amounts of milk that their bottle feeding counterparts give their
babies. Nor should they expect them to be as big and fat! They are not meant to
be! They are humans, not calves! And they don't want to establish unnecessary
fat cells for overweight problems later in life. Of course, many breastfed babies will
become fat and roly-poly, which we love in babies. Don’t worry; breast milk will not
lay down fat cells for the future.

Breast milk contains up to 10 times more essential vitamins than cow's milk. This
difference is reduced when cow's milk is diluted and reduced further when the
formula is heated. The immunity that breast milk affords lasts long after the child is
weaned. Breastfed babies do not suffer from constipation as breast milk forms a
soft curd in the baby's stomach. Sucking on the breast will promote optimum facial
development for which your child will bless you later in life.

Here are some other interesting facts for you, although to write them all we would
need to do a separate manual.

* "The risk of acute gastrointestinal illness in infants receiving formula was six
times greater than in infants receiving breast milk and 2.5 times greater than in
infants receiving cow milk." J.S. Koopman, M.D. MPH.

* "Insufficient breastfeeding of genetically susceptible newborn infants may lead to
beta-cell infection, beta-cell destruction, and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus
(IDDM) later in life. K. Borch-Johnson.

* "Children who were artificially fed or breastfed for only six months or less were at
increased risk for developing cancer before age 15. The risk for artificially fed
children was one to eight times that of long-term breastfed children, and the risk
for short-term breast feeders was 1 - 9 times that of long-term breast feeders. M.K.
Davis. Infant feeding and childhood cancer. Lancet, 1988.

* "Whole cow's milk should not be fed to infants during the first year of life because
of its association with hidden gastrointestinal bleeding, iron deficiency anemia, and
cow's milk allergy. The consumption of whole milk after the first year of life should
be discouraged because of its potential role in a variety of disorders including
atherosclerosis, recurrent abdominal pain of childhood, cataracts, milk-borne
infections, and juvenile delinquency. Frank Oski, M.D. writing in the journal of the
American Academy of Paediatrics.

* Recent news from London says, "Researchers say thousands of bottle-fed
babies risk long-term brain and bone damage from aluminum in milk powders.
Surveys showed the powders often contained more than 100 times the aluminum
in breast milk. Aluminum interferes with the production of enzymes vital to brain
activity. There were also fears that high doses could accelerate mental decline in
old age."

We would need a whole book to list the advantages of breastfeeding for the baby,
but apart from the physical health of the baby, studies reveal that it also results in
increased intelligence. In Britain 300 premature babies were studied - 193 were
breastfed, 107 were fed formula. Eight years later they were tested and the
breastfed children scored eight points higher in their test scores than the formula
fed babies.

7. CORRECT WEIGHT LOSS.
A mother puts on about 9 lbs. in readiness for her milk supply. If she doesn't nurse
her baby, that weight does not come off easily. This problem is intensified if the
mother herself was bottle fed or given fatty food in childhood. If too many fat cells
are produced in childhood they remain on the body, waiting to be filled up when
the adult eats a high calorie meal.
Some mothers say they haven't lost weight during nursing, but usually they have
only breastfeed for a short while. Long-term nursing will always reduce weight. In
fact, this is one time in your life, when you can eat what you want without worrying!
Also, breastfeeding causes the uterus to contract and retract to its former state in
the first few weeks.

8. LESS WORK.
No need to prepare bottles or solid foods. Each time the baby needs you, it is
another opportunity to sit down and put your feet up - or even take the baby to
bed with you. If you have little ones around, it is an opportunity to gather them
around you as you nurse your baby and read them a story or relate to them.
Nursing keeps you close to your baby and your other children.
You also don't have to worry when baby cries. Put the baby to the breast for
whatever needs the baby has. It takes all the worry out of mothering. It is
interesting to note that mothers who feed this way are usually the mothers who
want more babies.

WHEN SHOULD YOU WEAN YOUR BABY?
A baby should be weaned when it is ready to wean, which if a baby is given this
opportunity, will be at about two to three years of age. Research reveals that
peoples in the world who do not substitute with animal milk of some kind nurse
their babies for 3 - 5 years. Dake's commentary of the Bible suggests that Moses
was five years old when he was weaned and ready to start his education in the
Egyptian court; Samuel was five years old when we was weaned and taken to the
prophet, Eli; Isaac was five years old when he was weaned and they celebrated
with a weaning party.

Let's look at the mammal kingdom. We are also mammals, although more than
that, for we are human beings created in the image of God. Young mammals that
grow rapidly and mature early have correspondingly short nursing periods. Young
mammals that grow slowly and develop late have correspondingly long nursing
periods. The human infant grows slowest of all and reaches maturity latest and
therefore should have a correspondingly longer nursing period. Large numbers of
mammalian species reach maturity, reproduce themselves, live out their life span
and die in less time than it takes for men to attain maturity and yet many of these
nurse longer than most women.

Dr. Niles Newton tells of a study that suggests that the duration of breastfeeding
may be related to the amount of social learning required. As long as a mammal is
lactating, the young tend to stay near the mother and thus can possibly learn more
from her. Marked differences exist in the duration of the nursing of aquatic
mammals. Some are simple grazers of the sea and nurse only 7 - 10 months.
Others, like the porpoises have complex social structures and sophisticated
navigational systems and they nurse for 18 - 25 months. He states, "The effect of
the unbiologically early weaning in human infants is not known, but it is possible
that learning ability and socialization are influenced by date of weaning."
Here's the words of an old Egyptian sage, 'Three longs years she carried thee
upon her shoulder and gave thee her breast to thy mouth, and as thy size
increased her heart never once allowed her to say, "why should I do this?"'
The advantages of later weaning are more than physical. In fact, as the baby
grows and enters the second year, the mother is not necessarily feeding her baby
for sustenance as he can get that from other food. She continues to nurse to
satisfy his inner needs that are just as important as his physical. I am sure that a
baby who is allowed to nurse for two to three years will have a basis of security
and confidence for his future years.
Reprinted with permission from the Above Rubies website, www.aboverubies.org
Above Rubies is a magazine which is printed to bring strength and encouragement
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Cascade Christian Childbirth Association
    Breast Feeding God's Way