MORE Great Breastfeeding Blogs to Read!

Written by Amber McCann, IBCLC

Almost two years ago, I penned a post on this blog highlighting my favorite breastfeeding blogs for IBCLCs and other lactation professionals and volunteers to read. Since the online world moves so fast and a number of new resources pop up every week, I figured it was high time for an update.

One of my favorites continues to be Breastfeeding Medicine, the official blog of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM). I included it on my list last time and it is still the place I go to for thoughtful, evidence-based reflection on current breastfeeding trends. Primarily written by Dr. Alison Stuebe, a member of the ABM Board of Directors, it takes a balanced stance of the challenges facing today’s mothers. Her recent post, How Often Does Breastfeeding Come Undone, caused me to look inward and examine the assumptions I make when breastfeeding doesn’t go well for new families. I strongly encourage you to put this blog on your “must read” list.

As breastfeeding advocacy is growing and practical solutions to the real challenges faced by families are being proposed, I find myself relying more and more on Moms Rising. While not focusing exclusively on breastfeeding, there is a strong emphasis on the needs of new families, including parenting leave and workplace flexibility. In addition to informative blog articles, they also create resource guides for issues such as Breastfeeding and the Workplace.

The awareness of the importance of donor milk and milk banking has risen dramatically in the past year and the hard work of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America’s (HMBANA) member banks is paying off. A number of banks have extensive online profiles and I especially enjoy the blog of the Indiana Mothers’ Milk Bank (and their accompanying Instagram profile). They are using these tools to reach out to donor mothers and increase access to donor milk. According to IMMB’s communication director Carissa Hawkins, the blog has driven much needed traffic to their website. “In the month since we posted this post on a recent policy change, web traffic has been higher then ever. We generally see about 1,500 hits a month. This post alone has had over 4,000. It was seen by over 3,000 people on Facebook and commented, liked, and shared over 1,o00 times.”

Some of the hardest working mothers I’ve ever encountered are those who serve in the military. Robyn Roche-Paull, BSN, RN, IBCLC and her hard work with Breastfeeding in Combat Boots serves not only to provide quality, evidenced-based education for the mothers who serve but also to give support and encouragement. Unique challenges abound for these families and having a place to engage about them is incredibly important.

I was so challenged almost two years ago when I began reading Milk Junkies, an honest and heartfelt blog written by Trevor MacDonald, a transgender father in Canada. Trevor shares his experience chestfeeding his son, their unique challenges, how their relationship challenges traditional gender roles and beliefs about breastfeeding, and affirms the incredible power of breastfeeding. It is my hope that as we, as a culture, will step away from our fear and disregard of our transgender community members and instead embrace them, especially in their role as parents who breastfeed. We need to be ready and Trevor’s blog is a wonderful resource.

As blogs continue to be an important part of the way in which we receive our news and information, I hope you will add these to your regular reading list. Of course,  also check out the ones listed in my previous Great Breastfeeding Blogs to Read (which has been updated to remove inactive blogs) and add your additions in the comments.