\[ **BT: [[human beings#nutrition of infants]] | [[mammals#lactation]]** ] --- # breast/chestfeeding [[In modern non-industrial societies, babies are typically breastfed for almost thirty months.]][^1] --- ## physiology [[Suckling induces oxytocin production in all mammals.]][^2] ### complications/disorders - see: [[dysphoric milk ejection reflex]] ### mammary pheromones [[There might be a human mammary pheromone. Human babies respond to the areola gland secretions from any lactating mother, not just their own; these secretions prompt them to open their mouths, put out their tongues, and suckle.]][^3] - see: [[pheromones]] --- ## history [[Ancient (and not-so-ancient) Western medical advice about breastfeeding often implies the inadequacy of the mother to breastfeed her own infant, especially in the early weeks of life.]][^4] ### archaeological evidence [[Measuring barium levels in teeth can show archaeologists the transition from breastfeeding to weaning.]][^5] ### ancient history [[Ancient scriptures mention the importance of breastfeeding.]][^6] [[The Babylonians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans all used wet-nurses as needed.]][^7] [[Mesopotamian belief systems glorified breast milk through Astarte, Queen of Heaven and Mother of the fertile breast.]][^8] #### ancient law and legislation ##### wet-nursing ###### Code of Hammurabi [[Laws regulating wet nurses have been present throughout history; they were first recorded as early as 2000 BCE.]][^9] [[The Code of Hammurabi codified laws about wet nurses.]][^10] ###### Islamic law [[Per Islamic regulations (Quran 4.23), children breastfed by the same woman are prohibited to marry.]][^11] - see: [[society#laws and customs re. milk kinship]] ### ancient China [[Ancient Chinese writings seem to closer in orientation to modern worldwide medical advice; they approach breastfeeding from a more natural and supportive perspective.]][^12] #### middle imperial China [[Although paediatrics was not yet a specialisation, medical texts in the Tang dynasty discussed the proper nutrition of infants.]][^13] [[The anonymous text 'A Thorough Discussion of the Hygiene of Small Children' dates from the Song dynasty; it provides invaluable insight re. breastfeeding norms and expectations of the era.]][^14] [[Sun Simiao, of the Tang dynasty, described breastmilk as the product of ‘vital energies’.]][^15] - see also: - [[history--China#Tang dynasty (618–690 CE; 705–907 CE)]] - [[history--China#Song dynasty (960–1279)]] [^1]: Michael Balter, ‘[[Balter, ‘How Long Did Neanderthals Nurse’, 2013|Neanderthal Breastfeeding Habits Revealed By Analysis Of Prehistoric Tooth]]’, Science NOW, *HuffPost*, 23 May 2013, Online Edition, [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/neanderthal-breastfeeding-prehistoric-tooth_n_3321809](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/neanderthal-breastfeeding-prehistoric-tooth_n_3321809). [^2]: Mario Caba et al., ‘[[Caba et al., ‘Circadian Rhythms and Clock Genes in Reproduction’, 2018|Circadian Rhythms and Clock Genes in Reproduction: Insights from Behavior and the Female Rabbit’s Brain]]’, *Frontiers in Endocrinology*, vol. 9, 106 (March 2018), p. 4, [https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2018.00106](https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2018.00106); Jennifer Denver, *[[Denver, Female Biology, 2024|Female Biology]]*, 2nd edition, All USF Faculty Authored Books 108 (2024), p. 354. USF Scholarship Repository, [https://repository.usfca.edu/faculty_books_all/108](https://repository.usfca.edu/faculty_books_all/108); Cat Bohannon, *[[Bohannon, Eve, 2023|Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution]]* (Hutchinson Heinemann, 2023), p. 43. [^3]: Tristram D. Wyatt, ‘[[Wyatt, ‘Pheromones’, 2017|Pheromones]]’, *Current Biology*, vol. 27, no. 15 (2017), R743, [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.039](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.039); Alex Riley, ‘[[Riley, ‘Pheromones Are Probably Not Why People Find You Attractive’, 2016|Pheromones Are Probably Not Why People Find You Attractive]]’, BBC, 9 May 2016, [https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160509-the-tantalising-truth-about-sex-pheromones](https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160509-the-tantalising-truth-about-sex-pheromones). [^4]: L. M. Gartner and C. Stone, ‘[[Gartner and Stone, ‘Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding’, 1994|Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding: Comparison of Chinese and Western Texts]]’, *Seminars in Perinatology*, vol. 18, no. 6 (1994), abstract, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7701356/. [^5]: Michael Balter, ‘[[Balter, ‘How Long Did Neanderthals Nurse’, 2013|Neanderthal Breastfeeding Habits Revealed By Analysis Of Prehistoric Tooth]]’, Science NOW, *HuffPost*, 23 May 2013, Online Edition, [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/neanderthal-breastfeeding-prehistoric-tooth_n_3321809](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/neanderthal-breastfeeding-prehistoric-tooth_n_3321809). [^6]: M. Papastavrou et al. ‘[[Papastavrou et al., ‘Breastfeeding in the Course of History’, 2015|Breastfeeding in the Course of History]]’, *Journal of Pediatrics & Neonatal Care*, vol. 2, no. 6 (2015), p. 1, https://doi.org/10.15406/jpnc.2015.02.00096. [^7]: M. Papastavrou et al. ‘[[Papastavrou et al., ‘Breastfeeding in the Course of History’, 2015|Breastfeeding in the Course of History]]’, *Journal of Pediatrics & Neonatal Care*, vol. 2, no. 6 (2015), p. 2, https://doi.org/10.15406/jpnc.2015.02.00096. [^8]: M. Papastavrou et al., ‘[[Papastavrou et al., ‘Breastfeeding in the Course of History’, 2015|Breastfeeding in the Course of History]]’, *Journal of Pediatrics & Neonatal Care*, vol. 2, issue 6 (2015), p. 2, https://doi.org/10.15406/jpnc.2015.02.00096. [^9]: M. Papastavrou, ‘[[Papastavrou et al., ‘Breastfeeding in the Course of History’, 2015|Breastfeeding in the Course of History]]’, *Journal of Pediatrics & Neonatal Care*, vol. 2, no. 6 (2015), p. 2, https://doi.org/10.15406/jpnc.2015.02.00096. [^10]: Robert Francis Harper, ed., *[[Hammurabi, Code of Hammurabi King of Babylon about 2250 B.C., trans. Harper 1904|The Code of Hammurabi King of Babylon about 2250 B.C.]]* (University of Chicago Press, 1904), n.p., https://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/hammurabi-the-code-of-hammurabi. [^11]: M. Papasavrou et al., ‘[[Papastavrou et al., ‘Breastfeeding in the Course of History’, 2015|Breastfeeding in the Course of History]]’, *Journal of Pediatrics & Neonatal Care*, vol. 2, no. 6 (2015), p. 4. https://doi.org/10.15406/jpnc.2015.02.00096. [^12]: L. M. Gartner and C. Stone, ‘[[Gartner and Stone, ‘Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding’, 1994|Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding: Comparison of Chinese and Western Texts]]’, *Seminars in Perinatology*, vol. 18, no. 6 (1994), abstract, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7701356/. [^13]: Ping-Chen Hsiung, ‘[[Hsiung, ‘To Nurse the Young’, 1995|To Nurse the Young: Breastfeeding and Infant Feeding in Late Imperial China]]’, *Journal of Family History*, vol. 20, no. 3 (1995), p. 218, https://doi.org/10.1177/036319909502000301. [^14]: Ping-Chen Hsiung, ‘[[Hsiung, ‘To Nurse the Young’, 1995|To Nurse the Young: Breastfeeding and Infant Feeding in Late Imperial China]]’, *Journal of Family History*, vol. 20, no. 3 (1995), p. 218, https://doi.org/10.1177/036319909502000301. [^15]: L. M. Gartner and C. Stone, ‘[[Gartner and Stone, ‘Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding’, 1994|Two Thousand Years of Medical Advice on Breastfeeding: Comparison of Chinese and Western Texts]]’, *Seminars in Perinatology*, vol. 18, no. 6 (1994), PIP, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7701356/.