Sourcing stem cells from breast milk

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2012/05/09/3469075.htm#artBookmarks

Stem cells discovered in human milk can turn into any kind of tissue, explains Dr Foteini Hassiotou.

By: Abbie Thomas

A solution to the ethical dilemma of using human embryonic stem cells to treat human diseases could be staring us in the face.

Dr Foteini Hassiotou (University of Western Australia)

Related Stories

• Team create human eggs from stem cells, Science Online, 27 Feb 2012
• DNA discovery may boost stem cell safety, Science Online, 28 Nov 2011
• Stem cells give insights into Huntington's, Science Online, 22 Sep 2010
• Map: University of Western Australia 6009

Five years ago, Dr Foteini Hassiotou was part of a research team, the Hartmann Human Lactation Research Group at the University of Western Australia, which discovered that human breast milk contains what appear to be stem cells. These cells can potentially turn into many different types of cells, and offer staggering potential for treating a huge range of human diseases.

Hassiotou, the newest member of the group, found that some of these stem cells are very similar to embryonic stem cells — the most potent and useful stem cell of all.

"My work focuses on the different types of cells that are present in breast milk, and my interest is mostly in the stem cells," she says.

The chameleons of the body, embryonic stem cells can change into any type of cell, from neurones to nephrons, bladder tissue to heart muscle.

By regrowing failing organs and also delivering vaccines direct to diseased tissue, embryonic stem cells could treat heart failure, spinal injuries, diabetes and Parkinson's disease.

But there's a catch: to date, the only way to obtain embryonic stem cells has been to harvest them from a six-day-old human embryo, destroying a potential human life in the process.

"At the moment there are two main sources for stem cell therapies: stem cells from the bone marrow, or from umbilical cord blood," says Hassiotou.

These types of stem cells have a more restricted use: cord blood is specifically used to treat blood and immune disorders; and bone marrow is used to treat life-threatening blood disorders such as leukaemia and thalassaemia.

"Whereas breast milk can be accessed non-invasively, there's plenty of it, you don't have to do any surgery," she says.

"We've just started transplantation experiments and we've shown that they can differentiate into many different cell types outside the mammary lineage … we've turned them into bone cells, brain, liver, and pancreatic cells that produce insulin.

"I guess the next step would be to see how that would work in vivo, to see how these cells behave when they were injected into the animals."

Insights into breast cancer

Hassiotou says the lactating breast also provides an ideal model for understanding how breast cancer can develop.

During pregnancy, she says, the breast transforms itself into a milk producing organ with the help of stem cells. "There is a stem cell population in the breast that gets activated and has to multiply and then differentiates in order to remodel the breast."

She explains that some types of breast cancer are thought to be initiated by mammary stem cells: the normal breast stem cells get out of control, start to proliferate and give rise to cancer.

"Now with the lactating breast (by comparison), we also have a degree of cell proliferation where stem cells get activated and start multiplying, but they are under control.

"By comparing these two, we can understand what makes cells become out of control and how we can treat this."

One more radical idea emerges from this work: a new insight into the 'breast is best' debate.

"Since these stem cells are in the milk, and nothing exists without a purpose, I believe that they have a role for the baby. Since these cells can differentiate into all the different cell types, my hypothesis is that they may contribute to the baby's development early on, not only its immunity but also the development of the different tissues and organs."

"Now it's going to be about finding some results that prove that."

In Your Arms, Crying Heals the Hurt

In Your Arms, Crying Heals the Hurt

January 1, 2010

by Patty Wipfler, Hand in Hand Parenting

There are many things our babies and toddlers cry about that can be and should be fixed right away.  A diaper is taped too tight; a toy pinches a child’s finger; she is hungry; she has awakened and can’t see where you are.  We feel powerful as parents when our child’s cry alerts us to a situation we can remedy.  And our quick response is part of how an infant knows that she is important in our lives.  It always makes sense to respond to a crying child.  It always makes sense to run through your checklist of possible causes, and to fix what needs to be fixed.  And, of course, consult your physician if your child does not look like she is thriving, or if you notice some unusual condition, whether she is crying or not.

Sometimes, there’s nothing you can fix

But there are things our babies and toddlers cry about that we cannot fix. Babies cry about their gas pains, about having their diapers changed, and when they teethe.  Annoyances like these come with being a baby.  Our caring and attention is important while a child is going through this kind of minor trial, but, as we’ll explain below, full force fixing mode is not really required.  And then there are the things a baby objects to that pose no threat to her at all.  For instance, sometimes babies cry when we disappear into the shower, when a friendly stranger approaches, or when we put them down to crawl or walk.  Many babies develop a hatred of their car seat. Some parents decide to go for days without a shower, or to carry their baby all the time, in an effort to remedy this kind of crying.  Life gets harder, and parenting less enjoyable.  But when a baby cries about something that’s not actually threatening, or something that is an unavoidable annoyance, she’s engaged in a natural and important endeavor.  She’s having some feelings, and telling you about them.  She’s communicating that she doesn’t feel OK, at a time when things actually are as good as they can be.  This is the kind of time you can safely relax and listen.  Your child needs you close, relaxed, and unworried while she gives voice to her accumulated feelings of upset.  She just needs to tell you about the downside of life as a very young child.

Like you, your baby has feelings

However sunny your child’s life may be, she has had some experiences that have been painful, confusing, frightening, or sad.  Many times, your baby has good feelings and accurate perceptions:  “I’m warm and safe next to Mommy.”  “There’s my Daddy’s gentle voice. I’m loved!”  And at times, your child has had negative feelings or inaccurate perceptions:  “I’m alone in my bed. I can’t stand it.”  “Daddy left the room—I’m abandoned!”  “There is no safe person in the world except for Mommy.”  When babies and toddlers don’t feel good, they cry in order to clear the tension they feel.  We try to get them “settled down” with patting, bouncing, walking, pacifiers, and sometimes, the breast.  We’ve been trained to believe that a baby will do better as soon as she is able to stop expressing her upset.

In your arms, crying heals the hurt

However, you’ll see that when you stop a baby from expressing feelings, she doesn’t actually feel better. She will look distant and glazed.  She won’t be able to make eye contact.  When you try to engage her, she will begin to cry again.  This is a sign that her feelings are still on her mind.  She needs to tell you how she feels and soak in your loving attention before she can be in full contact with you again.

A child cries when he/she needs to release emotional stress.  When someone offers love and listens, crying heals the hurt.  While bad feelings are being cried away, your love and support get through.  Your caring fills cracks in your child’s confidence.  Learning how to support your child while she tells you her troubles can be one of the most empowering lessons of parenthood.

It’s a lesson about the power you have to help your child overcome hardship.  When she’s fed, clean and close, yet she’s upset, then there’s some emotional thorn in her side.  Her system knows how to dislodge it.  All she needs is the safety of your arms, and the sweetness in your face and your voice to carry her through.  Once she has finished with her tears or tantrums, frightened trembling or yawning (which may occur in the middle of a good cry), she will relax.  She’ll gaze at you, untroubled, because you have filled a deep need.  You have connected with her.  You’ve listened and let her tell you, in her powerful nonverbal way, what was on her mind.  There’s nothing like being heard fully to settle a child’s mind, and help her feel loved.

Her mind clears

After a good cry, your baby will connect with you.  And she will thrive. I have known children to be loved through a long, passionate cry, and then to come forth with a flurry of new words, or with their first attempts to crawl, or with a new friendliness toward strangers.  Listening to feelings helps babies sleep more soundly, too.  These are the kinds of significant improvements in your child’s confidence and ability that your listening can foster.

Parents need a listener, too

This kind of listening is difficult for a parent to do.  It’s important not to try to take on the job alone.  Pair up with another parent, perhaps your spouse or a friend so that you get listening time for yourself.  For listening to the feelings of someone of any age opens the door for us to the most vulnerable side of a unique and important person.  We are inevitably moved, and our own feelings beg to be heard, and released.  A good laugh or a good cry with a friend refreshes our energy, and helps us feel less alone with the sacred trust and the hard work of loving our children well.

www.handinhandparenting.org

http://evidencebasedbirth.com/2012/06/22/waterbirth-a-printable-practice-bulletin/

Avoid Soy Formula

Warning: Please Avoid Feeding This to Your Child

October 18 2010 | 245,842 views | + Add to Favorites

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According to a report in Science Daily, a new Canadian study shows that children exposed to high concentrations of manganese in drinking water performed worse on tests of intellectual functioning than children with lower exposures.

The results were published in an article in Environmental Health Perspectives.

While manganese is naturally occurring in soil and groundwater around the world, some of Canada's groundwater contains an unusually high amount of it, giving the researchers an opportunity to study whether excessive manganese can adversely affect human health.

"We found significant deficits in the intelligence quotient (IQ) of children exposed to higher concentration of manganese in drinking water," said lead author Maryse Bouchard.

Yet, some areas where lower IQs were reported also registered concentrations below current guidelines. In response to the study, some of the affected municipalities have already decided to install special filtration systems.

 

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

You probably know that manganese is an essential nutrient, but were you aware that when consumed in excess, manganese becomes a potent neurotoxin?

Studies on miners and steelworkers, for example, have shown that excessive exposure to manganese can cause manganese poisoning, Parkinson's disease, and Wilson's disease, for example.

Manganese occurs naturally in soil and can therefore be present in groundwater to a greater or lesser degree. Hence some people who drink well water could be exposed to higher naturally-occurring levels of manganese.

But there is another source of manganese that many people are completely unaware of, which may be even more significant than groundwater, and that is soy infant formula!

Soy formula is frequently used when a baby is allergic to milk, or if the parents are somehow convinced that soy is a healthier alternative. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth, because soy formula could easily be considered one of the most DANGEROUS food products on the market…

I always recommend breast feeding, if at all possible, but if you can't, please educate yourself about the dangers of soy formula!

This is such an important issue because so many mothers end up using formula in lieu of breast feeding or after breast feeding for a short time, not realizing just how bad most formulas are for their baby's health, particularly soy formula.

I've been concerned about this for a long time, and my team has now been working on an infant formula for an entire year. We still have about another year to go, but once we're done we should be able to offer the best commercial infant formula available in the US.

Soy Infant Formula is LOADED with Manganese!

Yes, researchers have found that soybean plants absorb manganese from the soil and concentrate it, so that its use in soy-based infant formula can result in as much as 200 times the level found in natural breast milk!

Such high concentrations can wreak havoc on your baby's immature metabolic systems.

I rarely talk about absolutes but this is one instant where I will say: NEVER give your child soy formula. (I guess the only exception would be if there was a catastrophe and soy formula was the only food source temporarily available to keep your baby alive.) 

Because just like this latest study confirms, high concentrations of manganese, such as those found in soy formula, can lead to brain damage in infants and altered behaviors in adolescents.

In the study reported by Science Daily, researchers discovered that higher concentrations of manganese in groundwater significantly lowered the IQ of the children who drank it, even though the levels were below current guidelines.

A total of 362 children, aged six to 13, living in homes with individual or public wells were examined to test cognition, motor skills and behavior.

Science Daily reports:

"The average IQ of children whose tap water was in the upper 20% of manganese concentration was 6 points below children whose water contained little or no manganese.

The analyses of the association between manganese in tap water and children's IQ took into account various factors such as family income, maternal intelligence, maternal education, and the presence of other metals in the water.

… For co-author Donna Mergler, "This is a very marked effect; few environmental contaminants have shown such a strong correlation with intellectual ability."

The authors state that the amount of manganese present in food showed no relationship to the children's IQ."

For Maximum Health Hazard, Just Add Fluoridated Water...

As if that wasn't bad enough, there are a number of other factors that make soy formula an even more dangerous option.

One of these factors is the fact that fluoride can increase manganese absorption, so if you mix the powdered- or concentrated soy formula with fluoridated water, you're worsening matters even further!

Fluoride and manganese interact in a number of ways through various pathways.

For example, fluorides can cause zinc deficiency which in turn can cause damage to your brain by altering your manganese levels.

This is because fluorides act as a TSH (thyroid-stimulating-hormone) analogue, and along with iodine, zinc and selenium are also controlled by TSH. And when you're deficient in zinc, the manganese levels in your brain become altered.

Other Health Dangers of Soy Formula

Another significant issue is the estrogen in soy.

A soy-fed baby receives the equivalent of five birth control pills' worth of estrogen every day! These babies' isoflavone levels are typically anywhere between 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than in non-soy fed infants.

Unfermented soy is not a healthy option for anyone, but when you're feeding soy to an infant, you're really setting the stage for a number of health problems.

Dr. Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story, points out thousands of studies linking soy to malnutrition, digestive distress, immune-system breakdown, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders and infertility—even cancer and heart disease.

For more information about the many ways soy can damage your health – and certainly your baby's, if you're feeding them soy formula – please review this recent report.

It's also worth noting that at least 91 percent of soy grown in the US is also genetically modified (GM), and this too can have serious health effects.

Not only is the soy loaded with toxic pesticide, the plants also contain genes from bacteria that produce a protein that has never been part of the human food supply. Hence, GM soy has been linked to an increase in allergies.

Disturbingly, the only published human feeding study on GM foods ever conducted verified that the gene inserted into GM soy transfers into the DNA of our gut bacteria and continues to function. This means that years after you stop eating GM soy, you may still have a potentially allergenic protein continuously being produced in your intestines.

Even more frightening is the potential for GM soy to cause infertility in future generations, which has been evidenced by recent Russian research.

Soy-based formula also typically includes cornstarch, cornstarch hydrolysate (remember, any corn derivatives are also suspect of being GM), tapioca starch, or sucrose instead of lactose.  

(Did you know that many infant formulas actually have MORE sugar than a can of soda? Do you really feel comfortable giving your precious newborn a can of soda for EVERY meal?  If not, then it would sure seem best to avoid them ALL like the plague.)

All these things considered, it's truly shocking that soy formula is even allowed on the market.

The Benefits of Breast Feeding, and Healthier Alternatives

One of the best gifts you can give your child is to start out their life with a sound nutritional foundation, and the best way to do this is by breastfeeding. In fact, statistics show a clear correlation between feeding infants artificial formula and increased infant mortality within the first year.

It's important to realize that there are at least 400 nutrients in breast milk that are NOT found in formula. Of course, the healthier that a new mom eats, the healthier her breast milk will be, too.

While any amount of breastfeeding is better than none at all, it is clearly to your advantage, and best for your baby's health, tobreastfeed exclusively for at least the first 6 months. Then, at the age of 6 or 9 months, you can begin to supplement with solid foods(while still continuing to breastfeed as well).

What exactly does your baby stand to gain by being breastfed?

• Lower risk of respiratory tract and middle ear infections
• Lower risk of eczema
• Lower risk of obesity
• Added protection against heart disease, diabetes, asthma, and allergies
• Improved brain function and immune system function

There are benefits to mom, too. The main ones are a reduced risk of chronic diseases like cancer, a faster return to your pre-pregnancy weight, and increased bonding between you and your baby.

There are certain medical conditions that can prevent a woman from breastfeeding, however the majority of women are able to breastfeed successfully. If you need help, contact a lactation consultant in your area for tips and support. You can also visit La Leche League, which is a phenomenal resource for breastfeeding moms.

If for some reason you're not able to breastfeed, or you have adopted a baby, your next best option is to make a healthy infant formula using raw milk. You can find homemade formula recipes here.

As you can see from the chart below, breast milk, and animal milk are far superior to commercially available infant formulas.

As I stated at the beginning of this article, we're also in the process of producing the finest infant formula on the market. I'm hoping to have it available in about a year.

How Can You Protect Your Child from Excessive Manganese Exposure?

First and foremost, do not give your child soy formula or other unfermented soy foods.

As for manganese in your well water, your best bet is to use a high quality filtering system using activated carbon. A well designed activated carbon filter system is the simplest, most convenient, and most user friendly option to purify your drinking water.

A good system will likely consist of multiple filter cartridges; one to protect the carbon from larger contaminants in the water, and another containing carbon designed to remove trihalomethanes – a dangerous disinfection byproduct. Some systems also contain a backup carbon filter to ensure that all contaminants have been filtered out. 

For more information about filtering systems and water quality, please see this previous article.

The Magical Umbilical Cord

http://www.nurturingheartsbirthservices.com/blog/?p=1542&cpage

Magic Umbilical Cords

I am amazed by just about everything having to do with birth….mothers, the creation of babies from a sperm and egg, the childbirth process, the placenta, the umbilical cord…

Aaahhhh….that umbilical cord. That magical connection that grows life. It filters, it provides, it knows when to start and it knows when baby no longer needs it.

I’ve often tried to explain to people the incredible changes that happen at birth – including to the umbilical cord – but I’ve had a hard time finding images to demonstrate what I’m trying to explain.

Until now! I recently attended a birth and asked the mother permission to take photographs of her baby’s umbilical cord to document the changes it goes through after the birth – and she said yes!

Umbilical cords have two arteries and a vein that run the length of it. Those three vessels are surrounded by a special substance called Wharton’s Jelly. This jelly is thick and gelatinous when functional – this is to prevent the baby from accidentally causing it to kink and stop functioning (even true knots in the cord rarely cause problems because the Wharton’s Jelly prevents it from being able to tighten down and occlude blood flow to baby!)

When baby is born, this cord continues to function, providing the baby with not only blood and oxygen – but providing baby TIME! Time to transition to air breathing, experiencing the changes that babies go through at birth. As long as that cord is pulsing, it’s working for the baby the exact same way it did before the baby came out.

Once baby’s breathing and the cord is no longer needed, it goes through its own transformation. The Wharton’s Jelly in the cord begins to liquefy…tightening down on those vessels…clamping them off naturally. The cord slowly becomes thin, white, limp – dramatic changes from the thick purple pulsing entity it was when the baby was born!

Not clamping or cutting the cord until this transformation has occurred provides the baby with the benefit of extra blood, oxygen, gentleness and time!

Here you can see the magical changes of the cord! These pictures are ALL of the same umbilical cord…progressively taken over time.

THE FOLLOWING PICTURES WERE TAKEN OVER A PERIOD OF ABOUT 15 MINUTES – BABY WAS ATTACHED THE ENTIRE TIME….

Brand new! Right after birth the cord is thick, pulsing. We could actually SEE it thumping with the baby's heartbeat.

There's already a difference!! Look at how much thinner it is - less purple, less 'tight'...

Less purple...thinner....

same piece of cord, same angle....now MUCH whiter, much thinner. But still not done with the transformation! You might think so though, huh! No...just wait.

NOW we are pretty much finished with the transformation. Compare this to the top picture of the same piece of cord....

Completely done, Wharton's Jelly has liquified, the cord is not pulsing...it is thin, white, and very limp. Amazing!

And here they are all in a row for you to see.....

The Power of Birth Language

30 APRIL 2010.

http://bringbirthhome.com/guest-writers/the-power-of-birth-language/

You may also like -

Birth Safety as a Binary Condition

by guest blogger Morgan A. McLaughlin McFarland 

The ways in which we choose to describe a situation or relationship often shed light on our beliefs (be they conscious or subconscious) about the balance of power within that situation or relationship. The language that we use also shapes how we perceive a situation and how we will act when confronted with it.

Consider if you will, the word “let” when applied to a birth or a care provider/birthing mother relationship.

How broad is the gulf between “my care provider supports my plan to give birth in water” and “my care provider is letting me give birth in water?” Both describe the same situation–a mother and her midwife/doctor both agree on the safety/efficacy of the water birth–but while the first statement places the power in the hands of the mother, the second places it in the hands of the doctor.

In the first statement, the mother has come to a decision and then conferred with her care provider, who agrees with and supports that mother’s choice to birth as she sees fit. In the second statement, the mother has sought and been granted permission to pursue a certain type of birth.

Another word that misplaces the power of birth is “deliver.”

The same birth could be described in two ways: “I gave birth to my baby [in the care of Dr. Smith]” or “Dr. Smith delivered my baby.” Where is the mother in the second statement? The difference in the balance of power in those two statements is obvious, because in the second, the mother is presented as irrelevant to the birth, which exists only as a relationship, a delivery, between the baby and doctor.

Do our babies really need to be delivered from us, liberated or saved from our bodies? Should we deliver our babies into the hands of others, as though they were pizzas or packages places in someone else’s care? An empowered mother births or gives birth to her baby; she is not delivered by a doctor or midwife. Using this language, she is the initiator of the experience, an active participant in the action, and the care provider’s role is to attend the birth or assist the birthing mother.

We believe birthing women are clients of the care provider and that the care provider works for the mother, rather than seeing birthing women as patients of a doctor/midwife authority figure to whom they must defer.

As adult women preparing to bring another life into the world, we must be empowered enough to stop seeking permission from doctors, nurses, and midwives. We must not put ours births into their hands for delivery, but claim our rightful place as the source of the birth experience. We must be careful in the language we use to describe, not just our own pregnancies/births, but the pregnancies/births of others.

If we are to own our birth experiences, we must remember that care providers require our permission to act, not the other way around.

While changing your language can’t guarantee a perfect birth experience for yourself or anyone else, being aware of your word choice can help you be more empowered through even a less than ideal birth experience. Women who believe in their right to weigh the costs/benefits of interventions, choosing the course of action they believe is safest for their babies and themselves, are less likely to feel a sense of disempowerment and anger after the birth is over.

Even if choice is between a rock and a hard place, simply owning the responsibility to make that choice is empowering. Owning your birth experience can give immeasurable strength. The first step to that ownership is language.

Take a moment to consider why you might choose words like “let/allow” and “deliver” to describe a birth experience, especially if you’re using those words in the context of expectations for an impending birth.

If you are wondering if your midwife/doctor will let you do something, consider examining why you, as an intelligent, empowered adult, need permission to do something your body already knows how to do. If you think of the birth process as a delivery, consider questioning why you frame it within the context of that language.

Giving away our power verbally or in writing creates a paradigm in which we condition ourselves to surrender our power in actuality. When your language paradigm shifts to place mothers and babies at the center, and providers on the periphery, so, too, will your beliefs shift.

As you think and write and speak, so shall you live. As you live, so shall you birth.