Research Mysteries

Normal, physiological processes can’t be true and good until scientifically proven. For example responsive parenting: keeping yous child close and giving him what he needs when he needs it provides him with the opportunities to develop his body, spirit and mind to the fullest. Responsive parenting includes feeding on demand (rather feeding on clue). A child is born with a perfect system of hunger and satiety cues, which prevents him from eating more than is healthy. Feeding a child on schedule and persuading him to finish the amount of food prepared will lead the child ignoring and distrusting his own cues, overeating, and ultimately an increased risk of obesity later. Thankfully all mothers who kenw and practiced this for ages are now acknowledged by modern scientific evidence brought by Hurley et al. many older studies already showed the relation between formula feeding and later obesity, but Crume c.s now made it clear that this is true, too, for infants of mothers who were diabetic during pregnancy. The most mysterious studies are those on the use of pacifiers (dummies, soothers). Logical thinkers already knew of course that pacifiers (dummies, soothers) are just substitutes for a mother’s breasts. A mother’s breasts provide for breastfeeding (protection from obesity and all kinds of other unhealthy conditions) and for cue-feeding (if hunger cues are not mistaken for ‘’sucking cues that can easily be met with a pacifier/dummy/soother’’). Nevertheless big research analysis studies about the safety of pacifier use the influence on duration of (exclusive or not) breastfeeding as sole indicator. Not signals that easiness of breastfeeding may be damaged or if there might be an increase in breastfeeding problems or if cue-feeding is endangered, which then may lead to more obesity in later life. The great mystery of scientific research: scientists that are so focused on researching that they don’t see their own blinders anymore.
Crume TL, Ogden L, Maligie M, Sheffield S, Bischoff KJ, Daniels S, Hamman RF, Norris JM, Dabelea D: Long-Term Impact of Neonatal Breastfeeding on Childhood Adiposity and Fat Distribution Among Children Exposed to Diabetes In Utero Diabetes Care March 2011 34:641-645; doi:10.2337/dc10-1716
Jaafar SH, Jahanfar S, Angolkar M, Ho JJ: Pacifier use versus no pacifier use in breastfeeding term infants for increasing duration of breastfeeding. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2011 Mar 16;3:CD007202.