Ecological Breastfeeding Makes Breastfeeding Easier, Spaces Babies

What is Ecological Breastfeeding?

See below for photo attribution.

"Ecological Breastfeeding" is a term originally coined by Sheila Kippley, the co-founder of the Couple to Couple League, (now with Natural Family Planning International) to describe straight-up breastfeeding as it has been done since the beginning of time.  Kippley was a La Leche League leader who was studying and writing about the effects of breastfeeding on fertility back in the 1970's when ecology was the rage.  Had she needed to pick a term today, she probably would have chosen something like "green breastfeeding" or, as I call it, natural breastfeeding.  Ecological breastfeeding is more than "exclusive breastfeeding"--although feeding a baby only breastmilk until he naturally starts solids around six months of age is part of ecological breastfeeding.  It also includes six other "standards" to make it clear if a particular mother is (or is not) practicing ecological breastfeeding.

It must be noted that ALL breastmilk and any way a mother feeds her baby is good.  Whether directly from the breast, from an eye dropper, dripped from a spoon, squirted with a syringe, dribbled out of a cup, or sucked out of a bottle--as the saying goes, "breast is best."  The Seven Standards aren't intended to be a measure of whether or not you are "mom enough" (as the now famous TIME magazine cover challenged).  There are seven "standards" because ecological breastfeeding is a means of spacing babies.  As such, there are rules ("standards") to be followed.  If the standards are followed, most women will experience completely natural infertility (for, on average, about 14-15 months after birth) as her body focuses on growing her babe in arms.  She will neither ovulate nor menstruate during this time of natural infertility.  Until mature eggs are released, there is no chance of pregnancy.  As more time passes from birth, the more likely it is that a mother will begin to ovulate again.  Studies of ecological breastfeeding mothers have shown that the actual rates of pregnancy are virtually zero from 0-3 months; 2% from 3-6 months, and about 6% after 6 months, assuming the mother has not experienced bleeding or spotting on two or more consecutive days.  Eventually, full fertility returns and in the natural order of things, within the context of a normal marital relationship, and with nothing but ecological breastfeeding, babies will come about every two to three years.  ...But if natural infertility--babies spaced without charting, abstinence, barriers, medications or devices--isn't something you desire, then ecological breastfeeding isn't for you.

My two older sons: their births were spaced 37 months apart.

Ecological breastfeeding isn't a litmus test for "good" or "bad" mothering.  However, it is a completely natural way that babies and pregnancies are spaced, allowing the mother's mineral stores to be replenished.  Meanwhile, the older (ex utero) baby is growing, learning to eat, crawl, walk, and talk, so that when the next baby does come along, Mother can concentrate on him or her, without depriving the older toddler or preschooler of vital nutrition, as may happen with a closer spacing (if her milk supply drops during the pregnancy).  Furthermore, big brother or sister no longer requires the intensive attention that a newborn or infant does, so mother's job is a little easier.  The older sibling is old enough psychologically to understand that the new baby needs mama.  These are significant advantages to ecological breastfeeding that no method of "family planning" can approach.

Kippley’s Ecological Breastfeeding Program sets the stage as much as possible for successful breastfeeding.  While it is not for every family, it certainly would benefit some families who are unlikely to hear of it.  Unfortunately, natural breastfeeding continues to be viewed not only as a countercultural relic of the days of the cave woman, but it is also the best kept secret as a means to naturally space children, even in natural family planning circles.

When I first heard of naturally spacing children through breastfeeding, I had never had a baby.  But after being blessed with our eldest child, I followed Kippley’s “Seven Standards” faithfully.  While everything didn’t turn out exactly as Kippley suggested (O Pediatric Dental Bills, you seem so unjust), there is one area that turned out spot on.  Kippley stated that if you followed all seven standards, and had no bleeding episodes after the first 56 days postpartum, your children would (on average) be spaced two to three years apart.  She was totally right.  After seventeen years of marriage, our six children are all spaced two to three years apart--and this was not due to any underlying infertility as I became pregnant the first time I ovulated several times.  (The only departure from this pattern is between babies four and five, who would have been spaced within that range, but two early pregnancy losses extended the spacing to a little over three years apart.)

The Hagen Family. Children's ages: 1, 3, 6, 9, 11, and 14 years.

A Real-Life Example: 
Christelle's "Periods" since 2000*

2000: 0
2001: 0
2002: 1
2003: 0
2004: 0
2005: 0
2006: 0
2007: 0
2008: 0
2009: 1
2010**: 8
2011: 0
2012: 0
2013: 1
2014: 0

*2000: the year our oldest child was born
**2010: two of these "periods" were early pregnancy losses

“Who cares?” you may wonder.  “If you hadn't noticed, Christelle, you have a gigantic family...so what's the big deal that your babies are spaced two to three years apart?”  Allow me to explain.  During the past fourteen plus years, I have had exactly eleven "periods".  Other than that--no menstrual bleeding, no cramps, migraines, PMS, or pads; and no ovulations—for years on end.  My husband and I have been free of what others call the “fear” of pregnancy, that is, free to enjoy each other intimately for years without any concerns or even thought given to preventing pregnancy.  No potentially contentious discussions about whether to try for another baby.  No need to chart.  No need to take temps.  Simply letting God plan our family.  By the time my fertility has returned, we have been mentally in the place where another pregnancy and another baby seemed…well…natural!  After all, the next oldest child could walk, talk, and feed herself or himself.  There was space in the family for another baby.

It is not easy to share this most unusual (though completely natural) form of baby spacing with others.  Many are suspicious about how "effective" it really is.  I have heard of many women being told by their health care provider that breastfeeding can't be "trusted" to space babies.  And this is partially true, because assuming a particular mother is following all of the standards, her own length of natural infertility may be shorter than average, depending on her baby's nursing patterns, her own biology, and other factors outside of her control.  While I have no doubt that having normal anatomy and physiology have certainly been in our favor, I suspect that my determination (okay, stubbornness would probably be more accurate) has played as much of a role in our success.  Just as I’ve witnessed when it comes to natural childbirth, those women who are going to “try” to birth naturally frequently do not; so also with those who are going to “try” ecological breastfeeding.  ‘Trying’ means you know you should do it the "natural" way, and if there are zero problems you will do it, but if anything gets tough with the birth or with breastfeeding, you plan to quit.  It’s okay.  Using pain meds during a birth, choosing combination feeding or formula feeding your baby, or using a binky doesn’t make you a "bad" mom.  There are times when these things are necessary.  Just not as often as people think.  More often, they are simply wanted.  This is where the guilt comes in because we Americans don’t allow mothers to want things that aren’t ideal.

Am I adding to the guilt?  I hope not.  My aim is to let mothers and couples know about the most natural form of breastfeeding so they have the option of choosing it, if it is right for them.  

The first time I got to hold my son in the hospital, 4 days old.

“Ecological breastfeeding” could just be called “easy” breastfeeding.  Not because the lifestyle it requires is necessarily easy (because sometimes it’s not) but because it makes breastfeeding easier.  I know breastfeeding has been easier for me because of following the seven standards of ecological breastfeeding.  As I discussed in my review of the movie Breastmilk, when our sixth baby arrived, I had already successfully fed five babies without a bottle or pump in the house.  However, my sixth baby required special care after his traumatic birth, and if he was to get any of my milk, I was going to need to learn how to pump.  When I sat in that uncomfortable hospital chair, with a sliding curtain providing the only semblance of privacy, I had the unique position of having successfully nursed five beautifully chubby babies before ever needing to use that pump.  I had the perspective of knowing I can and have produced a supply of milk abundant enough to plump up a baby when I was told by the NICU nurse that I am a “below average” pumper.  I feel sad for first-time moms who hear comments like this and assume that being a “below average pumper” means that they don’t make enough milk.  Feeding your baby, not a pump, sets all the right hormones in motion. Producing milk directly for a baby and producing milk for a plastic pump are two completely different things, and really have no correlation at all.

I encourage pregnant moms and new parents to learn about natural breastfeeding, as described by Sheila Kippley in her books Breastfeeding and Natural Child Spacing and more recently The Seven Standards of Ecological Breastfeeding: The Frequency Factor which you can purchase through the Breastfeed {Naturally} shop, if you wish.  Even if you are one of the rare women for whom breastfeeding according to the seven standards does not produce natural infertility, a choice to parent according to these standards, if made because it feels right for your family to parent this way, will produce a harvest of love and joy, as it has in our family.  …It’s time to present the alternative to the technological form of breastfeeding which has become commonplace in America: natural breastfeeding.  Not to create another ideal that we expect all women to want, but to inform mothers and families of a wonderful set of steps to follow that make breastfeeding easier for many, and have the side benefit of naturally spacing babies without any other knowledge, charts, devices, barriers, medications, or procedures.

It's time to present the alternative to the technological form of breastfeeding that has become commonplace in America: natural breastfeeding.  Ecological breastfeeding makes breastfeeding easier and naturally spaces babies.

Natural breastfeeding moms need to come out of the closet, or more accurately, get out of the house! …and let the world know about this most beautiful way to space babies.  To that end, in the coming weeks, I will describe in detail each of Kippley’s Seven Standards and present evidence-based information and personal anecdotes about each of them.  I will follow this up with a series of posts explaining what moms, dads, relatives, employees, employers, clergy, and others can do to promote and support breastfeeding within your walls.  Make sure to come back in the coming weeks to learn what you can do to encourage the spread of information about natural breastfeeding, to help promote healthier and happier families, mothers, and babies.  Or get my posts directly in your email inbox by subscribing to them in the box in the side column of this blog!

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Photo Attribution

"Kabala mother" by John Atherton - originally posted to Flickr as New baby and proud mother, Kabala, Sierra Leone (West Africa). Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kabala_mother.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Kabala_mother.jpg