Breast Cancer and Breastfeeding

Time for monthly breast self exams!
I have not been very good about remembering to post these regularly...but I'm trying to work on that. Meanwhile, a "feel yourself up" post by itself isn't terribly exciting, so I've decided to start adding Breast Cancer facts to these monthly posts.

This month: breastfeeding
(while I am staunchly pro-breastfeeding, please realize that I'm not saying that breastfeeding is a sure-fire way to prevent breast cancer...just the research shows a correlation...)

Dr Andrew Weil: "Breastfeeding does appear to protect against breast cancer, probably by affecting levels of estrogen in a woman's body. Results of a study published in the July 20, 2002, issue of The Lancet showed that the more babies a woman has and the longer she nurses them, the lower her risk of breast cancer. The researchers reviewed 47 reports of studies in 30 countries that contained information about 50,000 women with breast cancer and almost 97,000 women who didn’t develop breast cancer."

[According to the study mentioned above] "breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast cancer by 4.3% for every year of feeding. There is also a 7% reduction in risk of breast cancer for each child born. A 4% lowering of risk doesn't sound much but, as breast cancer is quite a common disease in developed countries, breast feeding every child for an extra 6 months would mean about 1,000 fewer cases of breast cancer in Britain each year.
"Interestingly, in Japan 90% of women who have children breast feed. Japan is often talked about in relation to the incidence of breast cancer because, although it is obviously a developed country, breast cancer rates are much lower than they are in Western countries. Usually, people talk about diet as the explanation for this. But it may well be cultural differences in feeding babies that explains it."
http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=5105

"After analyzing data from 98 studies on lactation and breast cancer risk, the group said the evidence is now "convincing" that breastfeeding lowers the risk of both pre-menopausal and post-menopausal breast cancer. There is a 2 percent drop in breast cancer risk for each five months of breastfeeding." The Boston Globe, April 2008

And for those who have, or have previously had breast cancer, the FDA has some comfort to offer:
"Breast cancer is not passed through breast milk. Women who have had breast cancer can usually breast-feed from the unaffected breast. There is some concern that the hormones produced during pregnancy and lactation may trigger a recurrence of cancer, but so far this has not been proven. Studies have shown, however, that breast-feeding a child reduces a woman's chance of developing breast cancer later."

Some Political Thoughts...

I'm going to go ahead and delve into politics again. I don't do that very often, but sometimes writing about things helps me sort them out in my own head. I have been struggling to reach conclusions about our current presidential race, and I guess I just want to ramble about it a little.
I do not vote by party, nor do I declare affiliation with any party. I try to learn all I can about the issues and the candidates' positions, and then I vote by those. My views on things have not really changed over the years, however as I become aware of more and more issues, my preferred candidates have varied. I consider myself a moderate, although it's more accurate to say that on certain topics I'm very conservative, and on others I'm very liberal...I actually don't stand on middle ground on many issues at all...I just appear to land there because of the diversity of my other views. (If you really want to know my specific views, I'll answer questions in the comments...feel free to ask what you like.) In liberal Washington state, I voted for the most conservative guys. In conservative Utah, I was a "bleeding liberal." Alaska is an interesting place, because we appear 'conservative' on many fronts, but then we go off and legalize marijuana for personal use (yup, you can grow your own, you just can't sell it to anybody...I can see gro-lights in kitchen windows here in town). We're pro-gun and pro-oil...and also concerned about the environment, endangered animals, and climate change. Many of us run on hydro-power.
Of course, the big news this week is that my governor has been selected as McCain's vice presidential nominee. (Scribbit: Motherhood in Alaska, wrote a nice little piece about her today.) When I first heard that I (like many others) thought it was some kind of last-ditch effort to get attention away from Obama (and the timing was exquisite in that regard), but now I am seeing the wisdom in his choice. Sarah Palin was elected before we got to Alaska, and until this week I knew very little about her--just that she'd had a baby this last spring. But the more I learn of her the more I like her. If only the ticket were Palin/McCain, I would not have any trouble deciding how to vote!
If you've been reading here for long, you know that I've mentioned pro-Obama things before, and my feelings on him have not really changed--he is a rousing speaker and definitely gets me excited. I want change too! I agree with his stance on many many issues, and I don't have a problem with him being a celebrity, or being young and less-experienced...however I have begun to question his integrity, and that concerns me. McCain, on the other hand, seems quite trustworthy, and I trust that he'll do what he says...I'm just not sure how much I agree with him about what he should do!! McCain's speech last night did put my mind at ease about his positions and plans on a number of issues, although I still disagree with him on some things. Then, of course, there is always the option of voting for a third party candidate, someone like Nader (green party) who is closer to my personal convictions anyway, even though I know he won't win. With Palin on the republican ticket, there's little doubt as to which way this state will swing, so maybe I should say to heck with the big guys and use my vote instead to make a statement about what I really think of two-party politics.

Independent

Success in the Home

"No other success
can compensate for
failure in the home."

David O McKay
(LDS prophet, and president of the church 1951-1970 Learn about him here)

Hairtoys!

I'm having some trouble with formatting on this post...it's making me crazy but I can't figure out how to fix it, so sorry!

So here is the post where I tell you about all the cool hair accessories that won't damage your hair!
The basic guideline for good accessories is this: it should not snag/rip/tear/pull out your hair. Ever. Simple enough, right? The thing is that many of the most common accessories do not follow this rule (a list of evil accessories is at the end of this post)
Here are a few specific hair toys that are long hair-friendly. You will notice that most of these happen to be good for holding up long hair, and may not be so useful for anything shorter than about shoulder length.

• Hair Sticks--An updated version of chopsticks, they come in singles or pairs. I prefer metal, wood, bamboo, or bone, but they are also made with plastic, and many have beads on the ends. They are used by weaving them through hair that has been twisted or tucked up. They are snug while worn, yet slip out easily at day's end.
• Forks--usually two pronged, although sometimes with three, a fork is used the same way as a stick (and made with the same sorts of materials) They usually do not have so much decoration on the top. I find the wooden ones particularly beautiful.
• Combs--essentially a fork with more prongs... combs sometimes have short teeth and are good for pulling hair back, while the longer pronged ones are good for securing updos.
• Slides/Stick Barrettes--a personal favorite, these have a wrapped front portion with a hole in each end, and it is secured by wrapping the front around the hair, then sliding a stick through the first hole, behind the hair, and back out through the other hole.
  
• Scrunchies
• Hairpins also called Amish Hair Pins, these are straight and U-shaped (like the fork shown, only small and metal...) they do not pinch, and secure a bun by weaving back and forth between the twisted part and the scalp hair.
  
• Snoods--Seriously I love these, but Hubby doesn't so I don't use them. I like that you can just shove all your hair in it and go...so what if your hair is a little greasy, or being weird and uncontrollable today...tuck it in and you're done. Fast, easy, and looks classy.
  

Here are a few etsians who sell happy hair toys:
Brigit: leather stick barrettes (shown at right)
Northwestgoods: metal , metal combs (shown above), metal stick barrettes (shown above)
Ettamae: handcarved wooden forks (shown above)
Archeress Arts: hair sticks
The Far Grove: bone hair sticks (shown above)
NightBlooming: hair sticks (shown at top)
Wenchie: hair sticks (shown at top)
American Carver: wooden forks (shown at top)
Gypsy Trading Company: hair sticks (shown below)
Isis Arts: hair sticks (shown below)

The following accessories are not bad per se, but they can be problematic if they are not chosen wisely and used with care.

• Metal or plastic barrettes
• Scarves or kerchiefs (just keep hair out of that knot!)
  
• Claw clips
• Bobby pins--these are the hairpins that have little rubber tips and are squeezed shut. They are great so long as the rubber is on...if the tip comes off, throw out the bobby pin. They're cheap to replace, but will be damaging without the tips.
  
• Hair elastics--some are thin, some are thick, and so long as there is no metal joint on them, they should be fine if used with care...thicker ones are usually preferable
• Elasticized Hair bands--just as with hair elastics, the wrong one can tear out your hair. So if you like them, great! Just pay attention to which ones you choose to use.

Here are a few accessories to avoid at any cost:

• French Barrettes--these are the metal barrettes with the little springs...they were extremely popular in the 90s--usually with large bows attached. Thankfully they are not as common now, but are still too readily available. These will rip and snag hair like crazy.
• Rubber Bands--yes, the actual rubber bands like from office supply stores. Don't ever let one touch your hair. Seriously.
• Hair Elastics with the metal joint. Just don't do it!!!

every once in a while...

...you might be sitting at your computer doing bloggy stuff, and realize that you have spent too much time there today. You might realize this when, for example, your toddler marches in holding the toilet brush like a baton, and gleefully shoves it in your lap.
Not that I would know personally of course. MY toddler is arched across the arm of the chair doing upside-down nursing right now.
The toilet brush incident was almost 5 minutes ago.

Music Moment #1

In honor of the little Bear, who feels music like August Rush did, I have decided to start Music Moments (something I'd been considering for a while anyway...because we all know I need one more series on this blog!) So now and then I'll share a song I particularly like. Lucky you!

Bear hums along with the buzz of my sewing machine. He dances to any and all music. He steals daddy's headphones and puts the on and runs up and down the hall in glee. He bops his head along with the beat. If I say 'ooo' to him, he will change his pitch to match mine. He is an extraordinarily musical child.
I typically don't like music on webpages or blogs (because I usually have multiple windows open so they all moosh together and sound terrible) so I usually keep the sound turned off on my computer. But this morning I happened to notice the song that was queued up on a blog, so I let it play...Bear danced and I sang along to him. I know this song is intended as a romantic song between adults, but really all but one line are beautifully applicable to mothers and children. So keep that in mind as you listen.

By the way, the music video is kinda goofy, Hubby doesn't like it at all; I think it's cute. Regardless, this isn't it.

Growing It Out, Wearing It Long

So, having talked about how I love my long hair, I thought I'd take the time to post about some of the things one can do to grow out, maintain, and style long hair.

1--In order to have long healthy hair, you must begin with healthy hair, even if that means cutting it short. Damage begins at the ends but will travel up the hair shaft, so leaving even a little damage will affect more and more hair no matter how good your subsequent care routines are. For years I trimmed a little here and a little there. I went on 'search and destroy' missions, going through my hair little bit by little bit and carefully trimming individual split ends. It still looked frizzy and damaged--because it was. I had been treating my hair well for nearly a year with little effect, so finally, in early 2006, I had my sister cut of 2/3 off my length. That was when my hair really took a turn for the better.
By the way, after a major cut like that, it grows much faster.

2--Hair is delicate. If you want it to be healthy, and be able to grow long (or just to look good whatever length), you must handle it with care. Remember that it grows from the top, so the at ends of your hair are 1, 2, 10 or even more years old, and once broken they cannot repair themselves, they can only be cut off. Some longhairs speak of treating their hair like 'fine antique lace.' I found it helpful to understand the physical structure of hair. Here is an article about the biology of hair, and here is a closeup photo ------------>
As you can see, each hair has small overlapping scales, and when brushed/smoothed one direction (away from the scalp) they are fine, but if you brush/tease/rub your hair the other way, the layers peel apart, literally splitting the hair and causing irreparable damage.
Here are a few specific tips on handling hair with care:

• Never ever brush it when wet. Use a wide-toothed comb. Some choose to never brush at all, and use combs exclusively. (Combs-only has made a huge difference for me)
• If you ever take an accessory out of your hair, and find it has pulled out hair with it, then don't ever put it back in your hair. Throw it away! I recommend investing in a few hair-friendly accessories, such as hair sticks, ficcare clips, or classic hair pins. I will talk more about those in a future post!
  
• If your hair is long, wear it back or up to protect it from being caught and broken in doors, seatbelts, jewelry, and other things.
• Protect it from chemicals such as chlorine--fully saturate it with clean water before swimming, and consider putting it in a braid, bun, or under a cap for further protection.
• Braid it (or wear a cap) for sleeping, and avoid static-causing pillowcases. Don't laugh! We can do a lot of damage to our hair while rolling around at night, especially if you share a bed with someone!
  
• Avoid products such as sprays, gels, or dyes, and DO NOT USE HEAT (blow driers, curling irons, etc). Many longhairs refer to blow driers as 'blow fryers'!
  

3--Hair is at its most fragile when wet, so take extra care with it. Never twist it when wet--only squeeze. Never rub it with a towel--just place it between two layers of towel and gently pat or squeeze. Avoid piling it on top of your head or rubbing it around while washing--put the products in, gently massage your scalp, and comb or finger comb it through the length, then rinse out.
4--To stimulate growth, stimulate your scalp. Gently massage it with the finger pads (not nails) while shampooing and any other time you feel like it. After washing your hair, rinse it with cold water--as cold as you can stand. This stimulates growth by rejuvenating the scalp, and also protects existing hairs by helping tighten up the scales on the shaft.
5--Don't wash it so often. Washing strips the natural oils (sebum) from your hair, causing it to dry out. Ironically that dryness also causes the head to produce extra sebum, so your hair will be dry but look oily. Sebum protects hair better than any conditioner can--it's what it was made for! If you are not using products in your hair, you will not need to wash them out, so all that's left is a little dust/dirt/dead scalp skin and you can get that once a week or so (don't be grossed out, we get dead skin everywhere silly, and that doesn't mean it's dandruff!) Start by going one day longer than normal between washings. After a few cycles your scalp and hair will adjust, and then you can go a day longer than that. Not everyone's hair will prefer the same timing as mine, but for healthy long hair you should definitely not be washing more than twice a week. I do recommend an occasional deep conditioning--that will also be covered in another post.

For your additional education, here are a few links:
Long Locks--this site primarily sells hair sticks (really fancy expensive ones), but she does have some nice pages on braiding and "the ultimate guide to growing long hair."
Long Hair Community--if you are serious about hair health or length, these forums are a wealth of information, support, and inspiration. If you care to join, I am 'brightonwoman' there. Come look me up!
Long Hair Loom--information and discussion forums with styling tips, growing helps, and more--includes a section specifically for teens and pre-teens!

Snapshot

With Bear's current vocabulary explosion, we are all saying new words to him in the hopes that he will say them back to us. Even Wolf is in on it, as today I heard them in Wolf's room learning important boy words:
Wolf: Can you say shark?
Bear: [ignoring him as he plays with the toy shark]
Wolf: Shark! Say shark!
Bear: Buh!
Wolf: Can you say laser bazooka?

Summer Vacation

Hubby blogged about our trip here (with lots of pictures).

I just wanted to add a few things I learned (or re-learned) about road tripping with kids:

1--let the dog sit in front with the kids. They entertain each other.
2--let the baby have root bear. He loves it
3--root beer will stain the sippy cup.
4--one skittle at a time can help keep a tired baby happy when you need to drive for just one more hour...
5--from Skagway, AK to anywhere is a really really really long drive.

If you'd like to see our route, it was something like this (if you scroll down you can see it in map form...yes, that's correct where you see over 100 hours of driving, and about 6000 miles. If you count in all the little side trips, we drove well over 6000 miles). I should mention that there are also two days of ferries on either end of this trip. Pelican to Juneau is a 6 hour ferry, and Juneau to Skagway (the next day) is about 4 more hours.

By the numbers:
1 green mini van
2 parents
2 kids
1 dog
6 weeks
6000 miles driven (not counting miles in ferries!)
104 + hours in the car (that's such an underestimate!)
2 countries
9 states/provinces (Alaska, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Yukon, British Columbia, and Alberta)
4 border crossings (those stress me out every time)
5 ferries (we split up at one point and some family members were on one ferry and some on another)
4 National Parks/Monuments
13 relatives families visited (I have no idea how many actual people that is!)
1 very massive yard sale
1 baptism

1 family who had a great summer, but is happy to be home.