Mamels life animal

Weaning in primates is a fascinating  process  in which ingestion of mother’s milk, as a proportion of daily dietary intake, incrementally declines as the infant ages.    From moment to moment, this exquisite negotiation of nipple access between mother and infant can vary in relation to food availability, maternal style, and the compelling power of the infant demand (aka weaning tantrum). Oh and lots of other factors can influence the weaning process too. Field Museum, Chicago One of the more remarkable features of human development is that cessation of breastfeeding occurs earlier for us than for our closest ape relatives. This is not just an artifact of a modern industrial world. In 2001,  Dan Sellen reviewed >100 non-industrial populations using demographic and ethnographic records. The average age of the introduction of supplemental solids was estimated to be ~5 months (±4 months) and cessation of breastfeeding on average was estimated to be ~30 months (±10 months). Chimpanzees

My younger brother and I were, at times , somewhat enthusiastic and not terribly considerate of my mom. Between our grand schemes, monumental battles, and overabundance of personality, I can’t even wrap my head around how exhausting we must have been. When we were especially appalling Dad would call us to the carpet: “You kids have got to stop turning your mom into ‘Mother Butter.’ She is a goddess who gave you life and would do anything for you- QUIT SHAKING HER UP AND CHURNING HER AROUND.” by Garth Williams “But… but…” “No buts, you don’t have a counterpoint, she’s your mom, you will appreciate and respect her at all times and that’s the end of the discussion .” Only now that I study mother’s milk, do I recognize the fantastic word-smithery of “Mother Butter.”  So here’s to all the wonderful, exhausted, loving, exasperated, nurturing, driven-to-their-wits-end, magical mothers. May your darling demon children grow up to be in awe of all you’ve done and all you are. I know I hav

In March, Nicholas Day at SLATE wrote a column about the science of breastmilk , showcasing the emerging perspective that “Milk is food; Milk is Medicine; and Milk is Signal.” People seemed particularly intrigued by the hormonal ‘Milk is Signal’ aspect of mother’s milk, although it’s the least understood. Sidebar: Why don't more kid costumes come in adult sizes.  Seriously. Recently, Skip Bartol and colleagues coined the term “lactocrine programming” to describe the process by which hormones present in mother’s milk permanently shape physiological processes within in the young (Bartol et al. 2009). A growing body of evidence has demonstrated that hormones from the mother, ingested through milk, bind to receptors within the young. Once these “maternal-origin” hormones bind, they seemingly trigger hormonal signaling cascades as would the young’s own hormones. Previously I described that hormones present in milk-specifically adiponectin - are associated with infant growth althou