“We’re still here!” It’s a favorite declaration of those attempting to justify natural parenting practices: Childbirth without interventions must be optimal because we’re still here. Homebirth must be safe because we’re still here. Exclusive breastfeeding must be best because we’re still here. [pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Looking at those today alive today though their […]
Latest News
Why is Lamaze desperate to pretend homebirth is popular when it’s not?
In a new post, the folks at Lamaze are crowing about homebirth statistics that purport to demonstrate the “popularity” of homebirth Look at Home Birth Trends – The Results May Surprise You!. [pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Lamaze is a special interest lobbying group that depends on convincing women that its prescriptions for childbirth […]
The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative is like abstinence-only sex education
Don’t get me wrong. I’m a big fan of sexual abstinence for high school students. Most aren’t ready for sexual activity, aren’t careful enough, and don’t properly weigh the consequences. Despite my strong support of abstinence, I am fervently opposed to abstinence-only sex education. [pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The ends don’t justify the […]
The prophetess Ruth (Bader Ginsburg)
From the Book of Ruth (Bader Ginsburg): Globalization and automation oppressed the blue collar workers and they cried unto the Lord. “We are suffering mightily.” Prosperity had left them, but had promised to return. When the blue collar workers saw that prosperity delayed returning, they gathered together, and said unto them themselves, “Come, let us […]
Disease is like terrorism and anti-vaccine parents are committing treason
Everyone is afraid of terrorism. Terrorists strike without warning, often in the very places where we feel safest: cafes, concerts, and shopping malls. Terrorists kill and maim, leaving survivors with life long physical and psychological scars. The impact of terrorism is outsized. It only takes a few terrorist attacks for an entire population to feel […]
Mommy Wars: Brexit edition
Why are women so vicious to each other when it comes to parenting? Why do some mothers feel invalidated when they find someone who raised her children differently? Why do some mothers imagine that because they give birth they are now experts on anything having to do with children no matter how tenuous the connection? […]
Guest post: No family should have to suffer to conform to breastfeeding ideology
Blogger Emilie Bishop generously shares her story of breastfeeding pressure and how it harmed her son and herself. She hopes it will bring comfort to the many other women who find themselves in similar situations. I am the stay at home mother of a seventeen-month-old son, Jonathan, and I wish I’d found your blog when […]
There was a time when all babies were breastfed; how did that work out?
Lactivists are fond of logical fallacies and their favorite is the naturalistic fallacy. According to Logically Fallacious: When the conclusion expresses what ought to be, based only on actually what is more natural. This is very common, and most people never see the problem with these kinds of assertions due to accepted social and moral […]
How the quest for wellness is making us sick
There’s no such thing as wellness. Surprised? Unless you’ve been living under a rock these past few decades, you have been bombarded about the mythical state of “wellness” and what you must do (and buy!) to achieve it. Wellness is different from health. Health is freedom from disease or control of disease. It is a […]
Medicalization of childbirth is the best thing that ever happened to women!
There have been many great moments in women’s history. The invention of the Pill is near the top of the list, simultaneously allowing women to control their own bodies and saving millions of lives. Acquiring the right to vote and laws against gender discrimination are near the top, too. Yet almost nothing else in medicine […]
Amy Tuteur, MD
Dr. Amy Tuteur is an obstetrician gynecologist. She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard College in 1979 and her medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine in 1984. Dr. Tuteur is a former clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School. She left the practice of medicine to raise her four children. Her book, Push Back: Guilt in the Age of Natural Parenting (HarperCollins) was published in 2016. She can be reached at DrAmy5 at aol dot com... More
