Book Review
Listening to Your Baby
By Dr. Jay Gordon
Perigee, 2002
Reviewed by Melissa Burris
Greensboro NC USA
From: NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 20 No. 4, July-August 2003, p. 151
Many popular
parenting books seem so concerned with appealing to the widest possible
audience that they can feel watered down, as if to eliminate all traces
of opinions strong enough to discourage potential buyers. Such is not
the case with Listening to Your Baby, the newest book by the
well-known pediatrician, Jay Gordon.
A passionate
supporter of both breastfeeding and attachment parenting (and the first
physician or male to become a certified lactation consultant), Dr. Gordon
delivers a firm and consistent message. "I believe in something
called attachment parenting," he explains in the very first chapter.
"Attachment parents create a baby-centered home where the baby
is breastfed and sleeps in the 'family bed.'" Dr. Gordon goes on
to describe in detail the benefits of this parenting style, and he offers
clear, practical advice to expectant and new parents on how to implement
every element of his philosophy. He is very thorough and covers a multitude
of issues ranging from prenatal nutrition and newborn care to matters
of socialization and toddler discipline.
The pillars
of Dr. Gordon's philosophy are his views that human milk is indisputably
the superior form of nutrition for all babies and that breastfeeding
offers immediate and long-term health benefits for mothers and babies.
Although there is nothing radical about these views, Dr. Gordon stands
confidently apart from many breastfeeding advocates by his assertion
that breastfeeding "is not [a] personal choice, as some people
would have you believe. It is a medical issue."
Conceding that
his opinions are strong, Dr. Gordon admits that he is not particularly
concerned about making mothers feel guilty for choosing not to breastfeed.
Rather, he is more concerned with the guilt these same mothers will
feel in hindsight when they realize that they denied their children
the important benefits that only human milk offers. While parents who
have made a firm choice against breastfeeding may not appreciate this
candor, Dr. Gordon's fact-based approach is informative rather than
demeaning and serves to clarify issues that often befuddle new and experienced
parents alike.
Dr. Gordon describes
attachment parenting as both theoretically and practically linked to
breastfeeding. He advises that babies should always be fed on demand
and never by the clock, no matter how frequently the need to nurse is
expressed. Practices such as baby wearing and co-sleeping, he explains,
provide mothers with the best opportunities to learn and respond to
their babies' cues. Perhaps in response to the tired choruses of the
"baby trainers" who predict domestic turmoil as the outcome
of such unstructured parenting, Dr. Gordon points out the many advantages
and conveniences afforded to the attachment parenting family. Among
these advantages, he names the lack of rigid scheduling, the absence
of unnecessary equipment and gadgets used to contain and/or entertain
infants, and the easy portability of the co-sleeping baby who, he asserts,
should never be left to sleep in isolation during at least the first
year of life.
Particularly
notable is the chapter on vaccinations and illnesses, in which Dr. Gordon
reviews the benefits and risks associated with childhood immunization.
Neither blindly pro-vaccination nor radically against all forms of immunization,
Dr. Gordon believes that some vaccinations can be highly effective in
preventing the incidence and spread of many dangerous diseases. But
he also feels that, due to the known occurrence of serious side effects
and the potential for overwhelming a baby's immature immune system,
routine shots should not be given to infants younger than six months.
For babies over that age, he prefers a modified schedule whereby only
the most proven and, in his opinion, truly essential vaccinations are
spread out over a much longer period of time than the standard pediatric
schedule currently recommends. Dr. Gordon admits to being in disagreement
with most of his colleagues regarding vaccination and he urges parents
to become thoroughly informed and initiate extensive discussions with
their children's health care providers. He cautions parents against
becoming overly reliant on any one particular point of view, and believes
they should be pro-active in forming their own educated opinions.
Chapters on
nutrition, child development, and discipline are all well written and
in keeping with philosophies and ideas mothers might hear at an LLL
Series Meeting. For parents who recognize that each baby is unique and
may need to be parented differently from every other baby on the block,
Listening To Your Baby is sure to become a favorite gift, as
well as a beloved and dog-eared occupant of the family bookshelf.
Last updated Thursday, August 31, 2006 by njb.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:29:28 UTC 2007.
