КЪРМЕНЕТО Е НАЙ НАЙ ДОБРОТО - ВРЕМЕ ЗА ХВАЛБИ И МОТИВАЦИЯ

Сигурно е полезно за децата да се кърмят, но мислиш ли, че чак до 2 годинки само на кърма да кара е добре? Не е ли някаква съвременна крайност?

Ето, още кърмя, от днес трети месец ще започне...

Generous mothers save Lacie's life
By Ruste Jacobs
Features Writer

MILBURN -- "I'm not that little 4-year-old girl on breast milk," Lacie Smith demands. "I'm an 18-year-old woman with a lot of plans and a heavy schedule to tackle. In some people's minds, I haven't grown up. People recognize me and say, 'Are you still on breast milk?'"

It's been a stigma all of Lacie's life. One she's tried hard to overcome.

It began when she was a small baby and began having reactions to her formula. Her parents, Acie and Phyllis Smith, went through the normal formula shuffle, trying desperately to connect with one that would work.

But, nothing worked. Other milks were tried. No luck.

Lacie was diagnosed with a rare intestinal disorder which rendered her incapable of digesting anything except mothers' milk, a precious commodity. Phyllis wanted to nurse, but doctors felt her milk would be hazardous to Lacie because of medication she was taking for severe back problems. So they turned to milk banks across the country and worldwide for help.

Thousands of ounces began to flow in, but all of the milk had to be screened. Each donor had to fill out complicated paperwork -- the milk had to be as free of disease and contaminants as possible. The AIDS scare in the late 1980s really caused problems in transporting the milk because it was classified as human tissue. Milk banks felt the pressure, closing one at a time.

Individual mothers from across the world heard of Lacie's plight and continued to pump precious ounces as they nursed their children. Some, pumped even after they'd lost their babies. One mother piloted a plane to fly milk she'd expressed for her son who'd died. Another mother in Texas lovingly pumped milk for Lacie for 15 years.

But as Lacie grew and demanded more ounces, the human river of life eked to a slow flow. At 3, her intake was 350 to 400 ounces a day, and that amount escalated to a much higher intake. Phyllis struggled to keep up with the frozen ounces of gold in freezers, always fearing an electrical outage.

Eventually, food trials began.

"We tried one about every six to seven weeks," Phyllis said. "Each time, sever problems occurred -- from bleeding to diarrhea. Rashes, drops in blood pressure, labored breathing, cardiac arrest and problems with malfunctioning kidneys often occurred."

Doctors felt that if they could just keep Lacie alive long enough, she would outgrow her food allergy. They were guessing she might live until the age of 3.

"No one had ever survived past that age with so many medical problems," Phyllis said. "One complicates the next one."

In the past 18 years, they've spent a fortune on milk deliveries, phone bills, electric bills, gas bills and hospital bills. But, they've never given up hope.

"As long as there is life, there is hope," Phyllis said. "God has a real reason for Lacie being here. She's been so strong and has never stumbled. Her determination is there. Much of our strength has come from everyone else. We know God was directing them. We have so many people still committed to her. She's touched so many. She belongs to the world."

They've weathered a long battle and won a great part of it. Lacie is able to tolerate her food allergies with the drugs, but everything she touches, breathes and eats is relative to life. The ratio of food and medicine has to be just right and that's not an easy thing to accomplish. Bottom line is, she still depends on mothers' milk if she gets sick.

"The majority of her mothers' milk comes from repeat donors," Phyllis said. "They are still having children and are committed to her. A few milkbanks are operational, but we've left them free for others in need."