On Wed, 11 Jan 2006, Marc Carlson wrote: > I could have sworn that back in anthropology 101 they taught us that > extended breastfeeding was used to make a woman less likely to get > pregnant, not that it stopped menstruation.
It does both. Breastfeeding temporarily stops ovulation, which in turn stops menstruation -- menstrual periods are a direct result of ovulation. You don't have periods without ovulating. (It is possible to bleed without ovulation; this is considered "abnormal uterine bleeding" and not menstruation, and sometimes looks similar but typically does not follow the regular pattern of monthly periods.) (The monthly bleeds that occur during cyclical hormone therapy or the use of oral contraception look like periods, but they're not. They're enforced bleeds created by the adjustment of hormone dosage. They don't enter into this discussion, in any case.) Breastfeeding doesn't always stop pregnancy, since when you start ovulating and having periods again, you ovulate first (before you've had your first period return). So you can get pregnant before your periods come back, and I know people who have done so (oops). It's generally advised not to rely on the lack of periods as absolute birth control; you can be assured of a delay, often a long one, but eventually you might hit it just as your ovaries get back in action. --Robin medical editor _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
