Sir.—Furman1 raises some interesting points in her letter published in the May 1992 issue of AJDC. Although we have far to go with regard to support for parenting in this country, we will not improve the duration or quality of the mother-infant nursing relationship by simply extending maternity leaves and providing job security to working mothers. I believe that we as pediatricians (as well as obstetricians and family physicians) do a very poor job of promoting breast-feeding to our patients. Yes, we say "breast is best," but are we really providing mothers with enough resources to realize these goals?
There are several companies promoting products (electric pumps that allow both breasts to be pumped simultaneously, specially designed pillows that make positioning much easier) that can make a tremendous difference in the success a mother has with breast-feeding, yet few pediatricians know of these products. Despite the promotion of