Latch On Listen In: Nurse Barbara Dehn on all things breastfeeding

Our latest guest in the Latch On Listen In podcast series is Barbara Dehn, a Women's Health Nurse Practitioner and award-winning author. Barbara is a popular speaker on all aspects of women’s health, lectures at Stanford, and frequently appears as a health expert on ABC TV's View from the Bay in San Francisco. She also writes for her blog, Barb’s Daily Dose, and contributes to the Huffington Post.

Barbara brings perspective to the breastfeeding topic from both the healthcare world and from her own experience exclusively nursing her son. We took this opportunity to ask for her opinions and advice on many issues. Here are a few interesting things we learned:

1. The most unexpected challenges her patients face when breastfeeding is the time commitment (as much as 8-10 hours a day), and the sleep deprivation (it's hard to stay rested when you're up to nurse every couple of hours).

2. She says that the No. 1 concern of breastfeeding women she has treated is knowing whether the baby is getting enough milk.

3. Barbara's views on the top challenges for the breastfeeding community are in line with what we've heard from many other people we've interviewed. Taboos about breastfeeding in public and challenges finding the time and place to pump at work are the biggest roadblocks to nursing for the recommended six to 12 months.

4. Her advice to pregnant women's swine flu fears? Get vaccinated! Then take every precaution you typically would to protect babies and young children from germs: Wash your hands, stay away from people who are obviously sick, and consider putting a blanket over the hood of the stroller to keep people from touching your irresistible baby!

Click here to listen to the entire interview with Barbara, and be sure to visit her at Barb's Daily Dose.