Christine Staricka is a Registered, International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant and trained childbirth educator.
Christine created and developed The First 100 Hours© Masterclass, a comprehensive course in optimizing early lactation, which she has taught to hundreds of people working with postpartum families.
She developed the idea when she worked as a hospital-based IBCLC for 10 years.
Christine now has over 22 years experience providing clinical lactation care and support both in the hospital and the community. She has been the facilitator of Baby Café Bakersfield since 2014, which was the first licensed Baby Café to open in California.
As the host of Evolve Lactation Community, a membership and coaching program for aspiring and new lactation consultants, her current role focuses on training and coaching current and aspiring lactation care providers. Christine also hosts The Lactation Training Lab Podcast.
An experienced lactation speaker, Christine has presented for international, national, and local audiences since 2013. She is comfortable and has experience presenting both virtually and in-person. She also has extensive experience teaching both a 45-hour and a 90-hour lactation course, and she is a faculty member of GOLD Lactation Academy.
Christine recently completed 6 years of service on the Board of the United States Lactation Consultant Association (USLCA.) She is a Fellow of the International Lactation Consultant Association. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Phoenix. She has been married for 29 years, lives in California, and is the proud mother of 3 amazing daughters.
You can find more information about Christine and access free resources and downloads at www.ChristineStaricka.com.
Mindset, Knowledge, and Connections for Lactation Care Providers – a podcast about lactation care and professional lactation training hosted by Christine Staricka, IBCLC
Podcast available on all major podcast platforms
A subscription-based blog written by Christine Staricka, IBCLC on Substack covering:
Evolving lactation care through science, advocacy, & connection – wisdom & guidance on lactation care in the modern world
IBCLCs may have read with interest excerpts from the recently published Lactivism written by Canadian political science professor, Courtney Jung. These excerpts were almost impossible to miss in print and online media. There were sensationalized headlines, interviews with emotional stakeholders, and rebuttals by breastfeeding supporters and professional lactation care providers quickly following via social media.
After reading the book, however, it is important to observe that although it made some very salient points, there are also some major fundamental flaws, not the least of which is that Jung perpetuates the concept that science bears the burden of proving that there are benefits to breastfeeding. She also conveniently overlooks the fact that breast milk substitute is not the same as breast milk and that its use results in altered health outcomes. By focusing only on the “infections prevented,” she has missed the entire scope of health regarding epigenetics, the microbiome, human milk oligosaccharides and brain development, hormones, and so much more. She accuses “lactivists” of selecting the science, but then she does the same.
(Full text available through open access at website)