Photo of Linda Smith

Linda Smith M.P.H., IBCLC

Affiliate Faculty
Phone

(800) 861-6400

Phone

linda.smith@myunion.edu

I literally “wrote the book” that launched the lactation consultant profession.  I was a founding member of the International Lactation Consultant Association and co-developer of the credentialing program conducted by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners.  I am the author of 4 professional textbooks on birth and breastfeeding, and co-author of Sweet Sleep by La Leche League International. I’ve lectured in 19 countries and my presentations have been translated into 12 languages including Chinese, Russian and Inuktitut. I presented my key research areas to international health experts at several World Health Organization meetings.

I currently serve as consultant to the World Health Organization’s Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and as a consultant to Baby-Friendly USA and INFACT Canada/IBFAN North America. I’ve been an expert reviewer on several documents published by the US Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

I hold or have held leadership positions in the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA), the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners (IBLCE), La Leche League International; American Public Health Association (APHA), United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC), American Breastfeeding Institute (ABI), and Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS).

I earned my Bachelor of Science in Education at the State University of New York in Cortland, majoring in physical education and hygiene in 1968. I followed my husband’s military career for 26 years, living in 9 cities and 2 countries while fitting my professional life around my family. I earned a Master of Public Health with Global Health concentration from Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University in 2011. My three breastfed children are now adults, and my 4 grandchildren were all breastfed.

Publications – books

  • Comprehensive Lactation Consultant Exam Review, Jones & Bartlett: 2001, 2007, 2011 and 2015. (5th edition is in progress)
  • Impact of Birthing Practices on Breastfeeding, Jones & Bartlett: 2004 and 2010.
  • Coach’s Notebook: Games and Strategies for Lactation Education, Jones & Bartlett: 2002
  • The Lactation Consultant in Private Practice: The ABC’s of Getting Started, Jones & Bartlett: 2003
  • Breastfeeding Process: Postpartum Period (Chapter 8). In Breastfeeding and Human Lactation, 3rd, 4th and 5th editions. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2005, 2010, 2016, and 6th edition, 2021.
  • Why Johnny Can’t Suck: Impact of Birth Practices on Infant Suck (Chapter 3). In Supporting Sucking Skills in Breastfeeding Infants, 1st 2nd and 3rd Editions, Catherine Watson Genna. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2007 and 2015.
  • Biochemistry of Human Milk and Immunology, Infectious Disease, and Allergy Prophylaxis in Core Curriculum for Lactation Consultant Practice, 2nd and 3rd editions. Ed. Marsha Walker, Rebecca Mannel and Patricia Martens. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers 2007 and 2013.
  • Sweet Sleep: Nighttime and Naptime Strategies for Breastfeeding Families, with Diane Wiessinger, Diana West and Teresa Pittman. La Leche League International / Random House-Ballantine Books, 2014

Publications – peer-reviewed journal articles

  • Bartick, M., & Smith, L. J. (2014). Speaking Out on Safe Sleep: Evidence-Based Infant Sleep Recommendations. Breastfeed Med. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2014.0113
  • Morgan, K. H., Groer, M. W., & Smith, L. J. (2006). The Controversy About What Constitutes Safe and Nurturant Infant Sleep Environments. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing, 35(6), 684-691.
  • Okeke, J., Raymond, I., Paton, S. J., Smith, L. J., & Khalil, N. (2017). Association of Maternal Demographic Characteristics with Breastfeeding of Low Birth Weight Infants in Ohio in 2012. Clinical Lactation, 8(1), 22-27.
  • Rogers, N. L., Abdi, J., Moore, D., Nd’iangui, S., Smith, L. J., Carlson, A. J., & Carlson, D. (2011). Colostrum avoidance, prelacteal feeding and late breast-feeding initiation in rural Northern Ethiopia. Public Health Nutr, 14(11), 2029-2036.
  • Smith, L. J. (1991). Expert witness: what to emphasize. J Hum Lact, 7(3), 141.
  • Smith, L. J. (1995). A score sheet for evaluating breastfeeding educational materials. J Hum Lact, 11(4), 307-311.
  • Smith, L. J. (2007). Impact of birthing practices on the breastfeeding dyad. J Midwifery Womens Health, 52(6), 621-630.
  • Zakarija-Grkovic, I., Pavicic Bosnjak, A., Buljan, I., Vettorazzi, R., & Smith, L. J. (2019). The IBLCE exam: candidate experience, motivation, study strategies used and predictors of success. International Breastfeeding Journal, 14(1), 2. doi:10.1186/s13006-018-0197-2