--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A mother’s breast is like an efficient…" description: "\"“A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it produces general disease preventing substances for everyday use and then makes up specific medic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg" --- # A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it… ![“A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it produces general disease preventing substances for everyday use and then makes up specific medicines to order as need arises.” quote by Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg) > ““A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it produces general disease preventing substances for everyday use and then makes up specific medicines to order as need arises.”” [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Breast milk naturally provides both general immunity and tailored medicines as needed. **In simple terms:** Breast milk offers broad and specific health protection. Key Takeaway Breastfeeding supports adaptive immunity. Themes nutrition immunity maternal health Mood informative thoughtful Type educational scientific When to use this quote - newborn care - maternal counseling - public health policy - research studies Key Concepts immunology personalized medicine Questions to Reflect On - How does personalized nutrition affect infant health? - What alternatives exist when breastfeeding isn’t possible? A Different Perspective Not all mothers can breastfeed; formula may be necessary. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Breast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breast/) [Efficient Pharmacist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/efficient-pharmacist-5972225/) [Everyday use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everyday-use/) [Mother Breast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother-breast-366639/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Pharmacist Produces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pharmacist-produces-5972224/) [Substances Everyday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/substances-everyday-5972226/) ## Related quotes > [“a mother’s breast gives warmth, food, protection against disease and a learning exercise in interactions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-mother-s-breast-gives-warmth-food-protection-against-disease-and-a/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [One would think he never sucked at his mother’s breast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/one-would-think-he-never-sucked-at-his-mother-s-breast/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [“If she then has to cry to communicate her hunger, when she gets to her mother’s breast she might be too exhausted to suckle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/if-she-then-has-to-cry-to-communicate-her-hunger-when-she-gets-to-her/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Just a few hundred years ago, most human societies found breast exposure in everyday life unremarkable. What has happened to us?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/just-a-few-hundred-years-ago-most-human-societies-found-breast/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“A breast is the best comforter, yet in western society it has been viewed merely as a conveyor of ‘feeds’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-breast-is-the-best-comforter-yet-in-western-society-it-has-been/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [Men as well as women, must strive for a balance of experience. Masculinity, defined as requiring the ability to act physically or mentally but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-cox/men-as-well-as-women-must-strive-for-a-balance-of-experience/) [Eva Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-cox/) > [“About twenty years later, the Pentagon would begin giving away millions of pieces of military equipment to police departments across the country for everyday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radley-balko/about-twenty-years-later-the-pentagon-would-begin-giving-away/) [Radley Balko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radley-balko/) > [“The dandelion was long popularly known as the 'pissabed' because of its supposed diuretic properties, and other names in everyday use included 'mare's fart',…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-dandelion-was-long-popularly-known-as-the-pissabed-because-of-its/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [When philosophers use a word--"knowledge," "being," "object," "I," "proposition," "name"--and try to grasp the essence of the thing, one must always ask oneself: is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/when-philosophers-use-a-word-knowledge-being-object-i-proposition/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [Making beautiful things for everyday use is a wonderful thing to do - making life flow more easily - but art confronts life, allowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/making-beautiful-things-for-everyday-use-is-a-wonderful-thing-to-do/) [Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/) > [“When Isaac Newton embarked on his great program, he encountered a fundamental lack of definition where it was most needed. He began with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/when-isaac-newton-embarked-on-his-great-program-he-encountered-a/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [“It is an old observation that the best writers sometimes disregard the rules of rhetoric. When they do so, however, the reader will usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-strunk-jr-2/it-is-an-old-observation-that-the-best-writers-sometimes-disregard/) [William Strunk Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-strunk-jr-2/) > [“Treating Abuse Today (Tat), 3(4), pp. 26-33 Freyd: I see what you're saying but people in psychology don't have a uniform agreement on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-l-calof/treating-abuse-today-tat-3-4-pp-26-33-freyd-i-see-what-you-re-saying/) [David L. Calof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-l-calof/) > [The Convention is not only a visionary document. We are reminded daily that it is an agreement that works - and its utility can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-bellamy/the-convention-is-not-only-a-visionary-document-we-are-reminded-daily/) [Carol Bellamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-bellamy/) > [I tell my students to think of poems as language plus, language with value added beyond its everyday use.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-youn/i-tell-my-students-to-think-of-poems-as-language-plus-language-with/) [Monica Youn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-youn/) ## More by Gabrielle Palmer > [“The BFHI was designed to protect and promote exclusive breastfeeding, but its provisions always included the acceptance of medically indicated replacement feeding. When this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/the-bfhi-was-designed-to-protect-and-promote-exclusive-breastfeeding/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Babies who do not sleep ‘through the night’ alone in a cot, as soon as possible after birth, are seen as a ‘problem’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/babies-who-do-not-sleep-through-the-night-alone-in-a-cot-as-soon-as/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“a midwife’s role was to work with nature, whereas a doctor was trained to seek out its defects and remedy them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-midwife-s-role-was-to-work-with-nature-whereas-a-doctor-was-trained/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“a product presented as ‘closest to mother’s milk’ might actually include potatoes, fungi and beans, depending on the price of course.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-product-presented-as-closest-to-mother-s-milk-might-actually/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“It is difficult to insist on breastfeeding because nurses and physicians are eager to have the infant show the greatest possible gain.”12”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/it-is-difficult-to-insist-on-breastfeeding-because-nurses-and/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“In some countries, pumping has become the default method of expression, and hand expression has become an afterthought. It would be safer if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/in-some-countries-pumping-has-become-the-default-method-of-expression/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“The parts of the brain which influence social and emotional relationships do not develop automatically but in response to the way a baby is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/the-parts-of-the-brain-which-influence-social-and-emotional/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Breastfeeding mothers, sleeping by their babies in three-sided cribs with the open side joined to the adult bed, respond quite differently from mothers whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/breastfeeding-mothers-sleeping-by-their-babies-in-three-sided-cribs/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“In the same way, breastfeeding is seen as a woman’s topic. Though women are often told whether or not they should do it, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/in-the-same-way-breastfeeding-is-seen-as-a-woman-s-topic-though-women/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“It seems likely that if you are told that your vagina is so ill-designed that it must be cut open to perform a normal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/it-seems-likely-that-if-you-are-told-that-your-vagina-is-so-ill/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Love facilitates a massive burst of connections in this part of the brain between six and 12 months. Neglect at this time can greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/love-facilitates-a-massive-burst-of-connections-in-this-part-of-the/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“It is now known that babies’ brains develop according to how much they are loved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/it-is-now-known-that-babies-brains-develop-according-to-how-much-they/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Breastmilk is designed for rapid digestion and frequent feeding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/breastmilk-is-designed-for-rapid-digestion-and-frequent-feeding/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“Breastmilk substitutes can be useful, life-saving products, just as artificial insulin can save the lives of diabetics, but no honest doctor could advocate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/breastmilk-substitutes-can-be-useful-life-saving-products-just-as/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) > [“An exclusively breastfed child can die, just as an artificially fed child can survive, because of a range of risk factors, but this does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/an-exclusively-breastfed-child-can-die-just-as-an-artificially-fed/) [Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) [Explore all 339 Gabrielle Palmer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/) ## More Breast quotes > [With breast cancer, it's all about detection. You have to educate young women and encourage them to do everything they have to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-rancic/with-breast-cancer-it-s-all-about-detection-you-have-to-educate-young/) [Bill Rancic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-rancic/) > [Having breast cancer is massive amounts of no fun,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/having-breast-cancer-is-massive-amounts-of-no-fun/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I was a 36C or D, and at 5' 1'', I knew that being a small person with big boobs standing in front of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/i-was-a-36c-or-d-and-at-5-1-i-knew-that-being-a-small-person-with-big/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [Breast cancer is not just a disease that strikes at women. It strikes at the very heart of who we are as women: how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-wasserman-schultz/breast-cancer-is-not-just-a-disease-that-strikes-at-women-it-strikes/) [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-wasserman-schultz/) > [I love boobs. Save breast cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-boobs-save-breast-cancer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I didn't know anything about breast cancer when I got it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rue-mcclanahan/i-didn-t-know-anything-about-breast-cancer-when-i-got-it/) [Rue McClanahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rue-mcclanahan/) > [I didn't breast-feed. I'm selfish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shanna-moakler/i-didn-t-breast-feed-i-m-selfish/) [Shanna Moakler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shanna-moakler/) > [Breast cancer change you, and the change can be beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyssa-jane-cook/breast-cancer-change-you-and-the-change-can-be-beautiful/) [Alyssa-Jane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyssa-jane-cook/) > [One in 10 women will get breast cancer at some stage in their life and that's quite a scary thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kasper-schmeichel/one-in-10-women-will-get-breast-cancer-at-some-stage-in-their-life/) [Kasper Schmeichel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kasper-schmeichel/) > [Breast implants gross me out. I don't think they're attractive at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-portman/breast-implants-gross-me-out-i-don-t-think-they-re-attractive-at-all/) [Natalie Portman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-portman/) > [Breast cancer isn't one disease - it's probably four or five different types, and without knowing what type a person has, you can't optimize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/breast-cancer-isn-t-one-disease-it-s-probably-four-or-five-different/) [Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/) > [Well, right now, technically, I have no breast cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-redgrave/well-right-now-technically-i-have-no-breast-cancer/) [Lynn Redgrave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-redgrave/) > [I sometimes think, would I drink the milk from the breast of a woman I don't know? No. So I think, why would I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-aoki/i-sometimes-think-would-i-drink-the-milk-from-the-breast-of-a-woman-i/) [Devon Aoki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-aoki/) > [My friend had breast cancer and I came with her to the operation. We were taking funny pictures of her in her gown and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-sanders/my-friend-had-breast-cancer-and-i-came-with-her-to-the-operation-we/) [Lou Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-sanders/) > [Two souls dwell, alas! in my breast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/two-souls-dwell-alas-in-my-breast/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) [Browse all 139 Breast quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breast/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it produces general disease preventing substances for everyday use and then makes up specific medicines to order as need arises.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gabrielle Palmer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-pharmacist-it-produces-general/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Breast" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-pharmacist-it-produces-general/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55d/gabrielle-palmer-891_everyday-use_a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-p_1581027.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A mother’s breast is like an efficient pharmacist: it produces general disease preventing substances for…” — Gabrielle Palmer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gabrielle Palmer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“A mother’s breast is like an...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-pharmacist-it-produces-general/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/a-mother-s-breast-is-like-an-efficient-pharmacist-it-produces-general/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```