Breastfeed or else! So what do you think?

Although I think that the public health campaign (which was launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. a year ago, BTW) is a bit "out there" I still think it's very important for new moms to be targeted with this kind of information. A campaign directed at mothers (especially first time mothers) was really needed, but maybe they could have found a better way to present the message.

One of the points of this whole campaign was also to begin to change the language that we use when we talk about breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding is the biological norm. It's what our bodies expect to do after birth and it's what a baby's system is designed to expect for nutrition. But we don't talk about it that way anymore. The language we currently tend to use implys that formula feeding is the norm, as opposed to an alternative. Pregnancy books and prenatal classes always talk about "the benefits of breastfeeding."

Nope. Sorry folks. I'm gonna say something shocking. There are NO BENEFITS to breastfeeding. Yep...you heard me right. If something is the biological norm, how can doing it be considered beneficial? Since breastfeeding should be considered the norm, in truth it carries no "benefits." Instead, choosing not to breastfeed carries RISKS or DISADVANTAGES. Because breastfeeding should be considered the biological norm, breastfed babies should not be refered to as "healthier babies," but instead we should say that artificially-fed babies are typically ill more often and more seriously.

The Indy Star article mentions that Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), has proposed requiring manufacturers to place warning labels on cans of infant formula and in advertisements, similar to those on cigarettes. I think this is a fabulous idea. Any other product that carries such serious risks typically has a warning label of some sort on it. Why not on a can of formula?

And here's the one thing that really irks me when discussions about this subject come up. Inevitaby, some mother makes a comment like, "how can you tell me, or any other mom, that we are horrible and bad moms for not breast feeding?" In truth, they are reading into things and projecting their own feelings and opinions into what they have read or heard. The majority of the time no one has called anyone else a bad mom. Instead, what has been said is that formula AS A SUBSTANCE is inferior to breastmilk AS A SUBSTANCE. It has nothing at all to do with the people involved, their parenting skills or how much they love their children. It's a comparison of two substances.

SO...how do we look at this whole situation in a positive way? How do we encourage more mothers to try breastfeeding and to nurse their children longer? How do we get them to attempt to meet the
AAP's recommendation of nursing for at least 12 months?

I think the absolute biggest problem that we face in attempting to increase breastfeeding rates in the United States is that, as a whole, our society doesn't value children and families. Babies are expected to fit into the family unit and nothing should change. Women are given little or no paid time off work when they give birth. Some women here in the USA are lucky enough to be given 12 weeks off through FMLA, but that time is unpaid. What good is time off work if you can't pay the bills for those 12 weeks? As the article states, "...urging women to breast-feed exclusively is a tall order in a country where more than 60 percent of mothers of very young children work."

When mothers do return to work, they may have to beg their employer for a place and a time where they can pump to maintain their milk supply and provide expressed milk for their child during their separation. If they are granted a time and place to pump, they may still face pressures at work that make it difficult to continue pumping. For low-income mothers, the opportunities to pump at work are often slim to none and the free formula provided by WIC is a huge temptation.

Mothers need prenatal education about breastfeeding. Caregivers need to talk to mothers about the importance of breastfeeding and the risks associated with artificial feeding. They need to know that they are welcome to attend support groups like La Leche League before the baby arrives in order to learn more about breastfeeding and build a support system for after the baby arrives.

Mothers need more time off from work after the arrival of a new baby, preferably paid time off. The 12 weeks that FMLA provides should be the minimum time a mother takes off after the birth, not the current average of a measly 6 weeks. Even if the mother isn't breastfeeding, becoming a mother is a major life change and should be treated as such!

Mothers need support from other women and health care professionals who are knowledgeable about breastfeeding. (And, in the case of HCP's...not in the formula companies' pocket.) They need easy access to La Leche League Leaders, International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) and they need follow-up care in the early weeks at home from their doctors or midwives.

Working mothers need access to good quality breastpumps that are affordable. They need places to pump privately at work. They need child care providers who are supportive of breastfeeding. If possible, on-site child care with nursing breaks would be wonderful.

In general, nursing mothers need society to grow up a bit and remember that breasts were created to nourish our young, not to be oogled on billboards, movie screens or in Victoria's Secret catalogues. Mothers need to be able to nurse in public without being harrassed, asked to nurse in a bathroom or to "not do that here."

So.....what do you think?