As most of you know, I love breastfeeding. I am a firm believer in the proven health benefits of it both for mom and for baby, I appreciate the convenience of it, and I deeply enjoy that special time with my son.
But not all moms breastfeed. AND THAT IS OK!
Recently some new research came to light about the supposed long term effects of breastfeeding. According to the study, breastfed babies grow up to be more successful than their formula-fed counterparts. This is where I call bullshit. There are SO many other variables in the upbringing of children that can't possibly be accounted for, not to mention differences in their personalities and their aspirations in life.
Frankly, I'm a little insulted by this conclusion. I was only given breastmilk for about the first week and a half of my life and was bottle-fed after that. So for the sake of labels, I was a formula baby. And I turned out just fine! Better than fine, really. I don't mean to toot my own horn here, but I'm pretty smart. I was always in the advanced reading group in elementary and middle school and I took (and passed) college level English in high school. I graduated from high school with a 4.0 and went on to get my Bachelor's degree from a well-reputed private college. I am now teaching and intend to pursue graduate level education in the future. For what it's worth, I'm also not overweight, which is another supposed effect of "poisoning" your child with formula, and I have a very close and loving relationship with my mom despite the fact that she did not use her breasts to feed me for the majority of my infancy.
My mom quit breastfeeding because she encountered difficulties with it and did not have supportive people to help her through them, but there are a wide variety of reasons why a woman may not breastfeed. For starters, she may not be able to! I am #blessed to be a part of an amazing online group of moms who had babies around the same time as me. One of these lovely ladies is mom to a precious little boy who has a genetic condition that prevents him from metabolizing breastmilk. Try telling her all about the antibodies he's not getting! She'll laugh in your face (after she punches it).
Some mothers experience debilitating anxiety when they try to breastfeed, which is not uncommon but often overlooked. To suggest that these women simply power through is to suggest that their mental wellbeing doesn't matter and can affect their ability to have healthy relationships with their babies.
Several others in my group wanted very much to breastfeed, but were just not producing enough milk to keep their babies full and growing. Telling these women how much better off their babies would be if they were breastfed is a slap in the face to the struggle they went through trying to make it work and the pain they experienced when they accepted that it wasn't working.
Then there are adoptive mothers whose bodies never produced milk to begin with. Or mothers who have to be on medication that would harm the baby through breastmilk. Or moms who just simply don't like the idea of breastfeeding and choose not to do it.
Unfortunately, these and many other women have to respond to criticism and judgement for how they are feeding their babies, (one of them even had her doctor scold her) which is absurd to me. As long as their babies are being fed, it is no one else's business how!
I wondered why these types of studies are still being published when it has long been established that breastmilk is nutritionally superior to formula, and I think the underlying cause is rooted in a feminist issue. Society wants to make sure women are doing things a certain way and has no qualms with shaming them if they don't. This is not ok.
Moms have enough to stress over without having to wrestle with guilt for their choice not to breastfeed. So please, can we stop telling women that they and their babies are inferior if they don't successfully breastfeed? Explain the benefits at a prenatal appointment, offer support if mom wants it, but make sure she knows that whichever direction she goes with her child's diet, SHE IS A GOOD MOM.
And regardless of what any questionable study says, in ten years no one will be able to look at your kid and tell that they drank formula.
But not all moms breastfeed. AND THAT IS OK!
Recently some new research came to light about the supposed long term effects of breastfeeding. According to the study, breastfed babies grow up to be more successful than their formula-fed counterparts. This is where I call bullshit. There are SO many other variables in the upbringing of children that can't possibly be accounted for, not to mention differences in their personalities and their aspirations in life.
Frankly, I'm a little insulted by this conclusion. I was only given breastmilk for about the first week and a half of my life and was bottle-fed after that. So for the sake of labels, I was a formula baby. And I turned out just fine! Better than fine, really. I don't mean to toot my own horn here, but I'm pretty smart. I was always in the advanced reading group in elementary and middle school and I took (and passed) college level English in high school. I graduated from high school with a 4.0 and went on to get my Bachelor's degree from a well-reputed private college. I am now teaching and intend to pursue graduate level education in the future. For what it's worth, I'm also not overweight, which is another supposed effect of "poisoning" your child with formula, and I have a very close and loving relationship with my mom despite the fact that she did not use her breasts to feed me for the majority of my infancy.
My mom quit breastfeeding because she encountered difficulties with it and did not have supportive people to help her through them, but there are a wide variety of reasons why a woman may not breastfeed. For starters, she may not be able to! I am #blessed to be a part of an amazing online group of moms who had babies around the same time as me. One of these lovely ladies is mom to a precious little boy who has a genetic condition that prevents him from metabolizing breastmilk. Try telling her all about the antibodies he's not getting! She'll laugh in your face (after she punches it).
Some mothers experience debilitating anxiety when they try to breastfeed, which is not uncommon but often overlooked. To suggest that these women simply power through is to suggest that their mental wellbeing doesn't matter and can affect their ability to have healthy relationships with their babies.
Several others in my group wanted very much to breastfeed, but were just not producing enough milk to keep their babies full and growing. Telling these women how much better off their babies would be if they were breastfed is a slap in the face to the struggle they went through trying to make it work and the pain they experienced when they accepted that it wasn't working.
Then there are adoptive mothers whose bodies never produced milk to begin with. Or mothers who have to be on medication that would harm the baby through breastmilk. Or moms who just simply don't like the idea of breastfeeding and choose not to do it.
Unfortunately, these and many other women have to respond to criticism and judgement for how they are feeding their babies, (one of them even had her doctor scold her) which is absurd to me. As long as their babies are being fed, it is no one else's business how!
I wondered why these types of studies are still being published when it has long been established that breastmilk is nutritionally superior to formula, and I think the underlying cause is rooted in a feminist issue. Society wants to make sure women are doing things a certain way and has no qualms with shaming them if they don't. This is not ok.
Moms have enough to stress over without having to wrestle with guilt for their choice not to breastfeed. So please, can we stop telling women that they and their babies are inferior if they don't successfully breastfeed? Explain the benefits at a prenatal appointment, offer support if mom wants it, but make sure she knows that whichever direction she goes with her child's diet, SHE IS A GOOD MOM.
And regardless of what any questionable study says, in ten years no one will be able to look at your kid and tell that they drank formula.
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