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Breast Milk, Baby Formula and the Top 10 Breastfeeding Controversies
Obscene! Or is it?
Breastfeeding. There I go starting a controversy!
Of all the things that get parents and the people who watch them riled up, breastfeeding has to be one of the most enduring. The act is encouraged yet undermined, praised yet reviled, touted as physically healthy while scourged as emotionally problematic.
Even circumcision, the other white-hot, can’t-win decision parents have to make, peters out (ha! intentional …) by the time the baby gets his first tooth. But a baby with a bottle/suckling her mother? That’s irresponsible. Disgusting! A sure sign that Mom has caved in to the formula companies/boob Nazis.
Now, I’m not trying to start a milk-squirting match between us baby-feeders. I know the mere act of stirring Carnation Comfort Proteins with filtered water is a confession of mothering failure (and by “mothering,” I am indeed speaking exclusively of women-moms). But at least pointed fingers and shaking heads are aimed at the deep personal failings of the individual who has chosen to serve formula. When it comes to hating on breastfeeders, there’s always the underlying implication that you are a sick, needy woman who has lost her identity but not the baby fat. (And also calls to go feed the kid under a blanket or in the bathroom!)
Know what I mean?
TIME magazine has put together a list of the Top 10 breastfeeding controversies and nearly all of the controversies center around the issue of modesty. Here’s a list of the controversies and then I add a few below that. Mine aren’t as sexy (yes, I meant that too!) as Mark Zuckerberg trolling his behemoth X-ing out some photos, but bafflingly, not others.
- Sarah Palin Slams Michelle Obama
- Woman Kicked Off a Plane for Breast Feeding
- Facebook Accussed of Censoring Breast-Feeding Photos
- Breast-Feeding School-Age Kids
- The Realistic Breast-Feeding Baby Doll
- A Proformula Onesie?
- Salma Hayek Breast-Feeds an African Baby
- Redbook’s Breast-Feeding Cover
- Julie Bowen’s Revealing Photo
- The Angelina Jolie Breast-Feeding Statue
They left out a couple of others, such as the new IRS rule, which classifies breast pumps as medical equipment and allows some families to write them off (or, as Michele Bachmann thinks, the government buys every lactating woman a free awesome breast pump!)
They also left out a huge controversy from a couple of years ago when The Atlantic‘s Hanna Rosin asked whether studies really do show conclusively that breast is best in her article “The Case Against Breastfeeding.” Another great breastfeeding controversy was when Jill Lepore asked in the New Yorker whether setting up nursing rooms at corporate headquarters was really in the best interest of moms and babies.
And then, just the general controversy of … not wanting to breastfeed.
We’re at an interesting moment in parenting and women’s history, don’t you think? This is all going to look funny to our own kids, right? (At least the breastfed ones.)
What other breastfeeding controversies can you think of? Any personal controversies you’d like to share?
Photo: Alison Bean [via wikimedia commons]
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9 Comments
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Breast Milk, Baby Formula and the Top 10 Breastfeeding Controversies – Babble (blog) | BreastFeeding Husband commented on Feb 23 11 at 10:37 pmLinda, the original one commented on Feb 24 11 at 12:57 amI’d like to share, once again, that no one ought ot be using the term “Nazi” like that. It just completely sucks and I’d think you’d know better.
Madeline Holler commented on Feb 24 11 at 9:51 amRight, I hate it too, LTOO. Which is why I mocked it.
Eliza commented on Feb 24 11 at 12:06 pmI found out yesterday that it is illegal to breastfeed an infant over a year old in public in Tennessee. I am truly shocked and appalled. I nursed my child long after one… and I nursed in public all over NY and TN.
I’m not going to judge anyone for their choices, and I hope no one judges me – but if you try to arrest me, whole different ball of wax.
LogicalMama commented on Feb 24 11 at 1:24 pmI saw a woman breastfeeding her son in the frozen food isle at the grocery store the other day. No blanket to cover him, full on breast exposure with a toddler. I wanted to tell her I thought it was often she was out there like that, but I thought it might distract the little one so I just smiled and moved on, so happy she was doing it! And cracking up that it was probably not in the most accepting neighborhood and it was Grocery Outlet!!!
Linda, the original one commented on Feb 24 11 at 1:29 pmI don’t consider your context here “mocking” it, I consider it normalizing it’s use, which tells other that it’s okay to use this term as a pejorative.
Amee commented on Mar 09 11 at 2:48 amI think it’s a beautiful and wonderful thing to be able to breastfeed your child/children. I planned on breastfeeding my daughter for a little over a year but unfortunately I was only able to exclusively breastfeed the first 3 months because my milk supply wasn’t producing enough feedings in a day which I was pretty sad about so I’ve been supplementing with formula ever since. I had a handful of people look at me horrified when I’d breastfeed in public with a nurse covering which I thought was so ridiculous. I know breast is best but if you choose either way to feed then that’s alright, putting other people down for the way they feed their child is just immature.. Great post by the way!
Andrea @ FoxInFlats commented on Apr 13 11 at 8:33 amBreastfeeding controversy? What to wear!!!
I mean, don’t we all start off nursing and then realise we can hardly wear any of our wardrobe?
And if you want to cover up a little in public, how can you do this and still like kinda cool?We gathered 21 mothers together to share their style tips, ideas and what to avoid while nursing, as part of a series called From Milk Machine to Style Machine.
Part 1: Nursing Tops: http://bit.ly/hCs00z
Part 2: Nursing in Public: http://bit.ly/eVe2Yu
A few more to come.
Enjoy!
Mary commented on Aug 07 11 at 9:00 amBREAST MILK BABY – OMG – I cannot believe any company (hopefully comprised of thinking people) is so anxious to make a buck that they would come up with a breast milk baby. Kids have enough to worry about growing up in this day and age — now they need to have a halter bra and a sucking baby to make them grow up faster? As far as the argument for kids wanting to act like parents – does that extend to simulated intercourse? Simulated drinking or smoking? Is this necessary? Is this going to make anyone a better mother? I am completely in favor of breast feeding for mothers that are able to do so but these are children with no requirement for this activity. When did good sense completely leave our society?
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