Fearful of breastfeeding in public

Heres an article that caught our attention subsequent to our previous post on the issue of feeding in public!

Two mothers in three 'fear stares if they breastfeed'

Parliament to debate change in the law to support nursing mothers

Susie Mesure and Brian Brady

Sunday, 5 July 2009

It is as near to the elixir of life as a liquid can get, especially for a newborn baby. But children are still being denied breastmilk by new mums who are too self-conscious to nurse on the go for fear of attracting the opprobrium of a "bottle-fed" nation, according to a new survey that deals a fresh blow to Britain's attempts to improve its pitiful track record on breastfeeding.

Despite decades of initiatives to persuade mothers that "breast is best", most still prefer using infant formula milk because they believe society at large is anti-breastfeeding, a poll for Mother & Baby magazine has found. The survey comes on the eve of World Breastfeeding Week as the Government debates whether to introduce legislation protecting a mother's right to breastfeed.

Nearly two in three mothers believe the UK is "not breastfeeding-friendly", prompting concerns from nursing mums that they would struggle to breastfeed while out and about. Miranda Levy, Mother & Baby's editor, said: "Every mum we questioned understood the health benefits of breastfeeding, but a huge percentage were put off even trying because of the fear of people staring."

She added that many of the 1,200 readers surveyed cited stressful breastfeeding experiences, with one commenting that she was even asked to be more discreet at a "mums and tots" group because the lady running the group had her husband there.

Although the World Health Organisation recommends mothers exclusively breastfeed their babies until they are six months old, barely a third of British babies are still exclusively breastfed at one week and just one-fifth still are by six weeks. By the time babies are four months old, that figure has plunged to 7 per cent, giving Britain one of the worst breastfeeding records in the developed world.

In a first for a mainstream UK publication, Mother & Baby's August cover will feature a nursing mum. In the US, the style tome W showed Angelina Jolie nursing her twins last autumn.

Rosie Dodds, of the National Childbirth Trust (NCT), which helped to conduct the poll, said: "Most women stop breastfeeding because they lack support." The NCT is launching a national drive to promote nursing-friendly venues, although campaigners believes women should feel comfortable breastfeeding anywhere.

Michelle Atkin, who set up Little Angels to promote breastfeeding, thinks that "we see breasts primarily as sexual, and to use them for anything else confuses people".

Ilana King, a counsellor for the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers, said: "If we saw more women out and about breastfeeding then more mums would start but we live in a bottle-feeding culture." A mother of three, including 11-month-old Saul, she said it tended to be the older generation who cast disapproving looks.

The issue of breastfeeding opened up a split during discussions of the Government's controversial Equality Bill, which is going through Parliament. The proposals would enshrine mothers' rights to breastfeed babies aged six months and under in public places, including shops and cafes, granting them legal protection against overzealous staff who fear they would embarrass other customers.

No-one is imposing anything on you if they breastfeed in public. What exactly are they imposing? Their very presence? If a woman is breastfeeding in your vicinity, all she is doing is tending to a child. It does not impose on others in any way. As we have on our quote this week - "anyone offended by a baby breastfeeding is staring too hard"! If you do look, perhaps it makes you blush, but that's ok. Hopefully she'll be far too busy to notice you gawking!
Here's an interesting comment subsequent to the letter -

"Without babies there would be no "life" and babies are meant to consume human milk from a breast. Sorry but even milk from a bottle is inferior.
Further if breastfeeding is a "lifestyle" then so is "formula feeding" which many find offensive, so no more bottle fed babies or animals in public or on TV if you please. Oh and while we're at it Jews and Muslims find your "lifestyle" choice of uncovered hair, or any skin, offensive -so please stop. FYI even Muslims that wear the full covering that only shows their eyes -breastfeed in public; not breastfeeding is considered religiously offensive to them, so again -no more bottle feeding for you. Also no more eating bottom feeding fish, sea food, pigs, or cows, or any meat as you might offend vegetarians, vegans, Jews, Muslims, and Hindu peoples."

I don't think its even remotely a 'look at me' kind of thing. Its a 'feeding a baby' kind of thing. It does mums good to get out the house and meet friends at a cafe after having a baby, and chances are, when they do, the baby will get hungry and cry. If its bottle fed, well, that's quite a common sight, a baby in a cafe being fed a bottle . Why should a breastfed baby be viewed any differently? Why should that mum and her baby be struggling lonely and isolated indoors because someone might blush, or find this a bit uncomfortable.

Its very rarely noticable anyway. I hope todays new mums are not distressed by the very silly comments being posted by some people today. Its healthy, good for everyone for mums to get out the house and feed their baby wherever they need to, and if they do have to nurse while out, 90% of the public won't realise 90% of the time.

I've yet to see a breastfeeding woman show any more skin than is seen on the average teenager or women at the Academy Awards. Let alone the average bikini!

Actually I've seen more nipples accidentally fall out of ridiculously low cut tops than I've seen mom's miss it when a baby suddenly unlatches. I'm not going to say it doesn't happen, it does, its happened to me -but usually I'm not right in the middle of a store picking something up nor at the cash when it happens.

You almost never see any nipple, rarely see much more than the top inch of breast when a woman is nursing. Actually mostly you see their side more than anything. And while a bit of pudgy abs with stretch marks isn't the top of "hot things people want to see" its not exactly offensive either. And why the heck are men allowed to go around topless and not women!? Hmmm ok so the population of working men would grind to a halt I fear, and land us in even further recession!

Mums need to be brave and inspired about feeding in publice, but so does the general public, to view with awe and admiration the act of breastfeeding. The more mums that feed in public, the more it becomes acceptable, the norm, and inspires the mums with bumps all over our country to think about breastfeeding as the normal "done thing". Society repeats itself and mimics what it sees. If the women who are currently breastfeeding are not seen to do it, nothing changes, and the only feeding babies are seen to do in public is from latex.

I dont think that encouraging mums not to cover up in public is the answer - feeding in public is the answer, bring out your babies, wear just a string vest if you feel up to it (fantastic!!), but if wearing 3 pashminas is what allows you to feed in public, then you go girl, and bring all the cashmere you need. The main thing is, youre doing it, and you'll inspire others around you. The only people that can change our culture is you!