Richard and Judy rant

[emkana]

They just had the woman on who gave birth to a massive baby two weeks ago. Judy said "I hesitate to ask if you're breastfeeding him" and the woman said "no" and R and J murmured in agreement - as if breastfeeding was completely out of the question in this case, due to the baby's size.

and that's exactly the thing that p*es me off - perpetuating stupid and untrue prejudices about breastfeeding like this - "large baby - milk won't be enough"

I don't know why she had to ask the question at all, really, but if she had to ask she could have done it without hesitation and just accept the answer, whatever it was! Not making a judgement on either method of feeding!

[beansprout]

How big was the baby?

[emkana]

nearly 14 pounds

[hercules]

So, does Judy think babies who weigh that much can't manage on breastmilk?

[alux]

Silly to raise and drop the issue like that. Shows the level on drivel we tolerate in our living rooms.

[beansprout]

R & J are just awful really.
Ds was 10lb 5oz and every damn midwife said "ooh, you'll be feeding him all the time". Er, no I don't.

[cupcakes]

I got the impression that Judy was 'hesitating to ask' because it was a contentious issue, not because she disapproved of it. I felt that if the women had said 'yes' she and Richard would have congratulated her. As it was they didn't want to criticise and so applauded her choice as right for her baby. They were just being friendly to her.

[NotQuiteCockney]

I thought bigger babies had bigger stomachs, and hence could go longer between feeds?

I certainly find DS2, who started out lighter than DS1 had been, but piled on the pounds, is much better at going without feeds.

[lunarx]

i had a friend whose son was almost 11 lbs (c-section) and she said she couldn't bf because not enough milk to keep him fed. to each their own really... i always thought that we would make enough milk to feed our babies (in most cases, i know there are exceptions)..

(dont get me wrong, i'm not a crazy pro-pro bf'ing nutter or anything.. ) ;o)

[hercules]

bit obsessive perhaps though?

[Beansmum]

what about older babies who are breastfed, they get enough milk and can go ages between feeds.

[lunarx]

hercules> presuming you were responding to me, not at all. i bf and bottlefed i dont care how anyone chooses to feed their babies and would never judge anyone otherwise, although i do think most women should give bf'ing a go, and if it doesn't work, it doesn't. but to each their own, ultimately!

[Gem13]

I'm with emkana on this. Had it on in the background and when Judy said that I got the impression she meant it in terms of it would be the death of the mother if she tried to breastfeed him. They should meet my friend who has a 22 pounder who up until last week was solely breastfeed!

Couldn't bear the way they were handling him either. Grrr.

[Gem13]

I'm with emkana on this. Had it on in the background and when Judy said that I got the impression she meant it in terms of it would be the death of the mother if she tried to breastfeed him. They should meet my friend who has a 22 pounder who up until last week was solely breastfeed!

Couldn't bear the way they were handling him either. Grrr.

[Demented]

I didn't see this but from the depths of memory I seem to remember Judy talking about b/feeding her twins, surely if she could feed twins then this woman could feed her baby. Could be wrong about Judy feeding twins though. Does anyone else know?

[Cod]

Message withdrawn

[chipmonkey]

I thought Judy's breasts were just for showing off at awards ceremonies?

[hercules]

Lunarx- it was a joke! sorry if it didnt come across that way

[Demented]

Splutter!

Are Judy's twins not from her first marriage?

Can you tell I used to watch a lot of day-time TV after DS1 was born?

[KathH]

i remember judy talking about b/feeding her twins too!

[emkana]

gem13 - I wanted to shout at them, too, when I saw Richard carrying that baby without supporting the neck at all! This is a newborn, ffs!

[pepsi]

If you think R & J handled it badly, I didnt watch it so cant comment, drop a them an e:mail, they have a website. If you mention your concerns I bet you could get them to do a slot dispelling the myths about breastfeeding. The womans had 4 kids and postnatal depression too. I dont think they would be happy at the thought that they had upset viewers.

[zebra]

My nephew was 11 lb 12 oz at birth & he was breastfed until... well, at least 18 months, anyway.

[lunarx]

hercules> no, i'm afraid i should be the one to apologise, i was having a bad day yesterday with dh and it really made my day terrible.. i'm sorry i was so jumpy about it all....

[throckenholt]

I thought supply and demand was the rule - we manage to feed babies that are 6 months old that are much bigger - so why can't we feed a big new born. And yes - lots of people breast feed twins (me included ).