to think people are jolly unreasonable about ff/bf?

[Hullygully]

1. I don't care what anyone feeds their babies: sardines, coca cola, bm, fm (although it is a bit sad for the babies if it's sardines).

1. Breast milk is best. If nothing else it has long chain fatty acids that cannot be replicated in formula.

1. Some people can't bf so fine, use formula.

I can't see what else there is to discuss.

"really militant BFs feel they shouldn't try and get FM as close to BM as possible"....I have never, ever heard or read that view anywhere.

This is another example of the 'straw man' argument - 'I am sick of breastfeeding supporters who want to force women to breastfeed' or 'I am all in favour of breastfeeding but I really think people should stop saying formula is poison'.

I suppose there must be someone, somewhere who thinks like this. But they are unpleasant, few and far between, and I have never come across them! And I do not need to get out more.

Several (NCT, Baby Milk Action, Baby Feeding Law Group) breastfeeding support organisations have as policy a goal to work for safer, healthier formula feeding. So, for example, if added ingredient XYZ in Brand X baby formula milk is useful, then it should be in all formula brands.

There is a debate about how to ensure mothers' choices are informed and supported; there is a debate about how not to let mothers down when they switch to ff because bf is unhappy/ineffective; there is a debate about how to ensure formula feeding is safer; there is a debate about how to build mothers' confidence, however they are feeding....and so on. So there is plenty to discuss, OP :)

deepheat , you say:

"however there has been no conclusive study to suggest that this has a negative impact on babies fed with formula as opposed to breast." Not true.

"Most of the studies around this issue have also failed to take into account the socio-economic differences between formula-fed babies and breast-fed" Absolutely not true.

"(they generally compare mothers who CHOSE to formula feed, who are more likely to be from a lower socio-economic group, and therefore less likely to have a good diet that they pass on to their children as they grow " Again, 100 per cent incorrect.

Do a bit of reading. Even a little bit. It will help, I think.

If you're all going to ignore the rules of engagement and start shouting and arguing, I'm off.

can I add a more important fact:

1. I have hidden "breat and bottle feeding" topic so all posters must stick to that for their ff/bf arguments discussions.

Not randomly litter the board with bf/ff threads in the guise of AIBU

Now I've posted its going ot be on my list for days and days and days.

This isn't a bf v ff debate. It's a bf/ff vs Hully debate.

Tiktok, I searched on here once looking for these elusive militant bfers. All mentions of formula = poison are 'it isn't poison and I wish people wouldn't keep saying it is'. No mention of anybody actually calling it poison.

It's like everything. There are always idiots. They tend to say idiotic things. But I've never come across this oft derided faction of bfing mothers.

someone said fishfingers earlier (on about pg1).. is that bad? DS has them about 3 times a week!

Sardines are better. But no one here will judge you.

altinkum - I did say that I supposed someone, somewhere would hold these views. You may be right that someone has posted on mumsnet claiming to be an NCT member and using the word 'poison' - people pretend, people troll, people stir things up.

It's certainly rare, as Raised discovered on her search!

There, that's better. Let's all hold hands and be friends.

Let's all sing something about rainbows and lollipops.

Tshirts?

Wet Nurses?

babyheave wanders off to contemplate the success of a wetnurse T shirt competition. Now where's that Lactivist email address

hully is there also a market for Tshits for when visiting MILs / Mothers etc saying. "Yes of course your way is right" on the front and "but I'm enjoying doing it wrong" on the back?

Breast is best
But it's not a contest
Give it a rest

Aaaaaaargh!!! sucked back in!!!!! Arrgh.

Solely because I am deeply impressed at your safe steerage of even a bf/ff AIBU. Remarkable

< high fives hully >

early days though. Could all go downhill from now

Although, at that early stage many people are obsessed with either managing to do a poo themselves....or at what scary stuff their newborn is producing....

lol at T shits for MILs :o

I am the only breastfeeder who has never ever been told to "top him/her up"?

I agree with the sentiment OP, but it is a bit simplistic. Not least because when you're finding it really hard and have to use formula it's really not fine. And it can cause PND (twice).

Dont give him sardines, the long chain polyunsaturates get chopped up when you mash them and become short chain polyunsaturates

That would be Am I?

And at Tatty

Jamie...? Are you tractor bearing..?

You are, aren't you? I have missed you greatly. Tis a tough ship to sail through stormy seas and o'er the peaks and troughs of outrageous allsorts.

The change to whole scale artificial feeding of babies in this country and in the West in the past 60 years has been described as the 'fastest and most radical change in the entire history of human nutrition'.

And the whole thing has been driven by commercial interests and a profound lack of understanding of the physiology of lactation.

IMO that's something worth talking about.

And I think the fact that there are such powerful commercial interests involved in influencing women's feelings about how they feed their babies, and that the people who're most affected by this revolutionary change are the most vulnerable and completely unable to voice an opinion on the subject, explain why I personally find this subject important.

Would also want to add that I'm fascinated by the seeming inability of the majority of well-nourished, healthy women in this country to breastfeed, despite the fact that most want to. Something very odd is going on. If this level of fallout was intrinsic to breastfeeding then the human race probably would have died out by now. What are we as a society doing to make breastfeeding such a disaster for so many people?

Most people are human in the flesh and don't bleat on about bf/ff in RL....but I made my choice and am a little narrow minded when people make a different choice especially without a good reason, it makes me think society is failing, another sign of 'community' reduced to a nuclear family.

It's really non of my business but I do feel that way.