AIBU to get the rage when i see the SMA advert?

[bopoityboo3]

I have nothing against formula feeding (formula feed DD but having better luck breast feeding DS).
But the current SMA advert gives me such rage. It is so condescending to mums and the brief time it shows a dad being silly with his child, pulling funny faces at them and just generally being a Dad, there is a mum in the background of the shot giving him an evil glare as if he was the worst Dad in the world. Makes me so mad the stereotyping in it.

I think Sheila Kitzinger had this tragic story of a family in Jamaica where the original local clinic advice was to breastfeed for 6 months (meaning, at least 6 months) and the mothers interpreted this as meaning, stop after 6 months because formula is better. Yet they couldn't afford formula, and this particular baby died eventually of malnutrition after being given diluted condensed milk. I always think of that when I watch the formula adverts and how a half truth is particular evil kind of lie.

Grr, I hate the 'Take it from us, you're doing great'.

Probably not as much as 'P&G: Proud Sponsors of Mums' You don't sponsor me you bastards, you want me to buy your products. Totally different.

Oh yeah teeth I didn't think of that!

I definitely see the underlying message about independence

SMA's strategy - two bollocky bollocks things going on here - society doesn't see ff ms as inadequate (because most of society are ff themselves). But implying they do encourages ff mums to feel stigmatised, and to see Wyeth as supportive and empathetic.

Aptamil deliberately targets breastfeeding mothers (which is why they advertise in broadsheet newspapers) and rides on the coat tails of breastfeeding promotion campaigns by constantly implying that Aptimel is very similar to breastmilk and therefore has almost all of its special qualities.

It's all shite. Formula companies can only make she'd loads of money if they can somehow persuade women that their product is so similar to breastmilk as to make the difference trivial and meaningless.

Positing themselves as advocates for mothers is loathe some.

Iscream P&G are just evil. If you are sponsoring me were is my damn endorsement cheque?

Interesting. It may well be only me, but I thought the advert spoke very well to the confusion of being a first time mum and the worry about getting things wrong. Incidentally I breast fed exclusively for 6 months and continued overall till 21 months when DS self weaned so I am no formula fan.

Formula companies want to convey the idea that breastfeeding is an 'ideal' - in other words not what normal, human 'muddling through' mums do.

that's an interesting take on it Everything. I guess part of my rage with it is that it is trying to play on my fears as a mum that I'm getting it wrong and the way it implies i can do it right is to feed my baby this formula and it will solve all other problems.

oh and the implication that dad's are useless.

It's interesting to see the different interpretations of the Aptamil advert. My OH has taken to sticking two fingers up at the telly every time it comes on and saying 'Screw you, Aptamil, my baby doesn't need breast milk to be amazing - she's going to be amazing anyway'.

I interpreted the advert in the same way as Everything, I didn't actually think it was that bad (though after all these comments I'm now thinking I need to find it on youtube to re-watch). I still saw it as an obvious manipulative attempt to get mothers to stop BFing and start buying their product, but in that aim I did think it was well carried out manipulative rubbish. I also exclusively BF for 6 months and was still feeding until DD self-weaned at around 18/19months.

I hate this advert too! and it is over 30 years since I breast fed a baby :)

Can't say I see a problem with it......

I get more annoyed at car adverts to be honest. I didn't breast feed so I suppose bought into the whole dirty formula crap. It is like any other product - they market it to sell it.

I haven't seen the aptamil ad, but I can't stand the SMA one. It drives DH up the wall as well - he figures the implication is: dads can fuck off; you don't matter and/or you're doing shit.

It gives me the rage too but for different reasons. SMA to me is Spinal Muscular Atrophy - the biggest genetic killer of babies under two years old. Oh the irony of having a baby milk with the same name. Our son died from a rare form of this condition called SMARD (spinal muscular atrophy with respiratory distress) in 2005. August is SMA awareness month. Will try to add a link in a min so you can learn a little more if you'd like to.

Right, I hope this works. Here's the link. The YouTube clip might be helpful :).

www.smasupportuk.org.uk/blog/help-us/august-is-sma-awareness-month

I dont like the SMA advert. Although i couldn't say it gives me the rage
The reason i don't like it is that it seems so condescending. I ahree with minifingers on this and also swanhilda
I loathe the Aptamil advert. It reeks of anti breastfeeding propaganda. The imagery is so loaded. On the "breastfeeding" bit the picture is lit differently. Its appears dull tbh. The woman looks older (capital crime on telly), and the image less vibrant than the formula feeding image. It's really subtle but i think the ff image has the woman looking happier and younger. It fully pisses me off, whereas the SMA one ( different target audience) is just "hey, it doesn't matter what you feed your baby"

But the boots adverts are worse [in]
"Ta daah" fuck off!

ac73
Im so sorry about your son.

I've just found the SMA one on YouTube, what a load of patronising shite.

Only thing in it's favour is it's nothing like as clever as the Actimel one. It only suggests formula might make your life easier.

Not that formula is the automatic next step on the dot of your baby being Six Months old or they won't develope properly.

In anycase I'm unbearably smug, I've never doubted for one second, I'm a perfectly good Mum, so the SMA crap goes straight over my head.

The ad reinforces sexual stereotypes yet again (little girls do ballet, little boys can use an abacus).

So - which formula milk are you supposed to 'move on' to if you want your DS to become a ballet dancer, or your DD to become a rock climber/mathematician?

elephantsforgive good post. Exactly that. (Great name)

Is that the one that announces it has iron to "support" brain development or some such crap? Supports FFS - I hate listening to that - grrr

& the stuff about "if you choose to move on from breastfeeding ? - GRRRR

I have always hated that advert because the "problems" they have are all too mild to elicit any recognition for me. Oh look, you've just put your pristine single baby in his pristine pram in your pristine lovely hall in a nice 30s semi in a nice bit of London that definitely cost you north of half a million and he's done a poo. To make that realistic for me you need to replace that sideboard with an ikea shoe rack covered with 1000000 coats including all of DD2s that are too small for her but she refuses to give up, and then liquidise some rice cakes, raisins and spit and dab the resulting mixture liberally around the floor and up to about 80cm in height. Oh and all over the buggy. And add a mouldy pear that DD2 got tired of eating on the way to nursery and I stuck it in the folds of the hood on the way to the bin but I forgot about it and that was two weeks ago. And finally, add DD2, who is not in the buggy yet but is instead sitting on the floor wearing her left shoe on her right foot, and right welly boot on her left crying with rage because I didn't zip her coat right up to the top in one continuous motion.

And that's actually quite a good day for us!

i am probably in the minority but i love the advert .so true no training but you have to get on with it .