Breastfeeding: Only Middle Class Now?

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Was debating this with my DP - he is of the belief that breastfeeding is a mainly a middle class thing. I'm not sure if I agree, wanted other opinions.

We live in a very MC/posh area of London and I'd say 90% of mums at my Baby classes BF. This is his evidence.

We both grew up in working class environments - him in a council estate in London where no-one breastfed and me in a Northern town where is was normal to BF.

So.... thoughts?

Education level, age, partners background, job type, what friends have done. Going to NCT classes is already pre selecting so not a good gauge. I breast fed as did all my friends, we were all under 30, but all had degrees ... for me it was financial, formula is £££

In my social circle (a fairly diverse London borough) I cannot think of any BAME BF-ers.

Interestingly, this study says that less white areas are more likely to breastfeed - except in London:
bmjopen.bmj.com/content/3/6/e002765

Also, where do you meet BF-ers? I wonder if BAME women are less likely to use breastfeeding groups, etc, even if they are BFing. My local La Leche League group is, as far as I remember, entirely white (it's not the most diverse area anyway), but I do know some local BAME women who BF, by who I don't think would consider going to a group like that. They also seem more likely to use a bottle just for out and about than the white BFers I know.

Obviously these are just my anecdotal observations, so they may not hold true at all!

From my experience this is true. I live in a fairly deprived area of a northern city and at our local children’s centre formula feeding is the norm. However, if I take DD to baby groups in more affluent areas of the city, most mothers are breastfeeding there.

I find this really interesting as formula feeding cost much more money yet is linked to lower socioeconomic status. I blame the formula companies really and there marketing tactics.

Yes definitely. There are always exceptions, as I know a few WC people who breastfed long term and I was really surprised. But the majority absolutely.

Although I don't think if you FF you are necessarily WC. I'm MC and only breastfed DS1 for 4 weeks and DS2 7 weeks, and combi fed both from early on. This was because of poor weight gain, convenience, the need for sleep/routine, not coping with having a baby attached to my boob 24/7 (literally), the list goes on...

Had I had a baby who fed quickly every 2-3 hours and slept though, I probably would've stuck to combi feeding longer.

MorrisZapp you are right about support. None of these consultants or helplines are any use at 3am. However I felt if I had been better prepared before birth about the practicalities and possible issues around breastfeeding I may have been able to power through the tough times better.

All I was told was that 'BF is best because it contains fairy dust (theyactually said this) and its easy & natural' so I was in for a shock when baby arrived and it was the hardest thing I'd ever done.

It seems that health workers are scared of putting people off so don't give them the hard facts whereas I believe knowledge is power.

I think Bf is a middle class thing. I live in a very working class area and grew up in another one close by I do not know one other person that breastfed when I was a child or whilst I was breast feeding I was certainly against the norm. Especially as I was 23 when I first bf.

I also volunteer for a big women's charity and have worked with Leeds maternity liaison committee and there is a lot of studies about younger mothers not breast feeding at all.

But recently with the social media support more young women have started to look into bf and have wanted to try which is positive.

I'm working class and tried really hard to establish exclusive breastfeeding to the point I felt like a failure. It didn't happen so I only feed her in the morning, rest is bottles.

Friends daughter

Young (early 20s) breast fed both her sons..An avid breastfeeder.
Working Class!

I find this really interesting as formula feeding cost much more money yet is linked to lower socioeconomic status.

I've found this is generally true of baby stuff - the prams and clothes also get more expensive and more branded in more deprived areas.

It's not about "class".

The factors that contribute to successful breastfeeding are; access to info about bf'ing, good support from your partner, good nutrition, time and low stress. If MC mums have more time on their hands to BF because they have a cleaner, gardener and get their meals delivered then that is why there are more of them. It has nothing to do with education and class.

In saying my friend's BF, never over the age of 1. I think breastfeeding an older baby is a class thing, 1 2 or 3 year old, it is unnecessary, still BF over 3 is about the DMs comfort.
I bottle feed DD, I had no milk and breast feed DS for 6 months.

We had an aristocratic lady in our NCT group. She had a night nurse who bottle fed her kids.

@MumofOne92. No shame in that . You tried .

I myself, white working class, breast fed my eldest for 6 months, then one day he just didn't want to know anymore for some reason .
Half breast and half bottle with DD but I had PND and it affected the milk supply so after 3 months she was bottle fed .
Last two born DSs ,bottles.

I was in a very impoverished area when I had my first and was derided by many women at the children's centre for wanting to breastfeed, use cloth nappies, even make my own baby food. But when I attended the breastfeeding group, I felt very out of place. I come from lower middle class, but I was (and always will be) very working class.

I was 21 when I had DD and breastfed exclusively, continued until she was 2, my family are middle class, privately educated, homeowners etc. The few other young mothers I know also breastfed initially, despite being more WC than I am, I think 'Earth mother' parenting styles have an appeal as it is seen as aspirational nowadays. However my very very posh granny was aghast that I was breastfeeding and doing it for so long, as her generation saw BF as something only poor women who couldn't afford formula/nannies did. At baby groups where I was 15/20 years younger than the other mums I was in a minority in BF past 6 months, despite living in a well to do area, I only ever saw one other mother bf at toddler groups.

I was 17 when I had my first daughter, I would say I had a working class upbringing. My mum didn't breastfeed and no one I knew did either. No one talked to me about it and I was very naive when pregnant about the journey I was about to go on!
Yet, when I gave birth and the midwife put my baby on my body, breastfeeding felt like the most natural thing in the world and I was lucky enough to have been successful with it. Plus it was free!
Personally I feel people are too vein in this day and age, too much information is available and people feel far too much pressure from campaigns and health professionals.

The factors that contribute to successful breastfeeding are; access to info about bf'ing, good support from your partner, good nutrition, time and low stress. If MC mums have more time on their hands to BF because they have a cleaner, gardener and get their meals delivered then that is why there are more of them. It has nothing to do with education and class.

This is categorically untrue, as shown by considerable research. It's not simply about time - families where no one works are the least likely to breastfeed, not the most.

I do think mums who don't even try to BF tend to be WC, unless it's for health reasons.

I do raise my eyebrows a bit at the drive to BF being solely health though, among the mums I know my (mainly FF) DS age 3 eats much less junk food, watches much less TV and gets more natural exercise/fresh air eg walking the 15 minutes to play group instead of driving. So whilst it's undeniable that BM is more nutritious than formula (obviously), I don't think it's just for health reasons.

Maybe because middle class mothers have access to more money and therefore can afford breastfeeding consultants etc if it breast feeding is nt as easy as they hoped? Maybe times have changed but when ds1_was born (he ,s now12) I got very little support from the midwives in hospital ,so gave up.breastfeeding very quickly,if they want to improve rates they need to offer far more support .

Yes this. I and several friends only managed to keep with help from eg lactation consultants, private tongue tie snip, hired pump to increase supply etc. NHS help was virtually non existent. If I’d not had the money to get help I’d have given up very early.

And of course if most people you know who’ve tried have struggled and given up, you’re less likely to try in the first place.

Lol at being able to bf because you have a gardener. Can't wait for Monty Don to latch me on at 4am.

I’m breastfeeding DS, I’m certainly not middle class though I am educated.
I go to a breastfeeding group and there’s a wide range of women attending.

That's what I find quite interesting, many of those who FF from early on have family living nearby willing to be involved and you'd think they are exactly the sort of people who could provide valuable support for the cluster feeding stage.

On the other hand many people who BF longer term had to do it alone.

Is this so they could go back to work do you think?

Not in my groups, no. I was the first to go back to work both times (at 8 and 9 months respectively). A couple of the mums had smaller babies who needed topping up with expressed in the early days, most then later introduced some formula post 6 months for convenience reasons.

Also, who thinks MC mums generally have "a cleaner, a gardener, and meals delivered"?? That's hilarious. Most MC mums are doing their own cooking and ignoring the garden like everyone else.

@MorrisZapp

Can I ask why, if you didn't want to do it, you became obsessed with doing it? I also developed an obsession with being able to breastfeed as I had a horrible birth and felt like i wasn't a 'real' mother because of it (stupid) and that breastfeeding would make me feel like more of one (double stupid, but please forgive me, I wasn't very well).

The point though is I desperately WANTED to do it, for myself and for my baby, which is why I powered through the bleeding, damaged nipples, the 20-minutely wakings in the night, and sought out support (sorry!) from everywhere I could, tried everything possible to make it work (in the end it did, we both ended up loving it, and only just winding down now at 2y3m - if you'd told me that on day 4 I'd have pissed myself, I was literally living hour to hour and praying I could make it through the day!).

If I hadn't actually wanted to, no bloody way would I have made it past a week, I was in agony. So may I ask what motivated you?

My DD recently had a baby, she had to go onto the ward for observation after for 24 hours. The baby was born 4 weeks early and had a few problems latching on so DD asked for help from several different MWs. The response was actually really upsetting, most were just trying to push a bottle into her hand. Only one gave her any real support, and bearing in mind this wasn't DDs first baby... she had already successfully BF others.

The maternity unit is a huge one that covers most of the county but is in an area of deprivation.... I am convinced that the MWs just weren't used to supporting BFing and handing someone a bottle was just the quickest and easiest option. I found it hugely saddening.