So does anyone else find the term 'artificial feeding' in relation to the use of formula milk a bit irritating?

[bangandthedirtisgone]

Or is it just me?

To me artificial feeding sounds like its not real food therefore using it makes you a failure as a mum

but thats a personal opinion.

Ormirian I think alternative feeding sounds like you are doing something strange as in living an alternative lifestyle

Whats wrong with saying good old bottle feeding?

PuppyMonkey, you are feeding yourself. But with artificial food. (Artificial meaning manmade, imitation-of-natural food)

ray81 FF IS the best for YOUR baby, think of the consequences on his health if you chose to BF him!!!

Breastfeeding is manmade! Woman made, I mean! Sorry i am just being daft now, I will get my coat!!

agree with others that it depends on the context - academic research, medical terminology, obviously fine and accurate

but to refer to what another mother is currently doing as artificial feeding is just snide

KellyMom has some great info on safety of medications during breastfeeding kellymom.com/health/meds/index.html

Try that again: here

Leonie,

I have to have injections to thin my blood as like Mummygirl i could die without them and so would my baby whilst inside me, i also have to take it after the baby is born. Now there are other drugs but they ALL do the same thing and if i BF then that drug will thin my babies blood which as you can imagine is not a good thing. Its a wonderful drug as whilst you are Pg it doesnt cross the placenta just thins the blood thats supplies it but it would get into my breast milk therefore into baby. Its very sad but i have been through it all with doc and there is no other alternative.
I know i will be judged when someone sees me FF and i dont think its fair that i have to justify why i am doing it to anyone why should i have to explain myself.

, Ray81. Sorry for patronising web link, then.

twofalls I am not comparing 2 babies in particular, I am saying about what happens over large populations of babies.

What babies are fed from birth to 6 months matter a helluva lot more than what they are fed for the rest of their lives. To try to hide that away under pretence that it doesn't matter or exist is patronising to everyone who are interested in what and how babies are fed.

oh, I am too busy to go looking for links. I barely ahve time to scratch my arse these days. besides, these links are typically ignored when they are not saying what we want to hear any old way, unless of course if it was linked by the hand of one of the gods.

Agree with ButterBall (and sorry, not read all the replies).
"Feeding" - of whatever sort - sounds like the method rather than the actual substance, iyswim. So "artificial feeding" puts me in mind of tubes and the like. Anyway I'm sure back in the day my friends and I referred to bottle and breast, rather than formula and breast.
Also AF = Aunty Flo so as far an t'Internet is concerned I think we should stick to FF
And YANBU btw - evangelical as I am about bf and no matter how accurate "artificial" is as far as medical types are concerned - "artificial feeding" sounds snidey.

"If you can't breastfeed for whatever reason, then no-one is judging you"

Tbh I don't think that most people who fail to bf actually care two hoots what idiots on MN think. I think the problem is that women judge themselves. I am very about those who judge their own mothers, jeez, no-one's perfect including yourself.

I don't have a problem with the term, it doesn't matter.

Puzzle, I think that the person mentioning her degree is purely pointing out that she is educated and ff. We are told constantly that it is the uneducated/feckless who ff. I don't think a degree is helpful at all in terms of raising a baby

The fact is that much of the 'evidence' about the risks of ff are in fact extremely difficult to quantify as there are many other factors which are impossible to control. I am not saying that bf is not better for the baby, I believe that it is BUT not all of the studies we are presented with are reliable.

Patronising, now there's a word foxy

YANBU - I think there's an implied judgement there

Yanbu. Another breastfeeder here who loathes this term. Strictly speaking every processed food is artifical. You could argue bread is artificial. I fail to see why we can't stick with "formula" or "bottle" feeding.

I also was on meds that were contraindicated in BF with no alternatives.I don't fel guilty at all was prob a little disappointed at teh time but more from the bonding and experience POV than undue worry about ds health.ray81 has decided why not support that rather than poking around in her archive to prove yourself right ?

Ray81, I had to take Heparin through pregnancy and for the first few weeks afterwards and I'm on daily Aspirin as I have a similar condition to you. Not only am I breastfeeding my baby but still going with my toddler!

BTW I opened this thread because I saw answers to you

yes patronising is a word.

this time i didn't mean it as a substitute for 'insulting' either.

adding (again) that low molecular weight heparins (eg Clexane), and also warfarin, are fine when bf - I am Factor V Leiden too.

ray81, it sounds like you've been given some bad advice in the past . Ask your haematologist about it at your next appt and if they do not know then ask them to look it up.

WOW i am realy glad i came on here its amazing what you can learn. its realy made me happy to know i can BF.

I will be speaking to my consultant in more detail about this.i am quite cross i have been given wrong information and by a doctor no less.

This is realy going to help to as i have a wedding in cyrus when the baby is 10 weeks old so dont have to worry about taking bottles etc.

Thanks guys its amazing what info you can get on MN