Being ‘paid to breastfeed’ - your thoughts?

[SarahMumsnet]

The BBC's reporting this morning that new mothers living in some areas of Derbyshire and south Yorkshire are to be given vouchers for shops including Matalan, Mothercare and John Lewis if they breastfeed their babies. These will be given out as part of a study by the University of Sheffield, aimed at discovering whether “financial incentives” will increase the uptake of breastfeeding in parts of the country where rates are low; mothers will receive vouchers worth up to £120 if they breastfeed until six weeks, and another £80-worth if they continue to the six-month mark.

The scheme, according the senior researcher on the project, is intended "as a way of acknowledging both the value of breastfeeding to babies, mothers and society, and the effort involved in breastfeeding. Offering financial incentives ... might increase the numbers of babies being breastfed, and complement on-going support for breastfeeding provided by the NHS, local authorities and charities."

We've been asked by the beeb what Mumsnetters make of the idea; what's your reaction?

How on earth are they going to administer it, i.e. know which Mums are breastfeeding and who is not? With they want to examine you boobs?

The only way (imo) they are going to encourage more breastfeedings is to clamp down on members of the public judging women for breastfeeding in public or restaurants or any kind of "public" building asking women to leave. The government need to run adverts aimed at the public rather than at women with messages like "this is what breasts are for" rather than the guilt enducing adverts they run at present aimed at women. It also needs to be illegal to ask a woman to leave any space to which the public, paying or otherwise, have access in order to breastfeed, or to ask her to cover up her boobs while doing so.

I think awareness and a zero tolerance for preventing breastfeeding is the answer rather than cash incentives. Yes, it would be good to have some money towards the extra calories you need to breastfeed but I can't see how it would be administered.

My first thought was that surely there's a huge financial incentive to breastfeed anyway, since you don't have to buy formula?

I'm always surprised that more isn't made of this in BFing education. Maybe a campaign along the lines of 'with the money you would have spent on formula in x period of time, you could buy a course of baby signing lessons / a new buggy / three spray tans / a case of wine / a new bag / four nights' worth of babysitting. (Target as appropriate.)

I think what I meant to say is that as my mil has said - you've got to really want to bf - as the difficulties and challenges can be both physical as well as social. And the money would be better spent supporting both the physical difficulties mums experience and the way society views bf.

I vote for spending the money on peer support in hospitals.....

BFing is something that requires internal motivation and functioning BF physiology. You cannot replace either of those things with external motivation in the form of money....

I've not long had my implant replaced to ensure I don't have another unexpected pregnancy. Do I get a cube of cheese for doing so, since I've been a really good, responsible little girl?

Oh, oh! Wait. Actually, if the implant fails, can I have a designer handbag if I manage to squeeze back into my skinny jeans straight after the birth?

Nothing but a disguised EMA payment for parents who would otherwise choose to FF. Absolutely shocking and to me, highly unethical. I am not a child. Nor am I any person's play thing. If I want to BF, I'll BF. If I want to FF, I'll FF. And I'll do either because it is my CHOICE to do so based on my own informed decision, not because some ass has placed John Lewis vouchers into a mousetrap for me to come take a nibble on.

If there's money to do this horseshit, there's money to put on more classes/more BF awareness campaigns/hire some BF counsellors for GP practices and hospitals. They might have more success even if they were to take this pool of women and offer to pay for them to see a private BF counsellor. At least then they could boast about the possible benefits to BF numbers swelling IF women had the appropriate support around them, which as it stands, we don't. A new pair of boots from JL isn't going to help anybody with BF - professional and informed help that is readily available to all mothers however, would. It's not rocket science.

I think it's incredibly patronising. It comes across to me as 'do the right thing for your baby and you get a lovely reward - some free money to go shopping!' And if you struggle, or you DO breastfeed but just not for the 'required' six months, or you have to - GASP - go back to work before your baby is six months, then you won't 'qualify' for this 'reward'.

Infantilises women and I find it frankly insulting. And I speak as somebody who loves breastfeeding and is still going with my DS at 16 months - but this to me just feels like a way of almost punishing those who formula feed or, let's face it, those who mix feed.

Why does there never seem to be any acknowledgement that, actually, most women do a mixture - maybe breastfeed in the day and give bottles at night, or express and feed breast milk in a bottle when they're away or just for a break. Or just have formula on hand for the odd bottle now and again. It always feels like the media presents this huge gap between exclusive breastfeeding and formula feeding when in fact it's a damn good thing we have the option of both!

More education is needed regarding breast milk and breast feeding. The money should go here so that women are more aware of the difference between formula milk and breastmilk. The experts still don't know exactly what makes up breastmilk so formula will never match it completely. Breastfeeding for 2 years and longer (5 to 7 years) as is done in countries where breastfeeding is the norm, reduces a womans risk of developing breast cancer by 50 per cent.

Once we are completely educated as to all the benefits to mother and baby of breastfeeding long term then the mother can make their own choice as to whether or not they want to do it. Of course some mothers cannot feed for other reasons or choose not to and that is their prerogative but at least they would have had all the information and facts available to them before they arrived at their choices.

Daft idea imo the money would be better spent on help and education.
No amount of money will persuade people to do things they find repugnant or embarrasing.
Having fed three children in the eighties when it was definitely out of fashion and no mumsnet to hand. I found help to be very thin on the ground only sheer bloody mindedness got me through the the early weeks.
It would have been a great help to speak to other breast feeding mums instead of our elderly male gp and useless heath visitor who had only read up on it the same as myself.
Lord knows how they will police it.

"If there's money to do this horseshit, there's money to put on more classes/more BF awareness campaigns/hire some BF counsellors for GP practices and hospitals."

YY

The money should be spent on education and support IMO. Most people I know who did not BF fall into two main camps.

1)Those who do not want to BF (for whatever reason that may be).
2) Those who want to but stop because of lack of support.

£200 wouldn't do a lot to help any of those groups much IMO but someone to help them and explain the real benefits of BF. not just the health benefits but how if you are lazy and cheap it's the easiest and cheapest way to feed your baby. And stop peddling the myth that is is easy at first. Because for most people it bloody isn't.

As its a trial it will be really interesting to see if it works, but I hope it is evaluated against women just having support and encouragement. I also hate, hate, double hate the way this could make women feel who fail to BF. A lot of them already feel shitty enough without missing out on a naice Voucher from JLP.

Why arr they paying people to make a parenting choice? Surely we do the best for our kids because we love them, not for shopping voucher. What next? Maybe this :) eveningharold.com/2013/11/12/parents-to-be-bribed-to-feed-wash-and-dress-their-children/

Absolutely ridiculous for several reasons.

£200 wouldn't have made me continue- support might have though.

It will make ffers feel even more shite.

£200 on books or healthy food would frankly have a far bigger impact in this country.

Just how are they going to regulate it?Just how?They might as well start chucking away £200 notes now.

How bloody patronising (what are we,milk machines)and the possible pressure from abusive partners to get the cash.

Why oh why do dreadful literacy levels and babies/toddlers eating shite which have a waaaaay bigger impact than a few months of a perfectly adequate food such as formula in comparison count for nothing?

Frankly if we have the money to chuck away on something as ridiculous as this why are cuts cutting so deep?

Been thinking about this one and sounds like it's another sneaky money-saving scam from central government.
The scheme is aimed at a certain socio-economic group, the same group who already receive free vouchers for baby formula.
Someone has sat down in a back office at Westminster and the penny has dropped - free milk tokens for 6 months/26 weeks even at just £10 a week are gonna cost at least £260 (and that's a conservative estimate).
Let's give them a couple of hundred quid for breastfeeding instead and Bob's your Auntie's Live-in-Lover, a nice little saving.
No-brainer really but let's dress it up like some kind of pro-breastfeeding initiative.
Can't help being cynical about this one.

To give useful view we would need to know which demographic and socio-economic group this is aimed at. I can't help thinking that those of us who use a parenting website and are interested enough in breastfeeding to click on this thread are probably not the ones this is aimed at at all, and are therefore less likely to be motivated by the vouchers.

I would guess this is aimed at very young mothers who are also struggling financially, however, this is a huge assumption and I would not have an idea whether it could combat the strong ff culture that is often observed in this group.

Seems sensible to explore this alongside the assurance to all who have tried and struggled, that this does not in any way indict them, nor is it necessarily aimed at them.

I haven't read the full thread but can only echo what pps have put - there is a desperate need for better bf support in hospital and in the first weeks. I read all I could about bf, watched videos on how to get baby to latch on, prepared for it like it was a flipping exam, but after I had the baby I got very little support in hospital because the midwives were so busy during my 4 day stay. The midwives who did help were brilliant, but I needed that level of assistance for every feed, and they just couldn't provide that level of attention. They did get a volunteer to come along with a knitted boob and a baby doll but I already knew how it was meant to work, I just needed actual physical support to help me get DD to latch and advice on how often to be putting her to the breast and different holds. The volunteer would only demonstrate with the doll rather than advise on how to keep DD latched on and feeding so was of little help. What little advice I got was so hands off and aspirational that it was of no value at all. I didn't need persuading to bf, I needed practical help. The whole experience left me feeling like a failure, traumatised, patronised and depressed. This could not have been addressed by some shopping vouchers.

I had 4 mc and was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and was placed on medication. This medication regulated my thyroid and helped my 5th pregnancy to continue to full term and provide me with a gorgeous 11 week old ds.
#the downside to this medication was I knew from the 6th month of pregnancy I was not going to be able to breastfeed as the medication would pass through my milk to the baby.
I would have dearly loved to even attempt to breastfeed but knew this would not be safe for baby.
Considering me and my oh work we are not entitled to milk tokens, the £500 sure start grant or child tax credits which already makes me mad as surely everyone should be entitled to the same!
My local trust only promote breast feeding anyway and give no support or advice to those formula feeding whatever the reason being.
Maybe the money would be better spent on the maternity wards and staffing!

So what about pregnant women/new mothers who smoke, drink, weigh more than a certain amount, get too little exercise or consume too few vitamins? Should the health police pay them to change too? Real support and information are fine, but I think financial incentives are going too far, and discriminate against those who need the money just as much but don't/can't fit into the required category.

It's the latest really bad idea.
Last week I visited a hospital with my DF, the staff were wearing Nestle neck straps with the lanyards.
Our local hospital has given every member of staff an extra day holiday if they took up flu vaccination.

I despair.

Hardly anyone I know has bf. I think I can only name a few people.
Most people seem to bottlefeed. Of these , few couldn't bf, they just chose not to. They told me so.
I don't know how you encourage people to bf, but not like this.
It is a complex issue.

How insulting! To mothers who are unable to breastfeed and to mothers who are seemingly so desperate for money that this 'carrot' could be unfairly dangled in front of them.

For me, it was a case of won't breastfeed. I chose to not breast feed my twins - a decision made before they were even born. So they can stick that in their pump and drink it!

I think its putting even more pressure on mothers to breast feed when they can't or don't want to , causing undue stress on mother and baby! surely the mothers and babys mental wellbeing is more important?

I personally bf my daughter for 3 months, and that was enough for me , at 4 months she started having solids.

I think it would be better to give all mums vouchers for 1st 6 months towards buying fresh food or powdered milk then thos who bf can put it towards heathy food etc to help supply the bobby juice, and mums who bottle feed can put it towards buying the powdered milk!

TBH its another way that women who are unable to breast feed are going to be left feeling crap. I had to stop when my son was 2 months and since then I have been left feeling like a bad mother at every opportunity. What a load of crap this is why cant women be given equal information on all sides of advice. Im so fed up with being told what I am doing wrong which was right only a few years ago. Why can women be given information which leaves us with options rather than feeling like a bad mother when we know the current advice is detrimental to our children. Am so angry at this government and the NHS. Always thought it would be my MIL who made me feel incompetent not those who are employed to support.

coupon I couldn't breastfeed. My dd was born premature and I didn't get any milk. I wanted to and was encouraged, but not bullied. Years ago, a baby would either go to a wetnurse or fed by a neighbour or relative.

I suppose this must still happen in many parts of the world. Which makes me wonder why it doesn't happen in this country still, as it's such a practical solution.

juggling I'm still not convinced. I understand that there is plenty of information via the nhs that makes an excellent case for breast feeding. But the information is presented in such a way as to make mothers who can't or don't want to feel that they are somehow inferior mothers who are making bad choices. In reality, the overwhelming majority of mothers WANT to do the best they can for their hildren. But we live in a culture that actually discourages breastfeeding: women going back to work after birth, distaste from society at large, poor facilities are all reasons for not doing so. So it's hardly surprising that take up is patchy.

But I'm more interested in the longer-term benefits. These are less well-documented. Once children are weaned, what happens then? And how does one compare breastfed children with non-breast fed ones once other factors come into play?

And isn't it the case that all babies receive some sort of protection from having been in the womb for about 6months afterwards anyway?

Haven't time to read the whole thread but in my area there was fantastic network of breast feeding support groups and ladies from the organisation went into hospitals and into new mothers homes, to give advice and support.
That organisation no longer exists due to funding cuts!! Put the £200 per bf mum back into support organisations like this, not Matalan vouchers!!

btw when I heard it on the news I thought the vouchers would be for healthy food or supermarket shopping, not Matalan and john lewis.

Yes terrific isn't it, when I think of the pain, guilt and anguish I felt when I found (after - believe me - weeks of trying) that I was unable to breastfeed my children, after having surgery to drain a breast abscess caused by unsuccessful attempts, after repeated bouts of mastitis, after my babies losing weight drastically - if I had only known then that there was to be a financial gain if I had been able to do it, well, that might have changed everything.