Call The Midwife - on breast feeding

[ChocolateWombat]

Did anyone see the 1st episode tonight?
I'm watching it now and it's like an NCT party political broadcast advocating breast feeding over bottles. Amazing that it is claiming to be historically accurate!
Funny isn't it, that we can't help imposing current values and trying to push an agenda, even in period dramas!

Babies were bottle fed in the 50s. It wasn't even formula, in a lot of cases. My mum was born in the late 40s and fed the "national milk" because her mum was expected to work.

In this bf is shown as positive by the mw/nuns but negative by the hospital/nurses, it's supposed to be seen the the nuns were sticking to their old ways, it's been in a few episodes.

There's a similar thing regarding giving birth , hospital on backs/nuns allow others

Here was it set?

If modelled on the Jessops hospital in 1950s, then active advocacy of breastfeeding was happening - see the books by Illingworth and Illingworth (both those for HCPs, and those for parents).

Referenced Carnation tonight, friend was fed that.

The books mention that breastfeeding was really pushed due to the unsanitary conditions in the area