Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Breast not best - new slogan ideas?

163 replies

bb99 · 29/03/2008 21:09

Breastfeeding - every mother's right.

OP posts:
StealthPolarBear · 31/03/2008 17:47

Good point Aitch
So surely "Breastfeeding - every mother and child's right" would go some way to ensuring women know they can fight to get the help they need to continue bf even when they're struggling? They're not being awkward, wasting HCP time or trying to make a point. In the same way as you would try all treatment possible before allowing them to amputate your leg - you wouldn't go straight for that option.
---------
I would like to point out I used that as an example. Being ffed is not IMO similar to only having one leg in severity
---------
It would also emphasise the importance of bf to HCPs - the normal, natural way to feed your baby not a brilliant standard to aim for.

MilaMae · 31/03/2008 19:34

Starlight and sabire I found your posts upsetting.

Starlight why do you want to make mums ff so crap about their choice I don't understand it, I just don't. I feed my kids organically but I would never expect other mothers to do the same or make nasty slogans making them feel crap if they don't. And feeding your children food is a far lengthier and imho more imortant process than the brief 6 months or so that babies are breastfed.

Sabire I am a twin mum as is my sister and my best friend we all tried our damndest but just couldn't do it past 6 weeks all 3 of us. There will be twin mums who have successfully breastfed but they are not the norm at all. Coping with twins is a major,major challenge. I really don't think you should go over to the multiples forum and upset the possibly 100s of twin mums who are finding it difficult just getting out of the house with twins let alone breastfeeding them.

If I had my time again I'd never even consider breastfeeding my twins, I should have spent those 6 weeks enjoying them not spending it in misery and believe me all the money in the world wouldn't have made it any better what so ever. So I say good on J-Lo she made an informed choice and is clearly enjoying her babies.

Sabire · 31/03/2008 20:11

JLo didn't say she chose not to breastfeed because of the challenges of breastfeeding twins.

She said she chose not to breastfeed them because she believed that bottlefeeding is best for them. That's what her words in the interview suggested. So no - it doesn't sound like she made an informed choice.

Nobody has insinuated that feeding twins is easy. Most mums of singletons get duff support and no help around the house to enable them to establish breastfeeding, let alone mums of twins who face even more ignorance.

But it's probably a damn site easier feeding one set of twins with a staff of 30 to take over every single other responsibility you have including cooking, cleaning, looking after other children, dressing yourself, doing your own hair, changing and settling your babies, answering your phones, paying your bills, greeting your guests etc etc, than breastfeeding one baby while caring for an older child, a toddler, a dog, a house, doing the school run, working, cooking, shopping and studying, which many of us on this board have done.

"And feeding your children food is a far lengthier and imho more imortant process than the brief 6 months or so that babies are breastfed." Well - that's your opinion. I'm of the opinion that infant feeding in the first year of life has repercussions that last a lifetime and the research backs me up on that.

In any case - no I wouldn't be depressed at mothers choosing not to give their children organic food. But if a super rich pop-star deliberately decided to feed her children on a diet that - like formula - would raise their blood pressure, make them more likely to develop diabetes, and more than triple their chances of needing hospitalisation over the following year of their life, on the pretext that it was 'best for them' then - sorry - it would raise a lot of questions in my mind about what sort of information she'd been given about her feeding choices.

MilaMae · 31/03/2008 21:50

Repercussions that last a lifetime- what utter rubbish!!!

I was bottle fed, as were most of my relations. I am one of the most healthy people I know, degree educated, allergy free etc and funnily enough so are the rest of my family so no health repercussions there.

Actually I think you'll find bad eating habits are far more detrimental to health than ffeeeding. It's a habit of a lifetime not 6 months. A life time of no fruit and veg,masses of fat etc is far more catastrophic to health(and is now a world wide problem)than 6 months ffeeding.

Formula is a carefully researched food for babies not heroin-raised blood pressure, diabetes,hospitalisation-total utter rot!!!! How can my dc,their friends,their relations be so healthy, they should have been hospitalised long ago??? Where are all these seriously ill babies poisoned from formula???? Why isn't every single tin being recalled????? I'm going to step away from the thread now as clearly your one and only goal seems to be to scare people and whatever anybody else says doesn't make a jot of difference.

All I'll say is If somebody had sat me on a sofa and done everything else that needed to be done for a year I would have still found breast feeding impossible, hated it and dreaded every feed so as I said before money wouldn't have made a jot of difference.

J-Lo (can't believe I'm actually supporting J-Lo about something ) probably wanted to enjoy her twins so her choice is best for them as it's her choice, she's happy and her babies are happy. Thankfully we mums in this country now live in an age when we have choices regarding everything we do and that includes how we feed our kids. Formula is a good substitute to breast milk, there is masses of info around for us all to make informed choices which we all do and once a decision is made mums won't be bullied into changing their minds. For that reason I think you'll find unpleasant slogan campaigns and scare mongering will never work and only succeed in making mums who have had a hard time feel even crapper but I have a sneaky feeling that doesn't really bother you does it.

suzi2 · 31/03/2008 22:09

No doubt someone will come on with sources of those facts MilaMae, but if you have a quick google the risks of formula feeding are pretty easy to find.

Divastrop · 31/03/2008 22:31

i used to write posts very similar to milamae's last one untill somebody posted a link to some horrible facts about formula and i honestly felt like running off and trying to re-lactate(my baby was 5 months at the time).i cant rememebr what site it was though.

motherhurdicure · 31/03/2008 23:18

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

verylittlecarrot · 31/03/2008 23:36

By MilaMae on Mon 31-Mar-08 21:50:58
"Formula is a carefully researched food for babies not heroin-raised blood pressure, diabetes,hospitalisation-total utter rot!!!!"

Not total utter rot, I'm afraid. Completely true. I can link you to the studies, if you wish, please let me know if you'd like to see them.

"How can my dc,their friends,their relations be so healthy, they should have been hospitalised long ago??? "

Because the studies don't show that ALL ff babies get hospitalised. But you knew that already, though, obviously!

They show that the risk is higher. Not by tiny little fractions of a percent either. By proper, gosh-that's-a-bit-worrying percent.

There's no big conspiracy to distort the truth, you know! The facts are there to be considered (or ignored, if you wish!)

tiktok · 31/03/2008 23:45

MilaMae, who told you formula is carefully researched?

It's dried, skimmed cows milk with a few knobs on, and the knobs are not that carefully researched - they have to be proven not to be actively dangerous to the satisfaction of the various government health bodies where formula is sold (and some formulations have not yet succeeded in doing this with some novel ingredients), but the health claims that are made are mostly spurious.

Formula milk, prepared hygienically, permits most babies to grow adequately when they are not breastfed for whatever reason...and a jolly good job, too.

Don't lets start doing the manufacturers job for them by making claims that it is carefully researched!

nappyaddict · 01/04/2008 00:01

i like your slogan bb. every mother does have a right to breastfeed but many don't get that right cos there isn't enough resources out there to help them.

Dalrymps · 01/04/2008 08:13

VLC - i'd like to see the link. I have very reluctantly had to mix feed after having lots of problems bfing. I'm always open to more info, ds is 5 months now and mostly ff - I feel guilty about this all the time but I just can't get my supply up enough after the initial problems and now, on top of that he's refusing to actually bf at all the past few days so am trying to get as much ebm as poss into him. I do feel i've failed but not that all of it was under my control, was a mix of a lot of factors. Anyway, this experience has made me even more determined to succeed with the next lo and IMO any info I can get on ff being unsatisfactory will help keep me determined not to give up without an even bigger fight next time.

Aitch · 01/04/2008 10:27

that sounds like what happened to me, dalrymps, except that i had no supply by 4 and a half months and so dd went fully onto formula. it's a pisser, isn't it? you've done well, you know you have, to continue. the feelings for me subsided a lot when i began to wean dd, i do hope it's the same for you.

hoppybird · 01/04/2008 10:53

Regarding the OP's suggestion for a slogan 'Breastfeeding - every mother's right'. Hmmm. I quite like the double meaning! (every mother is right)!

However, I can definitely see it rubbing people up the wrong way - the word 'right' can be seen as, well, banner-waving and militant, so as an attempt to normalise bf, it doesn't immediately speak to everyone. It gives the impression that there's a sub-set of hardened bf mothers out there trying to persuade you to do something which doesn't interest you: emphasising 'your right to vote' hasn't exactly sent droves of people to the polling booths, for instance.

'Breast is Best' as a slogan alienates plenty, creating feelings of inadequacy amongst those who don't have a good experience of bf, and implying smugness for those who manage well. Yes, many women already do start off bf, but give up through lack of support and information and end up feeling bad, because, after all, according to the slogan, they're not doing what is 'best'.

Normalising bf is a step-by-step process, our HCPs need to be supportive and knowledgable, women need proper information and families need to know the right thing to say! However, the right messages being sent out through slogans do take a step in the right direction. There've been some amusing parodies of the M&S slogan on this thread, but my sugesstion borrows from one of the most successful, non-niche brands out there, in fact the market leader - and they know all about marketing ;) I would like to suggest:

'Breastfeeding - because every little helps'

CountessDracula · 01/04/2008 10:56

no tits is shit?

CountessDracula · 01/04/2008 10:58

Well it wasn't my right so I think that every mother's right is not good

what is wrong with Breast is Best

Obviously true but not prescriptive

Dalrymps · 01/04/2008 11:11

Aitch, yeah i've already thrown all my energy into researching weaning and trying to find organic veg round here, I might not be able to ex bf but I can give him the best diet I can manage
4 weeks till weaning time! yippee

Aitch · 01/04/2008 11:33

lol dalrymps, wait til you see the mess...

Dalrymps · 01/04/2008 11:35

lol

Divastrop · 01/04/2008 11:51

i cant see whats wrong with 'every mother's right'.saying something is a right suggests to me that its also a choice.'breast is best' is saying that anyhting else is 2nd rate,which of course it is but that is not helpful to a mother who is struggling with bf.i think focussing on 'rights' is good,mothers have the right to support and help with bf,they should hae the right to feed in public without anyone making offensie comments,and they have the right to know the truth about formula.

CountessDracula · 01/04/2008 12:16

but what if it is NOT your choice?

I wanted to bf but couldn't because I was on toxic drugs

noddyholder · 01/04/2008 12:21

countess I was in teh same position.Same drugs too iirc!I would have loved that chance after all my ill health etc to be 'normal' for once but I couldn't and ds and I are as close as we could ever be!He is rarely ill has no allergies and is full of life so tbh I think all these arguments are a waste of time

CountessDracula · 01/04/2008 13:15

yes it was!
I would have loved it too

nappyaddict · 01/04/2008 13:25

CD - i read it as every mother is right. as in whatever you choose because of whatever reason is not wrong/right because everyone is right iyswim.

nappyaddict · 01/04/2008 13:38

i do like the every little helps one.

CountessDracula · 01/04/2008 14:16

I don't think that is the spirit in which it was intended!