Anyone else prepared to admit that they didn't b/f just because they didn't want to ??

[IllegallyBrunette]

Just wondered really.

I have 3 dc and didn't breast feed any. I was 19 when I had dd1 and was asked by a midwife if i'd be breastfeeding and I said no. There was no argument or discussion, that was that.

When I had dd2 at 34 weeks she had to be tube fed. I offered to express milk for her but was told i needn't bother.

With ds, again I didn't want to but even if I had it would have been hard as he was supposed to be on phototherapy 24/7 for a week.

I think the attitude towards ff mums on this forum by some bf mums is disgusting. I would never dream of saying anything against any mum for feeding her baby by whichever way she chooses, yet some of the comments on here like 'formula should only be available if there is a proven medical need' are just awful.

bubbleymummy

Arent those options you describe breastmilk?

And if the baby cant have breastmilk then formula would be a good substitute?

I have no idea, never bothered to look to see what's in it. I just have to look around though at all teh happy, healthy babies doing very well on it to know it's great.

27, I wouldn't say it is a 'good' substitute - it is an adequate substitute - and even the word substitute implies that it is an equivalent which I don't agree with...I agree that it is certainly better than some of the options that have been used in the past - and better than giving a baby diet coke Nancy! If I had no other alternative I would want it to be a temporary solution until one of the options I mentioned earlier was available. These are my own feelings on the matter and I'm certainly not trying to make anyone feel guilty about a decision that they had to make to ff. However, I do still struggle with the concept of 'choosing' ff over bf when a genuine choice comes into it.

BM is obviously better for a child than a formula. It is designed for them. But formula can be adequate when needed and isn't muck.

But the fighting between women that goes on about it drives me mad. FGS take the difference between a formula fed baby's health and a BF baby's health in this country, then compare either baby with a baby in a third world country and you'll see a difference worth worrying about.

"Compared to what babies were fed in the past and could be fed now as a substitute to breastmilk it's amazing"

Actually the majority of Americans born in the 1940's and 1950's were fed on home-made formula, which obviously didn't cause enough ill-health for mothers to notice that it wasn't a good substitute for breastmilk, otherwise you'd have to assume they wouldn't have abandoned breastfeeding in such astonishingly large numbers over those two decades. I'm sure modern formulas are better than these home-made products, but given that most ff mums on this board have argued that the 'proof of the pudding' is that their children seem perfectly healthy despite not being breastfed I don't see how you can make an anecdotal case for current formula being vastly superior to the home-made versions of the past.

"take the difference between a formula fed baby's health and a BF baby's health in this country, then compare either baby with a baby in a third world country and you'll see a difference worth worrying about"

Sorry Lotser, but you're assuming that there is no serious morbidity connected with artificial feeding in developed countries. The RCM argue that 100 preterm babies a year in the UK die from not having breastmilk (because of massively higher rates of NEC among preterm artificially fed babies).

I know there is no comparison with the death rates from unsafe bottlefeeding in developing countries, but even so - it doesn't mean that the morbidity associated with artificial feeding here is insignificant. The literature seems to suggest that there are 1000's of extra hospital admissions in the UK from the disproportionate rates of respitory and gastric illness among populations of artificially fed babies.

Shortcircuit - saying what you're saying makes it harder for people on here to be believed when we say we support breastfeeding and are not 'against' formula...please stop.
Discussions about formula can be accurate and honest without resorting to the sort of terms you use - people who use formula just feel insulted when you do, and it's no help at all

TBB - I wasn't assuming anything. I feel you're putting words in to my mouth and shaping my post there a bit. I wasn't talking about special cases like prematurity.

I wouldn't like to comment on the subject of pre-term babies because I wouldn't be informed enough. If my baby was prem I would certainly want them to have my milk, as it would be far more easily digested. (I think NEC which you mentioned is about the immature intestine reacting in an inflammatory way to the feed (??) so formula not appropriate in those cases).
Not something many of us would know about and definately down the hospitals providing those babies care to inform and drum in to us the implications and the benefits of BM in those cases.

But anyway, much more specific than I was being with my post, which is just my opinion on the slanging.

Actually I was thinking much further back than 1940s. Mind you I am reading a book set in the 12th century where an orphaned child is fed milk straight using a cloth soaked in milk.

i didnt breast feed because i have hypoplastic (tubular) breasts. not only am i grossed out by my breasts and hate them being looked at or touched but the tiny amount of info i could find out about the condition said i might start producing milk but would probably not continue producing due to insufficient glandular tissue.
i didn't want to start somthing i couldnt finish.

To be told that I am feeding baby complete 'crap' and 'muck' on this thread I breast feed my baby for a week and was up all night feeding him because he is such a hungry baby BF gave my soon such bad COLIC AND WIND! you could hear him sucking in the air from my breast he was sooo! unhappy BF and since he's been on formula he is such a happy baby!

So how dare I be told i'm feeding my baby crap! Thats such a disgusting thing to say of course BF is best but you don't have to make formula feeding sound so bad theres some advantages to it.

EdenJayne, there is no point getting worked up about a thread that is eighteen months old :)

Yeah I realised that after I wrote it Wasn't in the best of moods last night.

I bf both my children as it's important to ME. However, I certainly don't judge those who ff whether they have chosen to or have done it through necessity.

It annoys me that people do feel the need to justify themselves though, as if seeking approval from others for their choices. If you have made an informed choice then that should be enough. There should be no need to post threads about it.

The issue is making sure that people have all the information and the support necessary (for bf and ff alike). The health benefits of bf are undeniable, but are they the be all and end all? No, I don't think so. I and most of my generation were ff. Yes, we are all fine, the majority not obese and certainly not stupid. Do we know what the difference would have been if we were bf? No, of course not.

Oops old thread...seems your bad mood last night has transferred itself to me this morning EdenJayne!

I didnt BF through choice. We live in the middle of both sets of parents. Which meant to see family it was a 90 min motorway drive.

In my opinion BF in these circumstances was just impractical. I also had some problems after having dd so being ff meantg other people could help out.

I don't regret my decision for one minute despite the mw in hospital telling me i must bf my baby to give it a chance in life .

In my opinion a woman should be able to to what ever she feels comfortable with and works for her with out all the pressure there is to bf the baby.

I haven't read the whole thread so apologies if this has been mentioned but back on page 6 or so posters were wondering how FF supposedly led to obesity. My understanding of it is BM is so calorific a baby needs less of it in order to be satisfied. FF babies have to intake a lot more formula to get that same level of satisaftion, bare in mind babies stomachs are around the same size as their clenched fist (perfect for breastfeeding and the small amounts)the higher amounts of formula needed to give that full feeling invariably stretch the stomach to busting. Babies then grow used to that overfull feeling and the need to have a very full stomach follows them through life, thus potentially leading to higher levels of obesity in FF babies.

Dr McDreamy - new member (first post!) midwife and mother to two, one BF and then FF'd after 6 weeks pre midwifery and one 6 months BF'd and counting once I was fully informed re formula.

Oh and haha I have just realised how old this thread is. Ah well. Never mind.

Haha Mishy1234! It seems that way!

I agree that a lot of comments from bf mums are awful and quite ridiculous. I wanted a normal labour and kept myself very healthy and active throughout my pregnancy - still going swimming when overdue etc. Had long protracted labour and an emergency c section for my 10lb boy to get out. BF was horrendous - you make the milk you need to feed the baby you have had - imagine how much milk I was making for my 10lb beauty. BUT we were both drugged up and quite frankly knackered so bf got off to a very bad start. After 5 weeks of hell I was admitted to hospital with serious mastitis to be told I needed an operation on my boob!!! Baby at home with DH so bottle time it was. When I finally got over the guilt I felt 100% better - recovered from by section and boob op and bonded with my son. When big boy number 2 came along I had an elective c-section and ff from day 1.

... why is this thread being resurrected again? Feels like people are just searching the archives for something to get hot under the collar about.

Sorry you had that experience, feefsie. Though I'm a bit confused as to why making enough milk for a larger baby was, per se, a problem. Presume there were other problems at root, such as traumatic labour , because merely making enough milk for a larger baby shouldn't automatically lead to problems like mastitis, over-engorgement, etc. Sorry to hear you had such a nasty abcess that it needed surgery.

Lol love these threads
My nephews who are ff and my partner and his brothers each have one serious ff caused health problem

Chrons
Ulcerative coliti
Gastrocolitis
Asthma
Chronic asthma
Child diabetes
Ibs
Intolerances
Undiagnosed bowel diseases

Makes me laugh
Most were diagnosed finally in their teens
His mum can't get over that she caused this (been told by consultants it signif contrib)

Enjoy them being healthy at present and watch this space!

how fucking rude roxy25....

"enjoy them being healthy at present and watch this space"

and can you guarantee that these are not inherited illnesses? if not then

"ENJOY YOUR CHILDREN BEING HEALTHY AT PRESENT AND WATCH THIS BLOODY SPACE"

smug cow

just to add you sound pretty sick and like you are almost wishing illness on people who ffeeds children just to prove a point

"lol love these threads"your children are doomed to a life of illness,that makes me happy

fuck off