Is breastfeeding just a middle class thing? Radio 4 Women's Hour

[Witchycat]

Interesting feature on Women's Hour today. Suggests women from lower socio-economic backgrounds don't usually even attempt b/f and interviews a number of women about why they didn't want to and what is being done to provide better information to encourage women to make an informed choice.

Think this will take you to the Listen Again page - go to the bottom & click Women's Hour on the Top 5 box (assuming your pc has speakers and you are not at work!)

oh gawd help us

Might be a cultural thing as well. Many upper-class women in Latin American cultures wouldn't consider breastfeeding.

I have BF for 13 months, I live in a working class area and can count on one hand the number of people who have been supportive.

Many have laughed and ridiculed me for doing it, some think its disgusting and some even question the benefits compared to formula!!

Sigh

I listened to Woman's Hour this morning with interest, I think the point she made about our own mothers bottle feeding us being an influence was a good point. I breastfed my dd but struggled as I had never seen a baby breastfed, my own mother bottle fed me and my sister as well as my sister who was ten years younger than me. My SIL bottle fed and looked repulsed at the ideas of breastfeeding and my husband thought it was unnatural. Being a first time mum lacking in confidence I gave up too early , but if I had a baby again now that I have more confidence, I see bebies being breastfed on a daily basis and have more support I woudl breastfeed for longer.

I had no support, my dds father hated me doing it, so did his family. Said I was hogging my daughter!!
My parents didnt dicourage me but they didnt encourage me either, it was a massive shock to most of my family and is still a talking point now.

I tried giving them www.kellymom.com but they didnt want to know!!

HA HA

Hey don't knock it: today's middle class fad is tomorrow's aspirational lifestyle.

Sorry if that sounds crass, but if any section of society is b/fing successfully that's both a source of demand for better b/fing services and perhaps an answer to those who say its disgusting etc

lol gizmo, like it

It is about 15 minutes into the programme if anyone wants to listen to it.

Ill keep doing it, no matter what "class" I am, and regardless of what people say.

I find smoking and binge drinking disgusting but it doesnt stop people doing it

Here bf can be a class issue but in many parts of the world bf is a survival issue. Bf saves lives by not needing any equipment and protects the baby from it's environment.

My friend is bfeeding consultant - she works for the local health authority through the midwifes partaking in a new scheme to target low uptake areas - they aim to reach mums through pre-birth coffee mornings (with older children, if applicable - playgroup scenario) and then hope that they will still attend after birth of baby. They offer help with b/feeding before and after baby (discount on b/f bras, fitting at the coffee mornings) I think it may be a national scheme? As the Womans hour suggests, unfortunately they are targetting low social economic backgrounds areas as this is where they have found the lowest uptake. Also Asian women have a very low uptake, I think it may have something to do with not exposing themselves etc in public? So they are another group they target

A BFC friend of mine is doing pretty well in our local Bengali community. But she's trained up breastfeeding supporters who are themselves Bengali, which has to make a huge difference.

I believe a lot of Muslim women breastfeed at home, and bottlefeed when out and about.

It was just an area that came up low in the local % figures of uptake, not sure of the reasons - I have told her the Coffee mornings called 'Bips' in one town, and 'Baps' in the next, has to go! I think they renamed them in the end! Seems a fab idea in the whole, not sure if it came from central Gov or not?

When I went to ask the head of midwifery why breastfeeding support wasn't better at the hospital where I had DS, we talked about uptake among the Asian community - I'd asked why they weren't working towards babyfriendly accreditation (I was a bit more subtle than that though!).

She said that they couldn't get 75% of women breastfeeding when they left hospital (it was something like 56%), and a lot of that was because it is believed within some Asian communities that colostrum is dirty, so they won't feed it to their babies

Ohh, looks like they are still Baps and Bips!

www.breastfeedingsupporters.org.uk/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=7

hunker, which Asian communities? Ive never met anyone who believed that!

Don't know - just repeating what I was told (and have heard it since too).

Look here

Have only skimmed it, but looks v interesting.

Message withdrawn

If I had bottlefed from birth it would have meant more work for me not less. Might have got someone to give the baby the odd bottle, but who would have been washing, sterilising, measuring out formula? So I would be giving up the best bit (occasionally) and landing myself with a load of tedium. I think people are misinformed about the reality of having a baby.

I think there is probably something in this view, yes.

Yes Bozza.
Although bottle feeding often easier in the beginning (especially when there are loads of people about,oohing and aahing over the baby,dying to help out with feeding,changing,cuddling and so on) I often wonder if they realize that all that invariably falls away and you are left on your own with all that faff.

There was a poster on here aweek or so ago,wanting to know about the logistics of bootle feeding and preparation on acruise.

Sounded like a nightmare to me.

Mind you,I would still have breastfed even if it had been considerably more hassle than bottle feeding,knowing it to be the right thing for my baby.

yes, her boobs are mine attitude.

I am northern and throughly working class but didn't even think twice about b/feeding and was glad I did. But all my friends did (or attempted, some didn't carry on) so I think a lot can depend on your peer group as well.