Why are breastfeeding rates so low in this country??

[PasstheBucket89]

This is not a judgment thread, im not evangelical about either ive done both through necessity, BF/FF,. Im genuinely wondering why in one of the richest countries our levels are so low, sometimes in comparison to poorer countries with less medical care infrastructure. is it purely cultural, is it worse now than 30 years ago, i was and my sister BF until about a year old, so did many of my cousins or is it getting better now? so yeah no bunfight please just curious, i would like to BF this time, hopefully it goes better than the last 2 times x

It is because we are a comparatively wealthy nation. Historically, the rich and upper classes didn't feed their own babies and this is why they had wet nurses. Then formula made it easier for everyone to afford this luxury. I also think there is a lot of rewriting of history around BF. It wasn't just a case of pre-formula every baby was simply BF until two years old in some utopian bliss. Babies were given cows milk instead of their mother's and also weaned much, much earlier than they are nowadays.

I think it's getting better. According to my parents when I was born, babies were whisked out of their mothers arms, straight into the hospital nursery and put on a four hour formula feeding schedule. You would have been looked at like you had two heads if you BF. Now I'd say it's 50/50.

It goes hand in hand though with a general marginalisation of parenting and motherhood. You're chucked out of the hospital two minutes after having a c-section. You're expected to be a size 8 again two days after having a baby. You're asked when you're going back to work the second you start your maternity leave. SAHM are lambasted, called lazy and scroungers for staying home and looking after their children. Investing in the future generation holds no value in our society. Why feed your own child, when you can outsource it like everything else?

Sorry, I went off at a rant there! I FF my own DC. BF was difficult and there was an easier alternative so I took it. It was as simple as that for me. If there wasn't an alternative, I might have pushed through and tried harder, who knows?

Family pressure to formula feed especially from partners who want to know exactly how much baby has had (DH took the farmer view its weeing/pooing/growing so must be fine).
Not wanting to feed in public for fear of flashing a nipple, it can be avoided but I'm shameless and don't care!
If you have any feeding issues at the beginning or weight loss or jaundice it can be easier to switch and with DS I had to top up with formula as no milk until day 5. This time DD had jaundice but my milk came in on day 2 and I could express and bottle feed expressed when she was refusing to feed.
Some midwives/HV do pressurise to switch to formula if there are any BF problems.
It hurts a bit at the beginning no matter what you do.

I had my first children in a European country where the rates are much higher. There it was normal to spend the first week in hospital, in a 2 bed room that looked more like a hotel than a hospital room. The main purpose of this week was to get breastfeeding established so the nurses were breastfeeding specialists and would spend lots of time with the mums. On discharge a midwife would visit every day for 6 weeks, a big part of their role was to help with breastfeeding problems. Every hospital and clinic had a drop in breastfeeding cafe that mums could visit whenever they wanted any support. So basically lots of support and investment in providing that. It was very normal to see breastfeeding mums out and about, never heard of anyone getting a negative reaction.

@LatteLover12 so true . I asked to stay an extra night at the hospital because I hadn’t established breastfeeding . I was there 3 nights in total and could have stayed more but felt pressure to leave .

Having been a breastfeeding helper in the past and actually seen all the stats. It's down to lack of support and now it's become more ingrained into our culture to bottle feed.

The language used the health care professionals is often all wrong as well. Breastfeeding isn't best, it's normal and that's how babies expect to be fed. Bottle feeding is an adequate substitute especially if your luckily enough to be able to afford it, live in an area with access to lots of clean water.
There are many families in the UK who are now finding it a harder thing to afford. Formula companies don't care about affordability just how much profit they can make. People have often suggested there such be a non branded formula available that is a basic price with no packaging labeling just plain white. For those that need access to formula but struggle to afford branded products.

For me - lack of support. By day 5, my milk had not come in and my nipples were bleeding from trying to get the right latch etc with DS.

I went to a breastfeeding group but my pain and DS' inability to latch meant that everything they suggested didn't work.

They diagnosed a tongue tie. HV assistant who came and weighed DS was adamant that he had no tongue tie and this group didn't know what they were talking about and I shouldn't subject my newborn to an unnecessary procedure.

Despite very regular expressing I never really had any milk. I don't know if was because I wasn't trying to breastfeed. My mum told me later she wasn't able to breastfeed me or my siblings so I don't know if that had anything to do with it?

It makes me very sad I couldn't - I try not to dwell on it

I had lots of support which I think is essential. All my friends & family did it & my mum was very honest & told me it would hurt initially, take a while to get used to etc. I did express as well & I found that a good mix because I could share the load but also knew how much baby was getting.

I BF all 4 of mine, and they are now in their 20s.
What helped me was coming from a family where BF was the norm, and expected to be honest - opting to ff without even trying to BF was seen as a bit of a failure.
This will sound odd, but also growing up on a farm I understood that some cows and ewes also found it hard to establish feeding and could experience soreness, mastitis and poor milk supply.
My dad was also amazingly encouraging when I was struggling with a first born woth tongue tie.
My DH was 100% supportive and looked after me so I could concentrate on learning to feed. He'd make sure I had drinks, snacks, did the housework, laundry and cooking.
And finally in my antenatal groups there were several of us BF so it was normal, and we 'let it ll hang out' together when we met up.

Had one baby in Germany (private hospital), one in UK (NHS home birth).

With the first in Germany, the expectation was definitely breastfeeding in the hospital. However on Day 3 it became clear that my supply wasn't good/hadn't come through. DD given formula as an emergency measure. But at the same time, I was given a breast pump. For the next two days, I would feed, then pump (DD having either previously pumped milk or formula). By day 5, my supply was better. I was given help to make it work. Went on to breastfeed for 17 months (by which point I was 5 months pregnant).

DD2... I knew what I was doing. I knew how to boost my supply. We fed for 2.5 years.

So in my experience... Once breastfeeding bis working, it can be easy to continue. But you need to get it working first, and for that you need support... Not someone only giving you formula at the first hurdle.

Poor support imo- I desperately wanted to bf both children but did not receive practical ongoing support to succeed. Just the initial day in hospital after giving birth where it was pointed out DD2 had a bad tongue tie but nobody actually helped to get it resolved/made a referral. I suspect DD1 had the same but that was a car crash birth so other issues were focused on.

I also agree that other cultures don't have it all sorted although there will be a greater imperative to succeed due to unsafe drinking water. My grandmother couldn't bf my mum -this was in a poor developing country- and I think someone else had to bf her in the end or they switched to animal milk because it wasn't resolved. Probably more likely to be resolved if other supportive women around. But otherwise babies might be fed by another family member or fail to thrive in really problematic cases.

I'm currently breastfeeding and during the beginning when my baby had a tongue tie there was a 3 week wait in the NHS to get this fixed. My NCT friend couldn't wait that long so she had to switch to bottles, I was priveliged to be able to pay £150 private call out fee and my babies tongue was fixed the next day. I also paid for two private lactation consultants to come to my house to help with a painful latch. So in the first few weeks I paid a few hundred just to establish breastfeeding. For some that isn't realistic

Totally agree @Fatted I had a section last time and was asked if I'd like to go home that night!

I think she could tell from the look I gave her that it was a no from me.

Baby 3 due in the next few weeks and I've already prepped my bag with nipple shields and cream and am expecting to just get on with it myself.

I think lack of education and support, most of the other mothers who had children at the same time as me struggled to breastfeed, the main reason they gave was that they had no milk so had no choice.

What they hadn’t heard about was cluster feeding and how it is normal for milk to take a few days to come in.... so basic BF knowledge really. However by this point they had already formula fed which then affects their own milk supply so it’s a cycle which ultimately leads to no BF at all.

For me it was lack of support and I feel very guilty I didn't continue breastfeeding. I think it's a cultural thing as well. My mother was born in the 1950s very little breastfeeding (babies taken away at night by nurses to give the mother rest), my mother was formula fed, then she formula fed me and my sister. Same with my friends families, non of my friends breastfed.
I didn't know where to access local support, my midwife was happy baby was gaining weight so thought I was doing fine! (When I felt like I didn't have a clue!!) I didn't know what was normal. Being told by family to formula feed as baby was feeding every couple of hours. When your in the middle of it and your sleep deprived I didn't know about cluster feeding etc!
If I'm lucky enough to conceive again I know where the support is to access! Xx

Also I didn't really bat an eyelid wherever I fed. Once established I'd drape a muslin over the shoulder, latch the Baby on, cover up and feed away. Once even during a parent teacher consultation.

Both of our DC were FF. DW never even entertained the idea of BF. I was actually pleased as it meant I could also feed the DC even if it was at 2 o'clock in the morning! Don't miss washing and sterilising the bottles though!

@Jilljams I wish I had had that level of support - sounds amazing!

@1940s I would have gone down that route for DD2 and had looked up lactation consultants in advance knowing the problems I had with DD1. Sadly giving birth during lockdown it didn't seem worth it to pay £££ for Zoom calls when I needed such a high level of support...

I think it is a shame in the UK we have all the moralising about bf (and of course it is the right thing to do if you are able to) but low levels of support which means BF mums and FF mums often are both having a hard time !

I have nothing against breast feeding, I just never wanted to do it myself. Formula was so much easier for me with returning to work and it meant my husband could help out with feeds during the nights too. Most of my friends have breastfed at some point, although it seems most people I know have only done it for the first few months and then switched to formula for various reasons

I don’t think the all or nothing approach to BF helps either. It is so hard to get info on combination feeding, pumping etc it’s all of one or the other. The reality is a mix can preserve BF for many but there is so much negativity around it. Nipple confusion doesn’t have any really good evidence to prove it and missing one feed for a top up won’t destroy BF but these are all things I have heard. I have combo fed from day 1 this time as I had bad experiences BF the first time and the fact baby takes a bottle and I get a short break has been a good mental security blanket for me and BF is going incredibly smoothly. Support is also key but a luxury of the well off. The vast majority of people can’t afford private 121 support or private TT revision some people are living week to week on stat mat pay or similar so dropping £150 on a consultation isn’t an option. I also walked out of a ‘BF support’ group with my first as I had never felt so judged when trying to get help about a feeding plan I had been suggested by the feeding support worker we need to help each other not be superior for choosing a different feeding method.

Breastfeeding is impacted by social, political and financial factors.

Breastfeeding is encouraged as it is the best source of nutrition for babies, but it's not the best for all babies, and it's not the best for all mums either.

Because of this the breast is best campaign flopped.

The Fed is best organisation have been known to be very anti-breastfeeding, but unfortunately have a huge influence over how babies are fed, because so many women lack post-discharge support to continue breastfeeding. This creates a medical necessity to supplement or switch to formula because local councils and governing bodies do not understand the importance of funding community care and immediate access to infant feeding workers, with many infant feeding roles being slashed in entire districts.

Formula companies are also not allowed to advertise first stage milk, but they can advertise follow on milk, which subconsciously makes people think follow on milk is a necessity when it isn't. It makes people think breastmilk is inadequate. Unfortunately our government allow this because it doesn't strictly break the international code of breastfeeding substitutes.

We've also developed a culture where breastfeeding can't be celebrated, lest it be insulting to those who can't/won't breastfeed.

For those who can't, breastfeeding promotion can sting, even though it makes sense to promote something that for the majority of babies is the best thing for them.

For those that won't breastfeed, it can feel insulting to hear the facts about formula and how it can negatively impact babies, ie. If it isn't made with water over 70° then bacteria like E. Coli and C. Sakazakii can thrive, and can kill babies. This isn't about water cleanliness, but rather that formula is pasteurised and not sterilised, and using cold/bottled water and using old formula instead of fresh can increase the risk of bacterial proliferation.

I don't feel like any one should breastfeed if they don't want to. I don't believe in breast is best or fed is best. I believe informed is best.

But there are some people who just don't want to be informed, because they may have a bias one way or the other.

I'm all for feeding your baby how you see fit, but we do have appealing rates for bf in this country with known knock on affects in health later in life.

Lack of education
Lack of support
Seeing formula as easier
Negative attitudes
Availability of formula
Sterilisation facilities

19 months in and I'm still breastfeeding and although it's only a few times a day you'd think it was the worst thing in the world according to some people. Constantly being told to put her on cows milk which she doesn't like for a start but why is milk from her mother frowned upon but milk from the nipple of another animal isn't??

WHO and NHS guidelines advise breastfeeding as well as solids until they are two (unless for some reason you can't breast feed)

It's not the cultural norm, kids are more likely to play with a doll and bottle than witness a family member breastfeeding.

Many don't recognise normal breastfeeding infant behaviour. Many can't tell the difference between a starving baby and a cluster feeding baby. Many expect long periods of sleep before the baby is ready. Many don't realise how normal it is for a baby to seek comfort on the breast. When mum is overwhelmed the solution from others is to stop breastfeeding rather than offer practical help.

We encourage mums to bounce back ASAP after childbirth and get their lives back. We also fetishise "equal parenting" which doesn't go well with the idea of mum doing all the feeds for the first few months.

Midwives in most areas are also not trained to assist with breastfeeding, with many having also not breastfed themselves. However midwives are often the ones left with the goal of showing people how to breastfeed.

All it takes is some bad advice to ruin someone's breastfeeding journey.

The low expectations we have as a society for the HCPs who work with pregnant and postpartum women is a disgrace. I don't try why it's so acceptable for them to be so poorly trained on breastfeeding

The answer is pretty obvious if you compare the uk a we'll developed country with clean water supply and people living in sanitary conditions vs people living in less economically developed countries. In less economically developed countries they breastfeed or their baby dies to put it bluntly. No formula on hand, no clean water, no steriliser etc etc. You are going to try to breastfeed a little harder if you think it's this or the baby doesn't survive.

Mums are given a choice in this country, granted some people just don't produce enough milk etc and luckily for them there is the safety net of formula. But on the other side some women just don't want to. A friend of ours had her baby last week, very intelligent etc, we obviously didn't ask about feeding but she just said in conversation "yeah I didn't even bother trying this time, I couldn't be doing with it". It's that attitude that drags the figures down "I don't have to, it's hard work, so I won't".