The many, many costs of breastfeeding - VOX

[Helleofabore]

This has been rather eye opening to read..

www.vox.com/the-highlight/23076305/breastfeeding-costs-baby-formula-shortage

Following Strangio’s recent tweets as well, I am rather surprised to see this back lash against breastfeeding. Yes, it is hard. It is excruciatingly painful sometimes. I also don’t believe anyone should be shamed for their choices in this.

However, this could be said to be propaganda for formula companies surely? And not a woman to be seen. Just lactating parents!

Agreed. I had two nursing bras that I didn't need, but I was a FTM who thought I did. Nipple cream, bought the big tube but didn't need it long at all, a tiny one would have done. Didn't need bottles, pump, storage bags etc. I think it's US centric aimed at mothers returning to work early. If you have 9 to 12 months maternity leave then you may not need to pump at all.

I don’t think there’s anything demeaning about the infographic either. It’s a response to the sneering at women who formula feed by saying “you should be breastfeeding anyway, it’s free”. It’s pretty clear.

@Villagewaspbyke is that honestly what you took from my post?

@Svara well isn’t it great it was so easy for you - no need for even nipple cream. 🙄

I literally only bought nursing bras, none of the other stuff and I got paid by the local maternity hospital for my milk donations. It definitely didn't cost me much.

It's interesting, I've noticed a huge shift in the last few years, apparently formula companies now pay people to go onto social media and stir up anti bf feeling. People actually said that years ago but I didn't believe them then. I do now because it fits in with the whole influencer culture. Formula companies absolutely love influencers.

But on Reddit especially, less so on Mumsnet which seems relatively less well known globally. Any time the benefits of breastfeeding are mentioned there is loads of pushback and a real insistence that this is pressure and unfair and not even that accurate. I completely agree that there is no sense in pressuring women to breastfeed who don't want to, and I can also see that when you look at the whole picture the benefits of BF may be cancelled out in an individual situation by the benefits of formula, it's not as simple as the nutritional content. But it's really weird, when I had DS1 (now 13) the whole internet seemed fairly aligned on the idea that formula companies were pretty shady and advertising harms BF and that breastfeeding needed to be protected and getting that info out there felt like the feminist thing, yes there were massive BF vs FF bun fights on here but that was more about individuals or it would be a fight about what age it's "weird" to breastfeed until. Then it seemed to calm down a bit and everyone seemed to be getting on quite well and respecting each others choices. Now you get people who genuinely seem to believe that breastfeeding is pushed over formula and the poor formula companies are getting shafted or that formula feeding is the feminist way and soon breastfeeding will be obsolete because formula is so much better... I mean it's pretty good but it's nothing like breastmilk. And that's okay, it doesn't really need to be exactly like breastmilk.

I don't know, it just feels different and hostile now. Reddit parenting subs are a weird place to be at the best of times.

So formula feeding means people make nasty remarks? Maybe formula feeding mums can be unpleasant as well. There was no need to make snarky remarks to @Svara. Should she be ashamed she had no issues?

Or perhaps the downsides of breastfeeding are something we should talk about too instead of just guilting mums with conspiracy theories about “formula companies”.

I'm older than you, had my first in the 70s and had real pressure to formula feed from everyone except my GP who was very casual but supportive. These things seem to go in cycles. People just need to do what they feel comfortable with.

@ancientgran she should not say an article highlighting how breastfeeding can be really difficult is a load of crap just because her personal experience was she didn’t find it difficult or need anything to help her. It’s not that hard. 🙄

No it doesn’t. It’s pretty unhelpful for @Svara to say that she had no need for any of those things. Well lots of women do. That’s the point. It’s not an option and definitely not an easy option for every woman so how does saying “well I found it easy” help anyone?

Agreed!!!

I also think it's quite insulting to mothers who formula feed (I've been both), as if they're just dancing around with endless free time, barely noticing their babies, because they're not breastfeeding. If you just count breastfeeding then of course it's hours and hours, if you count up how long mothers spend feeding but also cuddling, holding and comforting their babies, and generally caring for them, then it would clearly come out pretty similar regardless of feeding method so the idea that you're giving up endless time 'for free' if you breastfeed is nonsense. It's having a baby that means you give up endless time for free!

I’m not keen on some of the drawings but I fully agree that bfing is only free if you don’t count the time spent by mothers nursing their child as worth anything at all.

And yes some of the costs are specific to the US. But many bfing mothers will have used a breastfeeding support (eg La Lèche). I know I did.
When women are going back to work, they’ll need to pump. Actually if they want any time away from their baby (regardless of the reason) or they want some help (eg to be able to have some sleep) they will need to pump (cost and time).

Onw of the big issue with bf’ing is the lack of recognition of the effort involved for the mother to do that. The time, the fact she can’t get any support at night, can’t have a break during the weekend etc etc…
Im nit sure that portraying bf’ing as ‘the easy way’ and ‘free’ is actually helpful tbh.

it’s not a belief that breastfeeding is pushed in the NHS. It’s fact. As I said the midwives refused to give me formula (they said they were not permitted) and my health visitor told me she couldn’t help me or discuss formula feeding at all. My friends in my area experienced the same issue.

you may wish to pretend it’s a conspiracy of unconnected food producing formula companies, but it’s really not. It’s just a fact.

I am one woman who is sick of it but I am definitely not the only one. As I said above I think it’s a misogynist trope that women should be breastfeeding and can’t formula feed even if they choose to do so.

i think that’s a validation of BB’s post. It isn’t ok for someone to say their bf experience was great but it is fine for posts to say BF is difficult.

Anyone’s personal experience can be shared it doesn’t shit on someone else’s. Critically appraising releases, policies and company behaviours remains important. Formula companies (like the ones who have contaminated products, still push products in the third world and the deaths of prem babies) love it when analysis gets shut down.

@Razbitso you can say your experience is great without belittling others experiences for example posters saying everything in that article is ‘a load of crap’.

And no one, but no one has said that there is anything wrong with breastfeeding or it’s weird or any such thing. Nor does the infographic say that. It says it can be difficult and it’s not free when you take into account women's time and the other costs (such as lactating consultants, etc). some women find it easy - go them. Lots don’t or just don’t want yo do it. Go them too with their formula.

@Hardbackwriter I don’t agree that you spend the same amount of time holding the baby regardless of whether they are breastfed or not.

For a start, when a child is bottle fed, you can hand it down to the other parent to do the holding!

I bottle fed dc1 and bf’ed dc2. I’m forever thankful I didn’t manage to bfed dc1. I had bad PND with dc1 so bottle feeding meant DH could get up during the night and do half of the feeds. It meant I could hand over dc1 to him when he came back home in the evening. It meant I could go out on my own whilst DH was looking after him. Actually it meant that I could leave dc1 at the nursery attached to the gym so I had a couple of hours for myself.
I wasn’t able to do any of that with dc2…..

Yet both got the amount of cuddles they needed. It just wasn’t JUST me giving the cuddles.

The only thing I bought off that list was nipple cream so yeah I saved loads, but what a bizarre thing - I assume they're going to campaign for BFing mothers to get far more emotional, physical and financial support seeing how tough it is? Oh no, they're just going to tell them that they all might as well have formula fed as BFing doesn't save that much money (as if that's solely why anyone does it), ruins your body (thanks but pregnancy and childbirth already did that) and makes it very difficult to be out working (because in the US you're worthless if you're not paying taxes).

What a load of useless bollox, it's perfectly reasonable to say that the formula shortage is a huge problem and people often can't relactate if they've been stopped a while - but they don't even seem to mention that! Instead they just go on about what a nightmare BFing actually is for a woman when obviously she could be out working a full time job and being useful.

What we are objecting to is saying that the infographic was a “load of rubbish” because she didn’t have those issues.

which companies which produce formula milk in the uk have had any issues with contamination? And how is the death of premature babies linked to feeding them formula? sounds like more mum bashing to me,

Formula feeding in the uk is safe and has no known risks. Let’s stop attacking mums.

People can write what they like but for me I loved breastfeeding - it was one of the best most important experiences of my life and I am very pleased my daughters have done it (one is still doing it successfully and of course I would support them any choice they make but I am glad they are doing it).

In the absence of nuance or appropriate modal verbs it is crap because the article isn’t saying this was my experience it’s saying bf is…

BF is all kids of different things to all kinds of different women. I want my feeding info to be evidence based and woman centred. Any woman should have her feeding decisions accepted and respected. The post belittles bf as an experience and by association the women who bf as their income slides, their body is fucked and their reasoning skill leave them. It’s the same theme as misogynist comments that elevate one way of birth over another.

This. I didn't have any of that stuff. Just me, my boobs and my baby.

Also it saved me time, I didn't have to get up, go downstairs and make a bottle every time baby needed feeding in the night - half the time they fed while I slept when they were old enough. Could just leave the house without a load of stuff.

I know it's not for everyone but it saved me time, money and sanity. I love how the emotional side doesn't give the emotional benefits of breastfeeding. I loved it - the closeness to baby, it was a chance to sit and relax and rest. Wonderful.

Not to mention the health benefits to mother and baby.

Even your post makes it clear you look down on formula feeding. You would ‘still support’ your daughter if they needed to formula feed. How noble of you to deign to support someone feeding their child a perfectly nutritious and healthy food.your daughter must feel so lucky to have you.