article on breast feeding

[winnie89]

i dont know who much of this is acurate but i thought i'd better share

http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/family/437374/Is-breast-best-

 

[pinkyprincess]

Hmmm articles like that worry me! There is too much emphasis on how 'hard' it is to bf and people's 'problems' yes it's not easy but a lot of people see the negatives and make a choice before trying which is really sad. At least try before deciding (that's if you can of course!) I also think the worrying thing is they are referring back to one study saying it might not be as beneficial as apposed to formula where there have been plenty saying how good it is for baby (and mum!)

When I was pregnant I was so so worried about not 'taking' to bfing that I brought all the bottles etc and decided I'd make my choice when he came. As it turned out I had a stressful 4 day labour ending in a c section and during this I told my OH I was too stressed and will be bottle feeding. As we were going into recovery I was asked how id be feeding and I said bottle (as was given a hugely dirty look!) I was then left in recovery with a rooting hungry baby so I did what a mum does and fed him in the only way I had possible at that time, by bfing. Luckily he took to it and we've had very few issues (but a couple of nights he has been on formula!) but I have had some blocked ducts which are bloody painful but you get through them pretty quickly!

I don't want to lecture anyone as I know how annoying that is hearing people harp on about it, but I don't regret what happened at all! I'm especially grateful during the night when I don't have to get out of bed to feed!!

 

[pinkyprincess]

Sorry that turned into a mini novel! God knows where that came from lol!

 

[pixie17]

thanks for posting this. i'm going to give breast feeding a go but have also bought bottles for formula. ideally i am going to try and do both. plenty of babies are formula fed and are perfectly healthy. however, breast milk does provide certain antibodies which formula doesnt. despite what articles and some professionals say i know several mums who do both and it works fine. i think there is too much pressure out there pushing mums to breast feed which leads them to feel like a 'failure' if it doesnt work. at the end of the day i think it should be the mums choice and she should be supported with whatever she wants to do.

 

[winnie89]

Yeah I know where you are all coming from and i'm going to breast feed my son and if I can't then I've got bottles and formula just in case. We all have to do what is best for our babies and we shouldn't feel guilty about how we feed our child x

 

[VikkiR]

I'm not reading any more on bf as the more I've read the more it's put me off and I want to give it a go

 

[vampybear]

i love that it says breast milk is no better than formula, because it does my head in when people go on about breast is best- that is not fair for people that couldnt produce milk like my mum, and her kids have turned out fine!
i hate the thought of breast feeding it actually makes me feel ill at the thought of having to do it, and im not scared to say that it doesnt matter which way you do it, coz the proof is in the amount of adults still alive and healthy now that were on formula, in some ways the formula ensures you have all the right vitamins, whereas we have to rely on making sure our bodies and diets are making it for our babies, which doesnt guarentee you get everything that you would from formula.

only reason im gonna try to bf is because it will save us a lot of money, but even then i will only do it for a maximum of 6 months, i have had 9 months of being restricted in diet and drink, i dont want much longer, i need my body back lol

 

[AugustMum]

I haven't read the article but I'm assuming it's saying breast is no better than formula?

Vampybear I have to disagree when you say that formula is just as good as formula. There are a huge amount of benefits to both mum and baby with breast milk. However, like you say, many many people are given formula and they're all fine my daughter being one of them after bf didn't work out for us.

Also, your body will naturally produce everything you need for the milk so by no means will formula provide you with all the vitamins and minerals that could be lacking in breast milk. If anything it's the other way round!

 

[winnie89]

Hey hun it's actually saying that breast may not always be best in some cases

 

[JensBump]

The press release is not actually backed up by the research - it has been misconstrued

http://www.bpni.org/advocacy/Final-Carlsen-Letter_to_University.pdf

just speculative discussions for which Prof. Carlsen and colleagues have collected no data in the present research


http://www.bfmed.org/Media/Files/Documents/ABM Reacts to Misleading Study 1-13-10.pdf:

In fact, the study did not measure the effect of breastfeeding on the health of the mother or the child nor did
it compare breastfed infants to those who were formula fed. The study merely found an inconsistent link
between hormone levels during pregnancy and breastfeeding rates and duration.
“To distribute a statement ostensibly based on research data that are
not related in any way to what was published violates the basic standards of responsible science. One
cannot state that breast milk affords no health advantages when no measure of health was studied.”

I personally think you cannot argue that formula is as good as breast milk as it cannot change the way the milk does, for instance if the child comes into contact with a cold or flu bug the mother starts producing antibodies against that bug and therefore breastfed children get sick less often. Also the consistency of breast milk changes during a feed and as the child grows to meet their needs. Formula does not.

BUT in saying that a happy mother is more important to a child and with that in mind no one should be judged for the decisions they make

 

[winnie89]

That is very true I just thought it was an interesting read because when my SIL had my niece she couldn't breast feed and she felt really guilty about it, but I know not every one can and it's not an easy ride if ur trying, I am definatly going to tey to BF but then circumstances don't always allow us to do what we want. Xxx

 

[AugustMum]

Ok just read it and it was a lot more light hearted than I thought. I do think though that the nct aren't considered posh because of the 'breast is best' slogan though :/ I think it's considered posh because of the price lol.

Teen mums or single mums won't be put off by the fact they promote breast feeding, or at least I don't think so, I just kind of think they should lower the prices!

I totally agree if the mother is happy then that reflects on the baby (and your supply if bf). I didn't continue because it was making me very low and I fought with that decision for a long time as even the hvs were getting funny with me for stopping!

 

[JensBump]

Exactly I have friends who couldn't for a number of different reasons and felt bad about it but their children are fine.

I think breastfeeding has almost at times got a bad press because it is pushed so much as some kind of superfood when in fact it is simply that breastmilk is normal and natural food for infants - same as cows milk is best for baby cows etc etc - the child will not be super smart etc because of the breastmilk - in the days before formula a mother who couldn't feed her child would have used a wet nurse - this may become more common place in the future with milk donation now becoming more popular

 

[winnie89]

I know that they are if your child is premature my cousin had donated breast milk when he was in neonatal x