I am super pro breastfeeding for those who want to, but if the AAP would focus on the really important things PP suggested (more nurses per mother/infant, more nurses in the nursery, shorter hours for medical staff, etc.) instead of making all the outcomes about whether people breastfeed or not it would be better for breastfeeding moms AND formula feeding moms. I bet you'd get more people willing to try breastfeeding if they weren't so miserably stressed anyway. |
Heyo, all those things cost money. Much better to act like changing the mothers' behavior is the start and end of early childhood wellbeing. After all, women's labor is free to the system! I also have long believed that public health focuses on breastfeeding because they KNOW that new mothers are a susceptible audience. Nothing to do with the actual costs and benefits of interventions; they just know that women can be pressured. |
At least according to the CDC, trying breastfeeding isn’t really the issue. 83% of mothers try. 60% of mothers stop before they wanted to, many citing a lack of supportive policies at hospitals, doctors, and workplaces. I think it’s that 60% the AAP is trying to get at here. |
I just don’t understand WHY, I guess. What is the super important health benefit that EVERYONE has to breastfeed for 2+ years, in a developed country where we have clean water and baby formula? The last I looked into this (years ago), the only benefit that was outside of controlling for factors like family income, day care/non day care, education, etc. was a small reduction on a population - not even individual - level basis in ear infections and diarrhea. And that pumped and stored milk loses even those small benefits. Is that really worth all the hand wringing that new moms do about BFing? |
How do you know the 60% stopped earlier than they “wanted to”? The “wanting to for X time” is a product of the notion that women need to have “breastfeeding goals” before they have all the information about breastfeeding. Most women stop because it’s harder than advertised and formula is easier, end of story. Others stop because they never produce enough. |
Odom EC, Li R, Scanlon KS, Perrine CG, Grummer-Strawn L. Reasons for earlier than desired cessation of breastfeedingexternal icon. Pediatrics. 2013;131(3):e726–732. Accessed August 24, 2021 “Earlier than desired” typically means “before they wanted to” |
These are also the recommendations in Canada. Canada is typically understood to have clean water and baby formula. They also have a full year mat leave. |
I don’t think they should be the recommendations anywhere in the developed world honestly. Give people complete, accurate information and let them decide for themselves. |
The reccomendation isn’t that everyone has to nurse for two years. It’s that people who want to nurse past one, whose babies want to nurse last one, should be supported in doing so. Also the benefits after one year primarily are a reduced cancer risk for the mother. I feel like that should matter. |
And I feel like the costs of breastfeeding to the mother, including the value of her time as well as her bodily autonomy should be acknowledged, but we can't all get what we want, can't we? |
+1 so much this Fyi parental leave is really important but when it is only for mothers, it hurts women. |
I mean, I’m fine with the decision so apparently some of us can. |
Being pregnant and giving birth also reduces your risk of breast and ovarian cancer, but you don’t see these organizations telling women to get pregnant and have kids if they don’t want to. Birth control use also reduces BC risk and is a lot less invasive on your life. |
My point is that they had no basis to know how long they wanted to BF before they did it. This is as stupid as thinking birth plans should dictate c-section rates. Women find out breastfeeding is hard/painful/exhausting or the baby needs more, and they realize “hey, now I know why formula was invented!” |
The methodology wasn’t to ask people before they started nursing, you seem to have made that up. They were surveyed each month and when they reported cessation of breastfeeding, asked if they wanted to continue longer. So if they “just realized why formula was invented!” they would not have reported that they wanted to continue longer… |