Breast milk does NOT "raise IQ scores." There is a slight CORRELATION between children of women who breastfeed and IQ in the U.S., not a CAUSAL analysis. Family economics and background are not taken into account in the studies, leaving rational people to wonder about the results. It is absurd to repeat this nonsense, and I am very disappointed in this opinion piece. Most children in the US were fed formula in the 60s--are these kids dumber than others?
18
Well..pretty soon we won't have to bother with all these tedious things like child bearing, breastfeeding, raising children..god forbid...reading to children...we'll have robots. Those big breasted ones I've seen pictures of which of course do not produce milk..we'll all just work and work and life will be grand as we proudly watch our robots feed liquid goo to "our children" who they incubated...Oh, please...help!!!!
4
Wow - what a lot of controversy over an essentially good article.
As a veteran public health physician, I can only agree with the basic premise. The benefits of breastfeeding are pretty obvious, although it is possible to quibble with IQ data, for instance. If anything, aid programs should educate families and empower women to receive the proper nutrition and instruction for successful breastfeeding. Another well known advantage of breastfeeding not mentioned here is its contraceptive effect (lactational amenorrhea).
As an adoptive mother who breastfed my daughter years ago in Guatemala - with the help of some wonderful women from the local La Leche League - I can only say - it was a terrific experience. Obviously, not for everybody, but adoptive mothers should be aware of it. No supplemental hormones or medications needed! Which brings me to the next point -
Yes - even men can breastfeed! All you need is a brain and a breast. [Virtually all men have breasts and most even have brains - no matter how rudimentary! Just joking, guys.] There's a great youtube video out there titled Breastfeeding Men https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiXp_See_Bs
And finally for those "upset" by the video, I refer you to the King James Bible translation of Numbers 11:12 "Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?
As a veteran public health physician, I can only agree with the basic premise. The benefits of breastfeeding are pretty obvious, although it is possible to quibble with IQ data, for instance. If anything, aid programs should educate families and empower women to receive the proper nutrition and instruction for successful breastfeeding. Another well known advantage of breastfeeding not mentioned here is its contraceptive effect (lactational amenorrhea).
As an adoptive mother who breastfed my daughter years ago in Guatemala - with the help of some wonderful women from the local La Leche League - I can only say - it was a terrific experience. Obviously, not for everybody, but adoptive mothers should be aware of it. No supplemental hormones or medications needed! Which brings me to the next point -
Yes - even men can breastfeed! All you need is a brain and a breast. [Virtually all men have breasts and most even have brains - no matter how rudimentary! Just joking, guys.] There's a great youtube video out there titled Breastfeeding Men https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiXp_See_Bs
And finally for those "upset" by the video, I refer you to the King James Bible translation of Numbers 11:12 "Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?
11
You might want to read the article printed in this newspaper about 2 days ago about how most of this information on breast feeding is outdated, overblown, or flat out wrong; and that it is not the companies making formula but the companies making breast feeding equipment that are driving most of this information. I know you are India, but you can get the Times online. Check it out.
11
Is it at all possible that this column is not about you and your decision to breastfeed or not breastfeed your own children, who were born in developed countries? I find it highly irritating when these stories are used to justify the choices of women who actually have multiple good options from which to choose. Not every story about breastfeeding is about YOU, and you don't have to justify yourself to the world every time it comes up!
11
But I thought that 'progress' meant abandoning the old ways for this marvelous new age of science and technology? Formula must be better than breast milk, because it was made by a machine and not a woman's body.
Just stop to think about it for a moment. A columnist for the New York Times feels compelled, in the 21st century to write a column extolling the virtues of breast-feeding so that fewer infants will die, where only a couple of hundred years ago no one questioned the premise at all.
I wonder, as we marvel at the 'progress' science and technology has delivered--is a whole snout full of it really not progress at all, but just finding a way to make a buck by devising an artificial means of doing something and claiming it is an improvement on nature?
It seems to me that there's a lot more than just baby formula that represents regress, rather than progress, in the human condition over the last few centuries. It seems to me that we think ourselves so smart these days that we've grown rather stupid.
Just stop to think about it for a moment. A columnist for the New York Times feels compelled, in the 21st century to write a column extolling the virtues of breast-feeding so that fewer infants will die, where only a couple of hundred years ago no one questioned the premise at all.
I wonder, as we marvel at the 'progress' science and technology has delivered--is a whole snout full of it really not progress at all, but just finding a way to make a buck by devising an artificial means of doing something and claiming it is an improvement on nature?
It seems to me that there's a lot more than just baby formula that represents regress, rather than progress, in the human condition over the last few centuries. It seems to me that we think ourselves so smart these days that we've grown rather stupid.
8
My understanding (or my hearing) is that it was also a little painful at times—and not just the breasts: a head butt from the lad that chipped her tooth.
1
The complexities of breast feeding - do include the factor of the mother's hormonal tempo turning off hetero desire while feeding - enter in, jealousy of male, need of woman to keep male in home - a sticky wicket hardly ever addressed, it seems to me -
2
Such great elixir! Let us find ways to control and regulate the source of this great elixir. They should not be allow to do anything but work on producing this elixir no matter how dire their living condition have to be to get there. After we milk them dry of this elixir, let us find other things we can manipulate and control them to do for no compensations or rights.
15 years ago, I served as a health volunteer with Peace Corps in Central Africa, where I was instructed to push breast feeding, even though I had never done it myself and didn't know much about it. Having recently had my first child, I cringe when I think about my little "lectures" to the women who wasted their time attending my classes. Our particular brand of sexism and weird obsessions with food and women's body parts are not things we should be exporting to other countries. The typhoid vaccination is.
9
So what that breastfeeding is time consuming? Raising children is an inherently time-consuming endeavor. Every single thing a parent does for his or her child takes time and is not really "free." Should we start bean counting every minute we spend on other "free" activities like taking our children out to play, reading to them, driving them to doctor's appointments/school/activities, changing their diapers and putting them to sleep at night? In that case, nothing is truly "free," is it?
As I say in response to all of these articles, obviously, adult women are free to make whatever decisions they please in regards to how they feed their infant (and moreso in the developing world). But whatever decision you make, just own it and stop with the melodrama about being "shamed" by factual articles about the components of breastmilk and the fact that it is the biological norm for human infants. Women get pregnant, give birth and then lactate. That's just biology and trying to frame it as some sociopolitical conversation doesn't change the basics.
Now, if the opportunity cost of breastfeeding wasn't worth it for you and your family's situation, then just say so, feed your child with safe and available commercial formula, feel confident about your decision and move on with your life.
As I say in response to all of these articles, obviously, adult women are free to make whatever decisions they please in regards to how they feed their infant (and moreso in the developing world). But whatever decision you make, just own it and stop with the melodrama about being "shamed" by factual articles about the components of breastmilk and the fact that it is the biological norm for human infants. Women get pregnant, give birth and then lactate. That's just biology and trying to frame it as some sociopolitical conversation doesn't change the basics.
Now, if the opportunity cost of breastfeeding wasn't worth it for you and your family's situation, then just say so, feed your child with safe and available commercial formula, feel confident about your decision and move on with your life.
46
Edited: I mean to say "moreso in the developed world," not developing.
1
Kristof does a fine job of naming the likely benefits of breastfeeding, but is completely wrong about the costs. Breastfeeding is not free, and anyone who claims it is has lost credibility on this subject.
As another commenter described, it requires calories and nutrients that have to come from somewhere, in an environment where those things can be hard to come by. It also requires time and energy, and in some cases causes discomfort and frustration. We need better information about both benefits and costs before we can prescribe breastfeeding as a miracle "elixir."
As another commenter described, it requires calories and nutrients that have to come from somewhere, in an environment where those things can be hard to come by. It also requires time and energy, and in some cases causes discomfort and frustration. We need better information about both benefits and costs before we can prescribe breastfeeding as a miracle "elixir."
13
So who do you know that charges for breast milk?
8
This article highlights an important difference between the "mommy wars" over breastfeeding in the developed world (a debate that simply reeks of clueless privilege - please take those comments elsewhere) and the life-threatening problems of formula in the underdeveloped world. In the underdeveloped world, the difference between breastfeeding and not is a matter of life and death, not higher IQ or asthma or allergies, or getting into Harvard. As Mr. Kristof points out, the problem with formula is not the formula - it's the water (or other substitutes) being used to mix the formula which is contaminated and kills babies. 7 in 1,000 children will die before reaching age 5 in the US. 109 in 1,000 will die before 5 in Nigeria. Yes, ideally we should make the water clean for everyone. But that will take a long time and requires government infrastructure and organization that does not exist. Meanwhile, changing individual breastfeeding habits can happen this year, right now, and save countless lives.
40
Thank you, N.K. for this piece. Imagine it was planned before last Sunday's Jung piece, which was so poor in its selective citing of scientific work that I forwarded a complaint about the piece to the NYT Public Editor. Your presentation of the straight facts and findings from such studies (something Jung greatly manipulated) provides a service to NYT readers.
14
Thank you for this piece. Its surprising how such a simple solution still needs reinforcing. Modern Western marketing and practices are highly culpable and I appreciate that you mentioned them.
16
Breast feeding is the original green technology.
18
In the 1980's in Guatemala, the Nestle company heavily promoted infant formula as the new wonder-product. Women were given free formula for a while, and breastfeeding rates declined. And, because it was expensive and there was a lack of clean water, infant malnutrition and diarrhea became prevalent. Go Nestle! Even hospitals in the US offer infant formula samples to moms leaving the hospital "just in case." There are times and reasons when women cannot breastfeed, but ignorance and mass marketing should not be two of them.
38
Thanks!! Even at the storied Massachusetts General Hospital with one of the best OB units in country because docs and midwives are colleagues -- even there important breastfeeding for a patient is sometimes thwarted. I had delivered a Somali refugee patient who needed to breastfeed fully and without supplements for her Islamic contraceptive needs as well as the baby's nutritional needs. The mother was non-English speaking and couldn't talk to the nurse who had put a bottle of formula in the bassinet when she brought the babe out. The mother, who had been transported from an African refugee camp to a state of art tertiary care OB unit, was sweetly trying to do what she thought she was 'supposed' to do. When she came to me for her six week postpartum check she was wholly bottle feeding --- vitiating any possibility of child-spacing under in her Islamic culture.
Note also: in later conversation the much more highly educated translator said that, knowing 'female genital mutilation' was illegal here, if she had a girl baby girl, she would take her to Canada where she believed it was not illegal. Culture is powerful.
Note also: in later conversation the much more highly educated translator said that, knowing 'female genital mutilation' was illegal here, if she had a girl baby girl, she would take her to Canada where she believed it was not illegal. Culture is powerful.
17
I read a very convincing book by an infectious disease physician from NYU (formerly of other health care places including CDC too). He is a huge advocate of breast feeding for the simple purpose of immunity--you not only get immune boost from the milk, but by the skin flora. He advocates vaginal birthing over Cesarean section, too for same reason--splashing the amniotic fluid on the mother and exposure to vaginal flora and skin flora has a healthy benefit, he argues, for the baby.
The book is "Missing Microbes".
I think Mr. Kristof gives a very reasonable article here, without being the "breast feeding Nazi" that so many women fear. Breast feeding is not for everybody, but there are truly a lot of health benefits as spelled out and these should not be overlooked.
The book is "Missing Microbes".
I think Mr. Kristof gives a very reasonable article here, without being the "breast feeding Nazi" that so many women fear. Breast feeding is not for everybody, but there are truly a lot of health benefits as spelled out and these should not be overlooked.
24
No, breast milk is not free; it does take calories from the woman who may need to focus on recovery herself if it was a difficult pregnancy. However, I don't diss Kristof as "only a man would say such a thing." Additionally, people should not be shamed for buying formula.
Those things said, there is only one reason for breasts and that is lactation for babies--the case w/ all mammals. Babies existed long before formula was invented and their initial nutrition came from mother's milk. I breast fed my two children for 5 and 8 months respectively and both are healthy adults. It is true that breast feeding is not for everyone, but speaking only for myself, even though I worked full time, I did everything I could to make sure my babies had my milk for as long as they wanted it. I believed that the safety, nutritional balance and, yes, wonderful bonding with my little bundles, was worth all the inconvenience.
For anyone contemplating having a baby, I would encourage them to give the baby your own milk immediately and for several months, if possible. Enjoy those quiet moments with your infant.
Those things said, there is only one reason for breasts and that is lactation for babies--the case w/ all mammals. Babies existed long before formula was invented and their initial nutrition came from mother's milk. I breast fed my two children for 5 and 8 months respectively and both are healthy adults. It is true that breast feeding is not for everyone, but speaking only for myself, even though I worked full time, I did everything I could to make sure my babies had my milk for as long as they wanted it. I believed that the safety, nutritional balance and, yes, wonderful bonding with my little bundles, was worth all the inconvenience.
For anyone contemplating having a baby, I would encourage them to give the baby your own milk immediately and for several months, if possible. Enjoy those quiet moments with your infant.
15
I recently gave birth to a healthy little girl, whom I have exclusively breast-fed. Leading up to her birth, my greatest (nearly crippling!) anxiety was that I might be incapable of nourishing her. I did a tremendous amount of research and came to understand that feeding my baby formula would not signify my failure as a mother; rather, doing so would provide her an alternative form of nourishment for which I would have been grateful had we needed it. It is important to note that I have been on maternity leave for two months now, feeding my baby on demand and around the clock. The hours I've spent breastfeeding surpass those of most working people! I consider this a privilege. I've also had the privilege of excellent medical care. My child had a short frenulum, and when this goes undetected, many women lose their milk supply unexpectedly between their child's 6th and 10th weeks of life due to their baby's poor latch. This is all to say that breast-feeding, which "natural," is not always possible, or practical, or properly supported. It's simple to claim that it is best, but much more weighty and complex to make it actually feasible.
8
It's shocking that someone has to do a "tremendous amount of research" and has an "almost crippling anxiety" about bottle feeding. How sad. There is nothing wrong with choosing formula over the breast. It should be a woman's choice.
3
One thing I never see discussed in articles like this is research into the realities of breastfeeding historically, before formula was introduced. Wet nurses have played a role in many cultures for millennia, because some women do not produce enough milk to feed a growing baby and because the time cost of breastfeeding is immense. Infant mortality rates in past centuries tended to be very high, and while some of that is due to infectious diseases I'm willing to bet that a large number of newborns have starved to death or been malnourished in ways that left them vulnerable because of problems breastfeeding. Why else have so many cultures had traditions such as naming or circumcising children only after a week or so, if not for the fact that so many infants could not be expected to live even that long? I can't imagine that spending year after year either pregnant or breastfeeding or both is great for a woman's health when she does not have adequate nutrition available, either.
So yes, encourage women to breastfeed (I did). Education is critical when the barrier to breastfeeding is the kind of ignorance mentioned in the article and when other sources of nutrition are so risky due to contaminated water. But don't paint breastfeeding with such a rosy glow that we are blinded to the difficult realities of nursing, and unwilling to credit formula with the lives it has saved.
So yes, encourage women to breastfeed (I did). Education is critical when the barrier to breastfeeding is the kind of ignorance mentioned in the article and when other sources of nutrition are so risky due to contaminated water. But don't paint breastfeeding with such a rosy glow that we are blinded to the difficult realities of nursing, and unwilling to credit formula with the lives it has saved.
12
Don't forget that exclusive breast-feeding is also an effective contraceptive, and can reduce the likelihood that mom will be pregnant again very soon after giving birth.
I love the idea of promoting wet-nursing as well, for those babies or mothers for whom breast-feeding isn't working. What a gift, one that many friends, aunts and neighbours would likely freely give (and grandmothers too! If a woman has ever carried through a full pregnancy, she can often lactate again just with the stimulation of baby sucking).
I love the idea of promoting wet-nursing as well, for those babies or mothers for whom breast-feeding isn't working. What a gift, one that many friends, aunts and neighbours would likely freely give (and grandmothers too! If a woman has ever carried through a full pregnancy, she can often lactate again just with the stimulation of baby sucking).
2
People who advocate for breastfeeding are often attacked for their views, usually with some examples of adoption or masectomies that make breastfeeding impossible, but are not the case in the vast majority of births. It seems to me that in an ideal case, the mother would be well fed, taught how to breastfeed, and only encouraged to use formula if the babies needs weren't met. Of course this ties into poverty, if a woman has to work or isn't well fed she won't be able to do it. It isn't her fault, or something she should be shamed for, but rather a symptom of our messed up capitalist society. I believe a year of paid maternity leave should be the standard, and society has to value the work that women do to bring the next generation into the world. It's sad that formula companies advertise it as better than breastmilk, and that poverty and lack of education prevents women from feeding their babies the most natural way.
3
OK, so it is not free, but it is VERY cost-effective, especially in countries without good health care systems. Moreover, it provides the eye contact and holding necessary for social bonding between child and mother and primes the pump for language development.
The countries that cannot afford drugs and healthcare infrastructure could start with a Women's Children's Health Support network and simple food supplements for pregnant women. It has been shown over and over again that a country's overall well being depends on the support and education of girls and women.
The countries that cannot afford drugs and healthcare infrastructure could start with a Women's Children's Health Support network and simple food supplements for pregnant women. It has been shown over and over again that a country's overall well being depends on the support and education of girls and women.
5
Ahem, women who use formula actually hold their babies and make eye contact with them, don't worry.
4
The quality of breast milk depends on the quality of the mother's health. A malnourished mother cannot produce good milk, in which case formula does become the better option. So to promote breastfeeding in poor countries, it is necessary to make sure the mother is well-nourished.
And by the way, infants and young children should not eat honey. It is not pasteurized.
And by the way, infants and young children should not eat honey. It is not pasteurized.
13
Breastfeeding should not be a moral issue. Many women have difficulties with it that should not be stigmatized. If I had had children, I would have done my best to breastfeed them. I do agree that it is the "best" option and should be promoted more than "formula" from a bottle that now is in the interest of companies like Nestle that sell formula. Bottle feeding was promoted during WWII when many women went into the workforce. I have seen women in Mexico whip out a breast in public to feed an infant wherever she happened to be. Sexualization of the breast has led to a Calvinist view in the US and elsewhere. Women unable to breast feed need to be given a break. We are all different.
7
Breastfeeding is natural and ensures developing infants receive nature's best. Unfortunately, even in the U.S. I see "news stories" suggesting that new mothers bypass breast feeding. Many women aren't given any help to learn how to breastfeed their babies and others want to skip it because it's an inconvenience. Thank you for writing about the science and wisdom of breastfeeding.
3
To a trial attorney like me, the Jung op ed read like a losing brief: half truths,
misleading statistics, cursory treatment of carefully selected evidence, specious reasoning and name calling. The overwhelming weight of evidence supports breastfeeding's superiority. And why not? It's been done forever--at least until lately--by all mammals. Nick, set aside PC for the sake of the kids and the truth: men and women are different. Women should nourish their kids.
Jung also left no room for the unquantifiable, but undeniable. Applying the human-to-human theme of Giles Slade's "The Big Disconnect," to a baby, a bottle is not the equivalent of the breast. Is recorded music is as good as live music? Is Skype is as good as sharing dinner? Is vibrator sex is just as good as the real thing? And so on.
Liberals support a wide range of government incentives and disincentives to influence many human actions. Liberals also judge and "shame" many behaviors. But they don't have the self-awareness to perceive this.
The important thing is to encourage what is best for kids: breast is best. Always has been.
misleading statistics, cursory treatment of carefully selected evidence, specious reasoning and name calling. The overwhelming weight of evidence supports breastfeeding's superiority. And why not? It's been done forever--at least until lately--by all mammals. Nick, set aside PC for the sake of the kids and the truth: men and women are different. Women should nourish their kids.
Jung also left no room for the unquantifiable, but undeniable. Applying the human-to-human theme of Giles Slade's "The Big Disconnect," to a baby, a bottle is not the equivalent of the breast. Is recorded music is as good as live music? Is Skype is as good as sharing dinner? Is vibrator sex is just as good as the real thing? And so on.
Liberals support a wide range of government incentives and disincentives to influence many human actions. Liberals also judge and "shame" many behaviors. But they don't have the self-awareness to perceive this.
The important thing is to encourage what is best for kids: breast is best. Always has been.
11
The people who claim that breast-feeding is scientifically better are the same ones who told us for years not to feed infants nuts for the first 1 or even 2 years - which is what led to the current rise in nut allergies. Sometimes the prevailing wisdom is wrong.
2
Nicholas, is there a way to get me to pay for this, somehow?
Pretty please?
Pretty please?
Yes, you will pay with the lives of your daughters and their children's lives and quality of life.
1
Breastfeeding is not for everybody. It is not some magic bullet or health care wonder that makes babies into super people.
I am a man in this life so far and plan on remaining that way so I really can't speak to the rigors of breastfeeding but it doesn't sound like a lot of fun.
To me formula seems sufficient---I was raised that way and ended up in pretty good shape. And there is the obvious question about ROI---is all the trouble worth the supposed benefits? And of course certain "trendy" moms might be more interested in them being "cool" than in really benefiting the baby at all. Just another example of ego tripping and political correctness run amok.
I am a man in this life so far and plan on remaining that way so I really can't speak to the rigors of breastfeeding but it doesn't sound like a lot of fun.
To me formula seems sufficient---I was raised that way and ended up in pretty good shape. And there is the obvious question about ROI---is all the trouble worth the supposed benefits? And of course certain "trendy" moms might be more interested in them being "cool" than in really benefiting the baby at all. Just another example of ego tripping and political correctness run amok.
4
If sufficient is what you want and pay for, that is what you get. However, sufficient may get the short end of the stick when things go wrong.
Dear Mr. Plumpe,
Breastfeeding really is close to being magical and wonderful as a biological phenomenon can get.
Your question about the "ROI" (return on investment) on breastfeeding made me shudder. Look into it. Breast milk is sometimes referred to as "white blood." It contains not only a certain array of macronutrients, but also a mix of hormones, immune factors and other micronutrients that commercial formula cannot replicate and probably never will. If a mother and baby are exposed to a disease, the mother, with her more mature immune system, can custom make antibodies to convey to her infant via breast milk.
I also was "raised that way" (on formula), but was lucky enough to have my babies in an era when the benefits of breast feeding were well known and promoted by groups like La Leche League. I have no desire to get into the "mommy wars" on this subject. Let me just say this. If you ask whether it's "a lot of fun" you are missing the point. Try "deeply satisfying."
And please don't question a mother's motives for breastfeeding (e.g., trying to be "cool"). There are no bad reasons to breast feed your baby.
Breastfeeding really is close to being magical and wonderful as a biological phenomenon can get.
Your question about the "ROI" (return on investment) on breastfeeding made me shudder. Look into it. Breast milk is sometimes referred to as "white blood." It contains not only a certain array of macronutrients, but also a mix of hormones, immune factors and other micronutrients that commercial formula cannot replicate and probably never will. If a mother and baby are exposed to a disease, the mother, with her more mature immune system, can custom make antibodies to convey to her infant via breast milk.
I also was "raised that way" (on formula), but was lucky enough to have my babies in an era when the benefits of breast feeding were well known and promoted by groups like La Leche League. I have no desire to get into the "mommy wars" on this subject. Let me just say this. If you ask whether it's "a lot of fun" you are missing the point. Try "deeply satisfying."
And please don't question a mother's motives for breastfeeding (e.g., trying to be "cool"). There are no bad reasons to breast feed your baby.
2
When you approach any child-rearing theme looking at the "ROI," you immediately disqualify yourself from discussing caring parenting. Thanks goodness you plan on remaining a man.
Even more miraculous .... Birth control and rudimentary human rights ( Yes, for women )
I'm betting the above would save many more lives, and improve quality of all these women's lives.
I'm betting the above would save many more lives, and improve quality of all these women's lives.
10
Thanks for this article. I am surprised that breastfeeding is not more prevalent in the developing world. I had always assumed it was because of the cost savings. I have breastfed three children for a year each. Despite reading books, articles and Internet resources at my fingertips, I would likely have been unsuccessful in nursing had it not been for the support I received from nurses at the hospital, access to a lactation consultant in the beginning and the ability to get a breastpump to get the milk flowing. My third son was delivered and immediately latched perfectly, but after experiencing the hardships I had with the first two, I realize it was just pure luck. On another note, I wonder if the role of women in the household is holding women back from choosing nursing. Nursing is time consuming and frankly, makes me tired and relaxed. A woman needs to be given time and space to make room for this, but I imagine in many places, she is expected to get back to taking care of many other tasks.
5
Every couple of years, Kristof trots out this same column about breast-feeding. A lot of these so-called studies in favor of breast-feeding have been debunked, showing that any benefits of breast-feeding are marginal at best. The reason that breast-fed babies have slightly higher IQ, for example, is that it is upper-class wealthy mothers who are more inclined to breast-feed to begin with. And a lot of the kids of these crazy-breast-feeding mothers seem to have more allergies, more ear infections, and generally more problems than kids ever seemed to have in the past, before breast-feeding became such an obsession.
8
Wrong! Breast fed babies have statistically fewer ear infections. Anyway, the point is there can be a huge benefit to babies in the developing world - breast milk is always better than an inadequate amount of formula prepared with contaminated water.
10
Not really, they are only debunked in your mind, not when blind studies are done and quality of lives are measured. And in the developing world, it is better to have a child live and thrive than to have to bury a young child that a woman's body has spent great resources to produce.
1
Here in the low income Coachella Valley, the poorest women I knew wasted enormous amounts of money each month on formula, and the higher income women breastfed. And they used formula not for convenience but because they believed it was 'better' for the baby, that breast milk wasn't 'enough', etc. Yes, breast feeding is time consuming, but it's clearly better, so let's support women in every way possible (education, paid maternity leave, etc.) and limit formula advertising, which had formed the 'education' of my lower income friends.
14
Far beyond the health benefits mentioned in your column, breast feeding creates a lasting spiritual bond between a mother and a child. This is a privilege akin to motherhood only.
We tend to discuss lead parenting in a way a bit too simplistic for my taste.
Although it is uplifting to see a more engaged generation of loving fathers doing their utmost to share parenting responsibilities, breast feeding gives us a clear edge over our partners or spouses.
We should be able to rely on supportive husbands and employers so that we may be granted as much time as necessary--no less than one year--to carry out such a profoundly meaningful task*. Paid maternity leave should be considered a basic right. (The same principle should of course apply to men, if they are the ones who opt to stay at home.)
You need not be apologetic about addressing such a compelling issue.
Between you and me: if we were granted a second chance or a myriad more, it would be my heart-felt wish to be reincarnated as a female creature, a mammal if possible...
* "task" is probably not the right word to describe such a beautiful female experience.
We tend to discuss lead parenting in a way a bit too simplistic for my taste.
Although it is uplifting to see a more engaged generation of loving fathers doing their utmost to share parenting responsibilities, breast feeding gives us a clear edge over our partners or spouses.
We should be able to rely on supportive husbands and employers so that we may be granted as much time as necessary--no less than one year--to carry out such a profoundly meaningful task*. Paid maternity leave should be considered a basic right. (The same principle should of course apply to men, if they are the ones who opt to stay at home.)
You need not be apologetic about addressing such a compelling issue.
Between you and me: if we were granted a second chance or a myriad more, it would be my heart-felt wish to be reincarnated as a female creature, a mammal if possible...
* "task" is probably not the right word to describe such a beautiful female experience.
6
Thank you Maria! When I am asked to relax (like having an MRI) by thinking up a memorable time or moment, I always hearken back to those snapshots of nursing my babes. I was very, very fortunate to have these experiences -- that none will ever replace. My mother, post WWII, nursed all 5 of her children during a very unpopular time to not bottlefeed -- 1940's-50's. She just ignored them, quietly, knowing what was best. We all remained extremely close to our mother. Makes you wonder....
1
I breastfed my baby for 9 months dispite terrible pain and bleeding. She has many allergies and asthma anyway. Oh, and when I stopped I found out that she did better on elemental formula because she was allergic to foods in my diet (milk, eggs, etc). So it's simply not try that breast is best for all babies! So much for my guilt---I should have stopped much earlier!
29
Breastfeeding is "free" only if you ignore the tremendous time and energy that women must invest. Newborns must nurse once every two hours for 30-45 minutes a session for the first month or so -- that's 6-9 hours/day of nursing, 42-54 hours/week. Until babies are 5-6 months, they must nurse every 3 hours for 20-30 minutes a session -- that's 3-4 hours/day, 21-28 hours/week of nursing. This is difficult enough for women in developed nation, where pumps are covered by health insurance, maternity leave is common, and workplaces must provide space for pumping. If a woman in a developing nation must work, has multiple other children, or is malnourished, the "miracle" of breastfeeding becomes one more burden. Only a man would claim that 20-50 hours a week of nursing is "free."
I'm all for more education about breastfeeding (though the health/IQ miracles that Kristof touts have been repeatedly debunked by recent research). But what about clean water; better nutrition, sanitation, and medicine; public programs for infant/child care and education. Surely these account far more for infant illness and death than the absence of breastfeeding? By Kristof's own account, the US has a lower breastfeeding rate than India. Because we have better sanitation/healthcare, our infants survive at a higher rate. The same is true of many Western countries (France, the UK, etc).
Oh, but these structural problems are pretty big. Easier to just demand more work from vulnerable and struggling women.
I'm all for more education about breastfeeding (though the health/IQ miracles that Kristof touts have been repeatedly debunked by recent research). But what about clean water; better nutrition, sanitation, and medicine; public programs for infant/child care and education. Surely these account far more for infant illness and death than the absence of breastfeeding? By Kristof's own account, the US has a lower breastfeeding rate than India. Because we have better sanitation/healthcare, our infants survive at a higher rate. The same is true of many Western countries (France, the UK, etc).
Oh, but these structural problems are pretty big. Easier to just demand more work from vulnerable and struggling women.
84
Okay, as a currently breastfeeding mother, I'll say it's free. Not of effort(ha!), but the cost savings are substantial. Kristof is merely pointing out just one more thing we can do to help reduce infant mortality. He's certainly not saying we shouldn't attack it from other fronts as well. I'm highly aware of the burden of breastfeeding, but the truth is that sheer effort isn't the biggest barrier to breastfeeding in these areas-lack of support and education is. If we inform mothers of the importance of breastfeeding, and give them positive support when the going gets tough-and it will get tough-then it can have a very positive impact for these families.
19
As a US-born mother who returned to work at 5 weeks and breastfed for over two years in Nairobi, Kenya, where my son was born, I have to take issue with the contentions that breastfeeding takes enormous amounts of time and requires costly additional nutritional inputs for the mother.
Granted, I could have taken 8 weeks of paid leave - even Kenya had statutory paid maternity leave 37 years ago - and had someone helping me at home (but only during working hours - and no partner.) My job as a university lecturer had some flexibility, but my son had one supplementary bottle on working days, as the manual pump my mother had given me did not work for me. We boiled glass bottles.
Surely every breastfeeding mother knows that when breastfeeding is established you are doing all kinds of other things while feeding the baby, from eating lunch, to shopping, cooking one handed or just reading (we had no TV), and today mothers are probably using their phones one handed.
I don't recall making changes in diet, 'though I needed to eat and drink more, and I stocked up on UHT (non-refrig) milk and drank a liter daily. I was fortunate to have easy access to plenty of cheap fresh food but no processed items.
The major obstacles to appropriate breastfeeding for many women in the US are the lack of reasonable (or any) paid maternity leave, long inflexible or unpredictable working hours and the other pressures of the workplace.
Granted, I could have taken 8 weeks of paid leave - even Kenya had statutory paid maternity leave 37 years ago - and had someone helping me at home (but only during working hours - and no partner.) My job as a university lecturer had some flexibility, but my son had one supplementary bottle on working days, as the manual pump my mother had given me did not work for me. We boiled glass bottles.
Surely every breastfeeding mother knows that when breastfeeding is established you are doing all kinds of other things while feeding the baby, from eating lunch, to shopping, cooking one handed or just reading (we had no TV), and today mothers are probably using their phones one handed.
I don't recall making changes in diet, 'though I needed to eat and drink more, and I stocked up on UHT (non-refrig) milk and drank a liter daily. I was fortunate to have easy access to plenty of cheap fresh food but no processed items.
The major obstacles to appropriate breastfeeding for many women in the US are the lack of reasonable (or any) paid maternity leave, long inflexible or unpredictable working hours and the other pressures of the workplace.
5
I am eternally grateful that there was the time and support for me to breastfeed both of my children for the first year of their lives. Beast feeding for me was an immensely gratifying experience. Some friends had problems. I remember the nurse in the hospital (had cesarian sections unfortunately) told me to go home and drink beer to get the milk started. My children were and are as adults very healthy.
It is sad to read about women being discouraged to do one of the most natural things ever that creates a bond between her and her child that is beyond words.
It is sad to read about women being discouraged to do one of the most natural things ever that creates a bond between her and her child that is beyond words.
17
My Swedish grandmother recommended the beer for making the milk flow as well...I nursed my 3 boys ...it wasn't always easy, but it was worth it.
7
are your friends' children unhealthy?
While over here we quibble over what we should CHOOSE to feed our babies, in most of the world babies are starving to death because their mothers have neither - neither the support and knowledge (and healthy body) to breastfeed, nor clean and safe water and equipment to prepare formula (not to mention formula itself, which costs money). So how about we ease up on the stupid mommy wars and be grateful that we have options? Nobody should care how exactly you feed your babies, as long as you CAN feed them, and yourself.
27
As a retired neonatal and NICU nurse, I heartily agree with your column. One factor about formula feeding that you don't mention is the tendency among some mothers with low incomes to "stretch" the formula with extra water. The practice results in malnourished infants. Regardless of whether formula is powdered or ready-to-feed (least to most expensive preparations), formula is expensive. Even some American mothers who receive formula via the WIC program need a great deal of convincing to stop the practice.
23
@ Ellen - Ellen thanks for providing an excellent example illustrating the profound difference between pre, peri, and post-natal care in the USA and the Nordic countries.
In Sweden, for example, where 99+% of pregnant women have their first meeting with a midwife at about gestational week 12, it is hard for me to imagine that mothers to be would diluting formula as you describe even for some WIC mothers.
If all pregnant women in the USA received pre, peri, and post natal care and the financial support provided for mothers to be in Sweden, then malnourishment and worse could be reduced markedly.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Dual citizen-USA-SE
In Sweden, for example, where 99+% of pregnant women have their first meeting with a midwife at about gestational week 12, it is hard for me to imagine that mothers to be would diluting formula as you describe even for some WIC mothers.
If all pregnant women in the USA received pre, peri, and post natal care and the financial support provided for mothers to be in Sweden, then malnourishment and worse could be reduced markedly.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Dual citizen-USA-SE
This is true ... in places without consistent access to clean water. Lack of ability to breastfeed also kills babies, you realize this right? Women sometimes can't make milk, or enough milk, to feed a baby. Failure to thrive due to insufficient nutrition (ie, starvation) happens in the US because people buy into this myth that breast milk is miraculously awesome and refuse to feed formula to their crying, losing-weight infants. Breast milk is usually deficient in Vitamin K (to prevent internal bleeds/hemorrhages) and sometimes also in Vitamin D and other nutrients. No, breast milk isn't a bloody miracle. When it works, it's quite good, but like all things biological it doesn't always work.
If someone has the time and ability to breastfeed, and they want to do so, they should. In places where access to clean water doesn't exist, breastfeeding is indeed better than formula (not because of formula, but because diarrhea due to dirty water). But to call breast milk a miracle or an elixir? No, it isn't. To shame people who have access to alternatives that don't involve painful, cracked, bleeding nipples, mastitis and plugged ducts, and immense caloric intake requirements ... that's just wrong. Breastfeeding can and does go wrong. It can be incredibly painful. Don't shame women who have good alternatives and choose to use them.
If someone has the time and ability to breastfeed, and they want to do so, they should. In places where access to clean water doesn't exist, breastfeeding is indeed better than formula (not because of formula, but because diarrhea due to dirty water). But to call breast milk a miracle or an elixir? No, it isn't. To shame people who have access to alternatives that don't involve painful, cracked, bleeding nipples, mastitis and plugged ducts, and immense caloric intake requirements ... that's just wrong. Breastfeeding can and does go wrong. It can be incredibly painful. Don't shame women who have good alternatives and choose to use them.
17
I think you are over reacting. He is not shaming mothers who do not breastfeed. Reread the article. And breast milk IS miraculous in a place like rural India, where traditional practices and beliefs are literally killing children. Yes, yes, yes, it isn't necessary in the US for mothers to breastfeed, but the gains in poor countries (the low rates in Nigeria are astonishing and appalling!) say to me that we should do everything we can to promote breastfeeding in these areas. No one is blaming you for not breastfeeding, really.
14
Did you get help from LaLeche? A doula? A mothers' group?
Most mammals can nurse. I know whose bodies just couldn't produce milk. Far more did it. Many working moms mix nursing with bottle when they're not home. I don't know any women who couldn't find reasonable help if they were willing to put a week into looking seriously, not just word of mouth. I'm sure this exists in areas that are less child friendly than NYC.
I know women who don't nurse because they think the beauty of their breasts will be diminished. That level of insecurity seems heartrending.
Just starting my prejudices. I nursed when I was:
-19, single, scrambling student. Baby was 4 weeks early.
-38, married executive.
- 41 yr, stay at home mom.
I rarely saw my first two kids weekdays. They drank my milk from bottles. No one ever said my kids and I were bonded or not because of nursing. Ever.
I have plenty of friends, male and female, who adopted. No one ever said they aren't great parents.
So, this feels to me like another media-incited mommy war when it comes to the developed world. People bashed me for being a single mom, a working mom, a stay-at-home mom. My mother-in-law thought I was the devil for sleep training. I'm fair skinned, have always bruised easily, really needed help from nurse-practitioner nursing my first.
Many people mix nursing and bottle feeding. I'm sorry you were upset and hurt, but there are alternatives to suffering that don't require full on formula feeding.
Most mammals can nurse. I know whose bodies just couldn't produce milk. Far more did it. Many working moms mix nursing with bottle when they're not home. I don't know any women who couldn't find reasonable help if they were willing to put a week into looking seriously, not just word of mouth. I'm sure this exists in areas that are less child friendly than NYC.
I know women who don't nurse because they think the beauty of their breasts will be diminished. That level of insecurity seems heartrending.
Just starting my prejudices. I nursed when I was:
-19, single, scrambling student. Baby was 4 weeks early.
-38, married executive.
- 41 yr, stay at home mom.
I rarely saw my first two kids weekdays. They drank my milk from bottles. No one ever said my kids and I were bonded or not because of nursing. Ever.
I have plenty of friends, male and female, who adopted. No one ever said they aren't great parents.
So, this feels to me like another media-incited mommy war when it comes to the developed world. People bashed me for being a single mom, a working mom, a stay-at-home mom. My mother-in-law thought I was the devil for sleep training. I'm fair skinned, have always bruised easily, really needed help from nurse-practitioner nursing my first.
Many people mix nursing and bottle feeding. I'm sorry you were upset and hurt, but there are alternatives to suffering that don't require full on formula feeding.
5
Parents who don't do their best to protect their children should be shamed. For new mothers, that means breast feeding.
We should not be afraid to shame those who act in a shameful manner.
We should not be afraid to shame those who act in a shameful manner.
2
As a pediatrician I encountered an infertile woman who adopted her child. She was publicly shamed on more than one occasion while buying formula. Why was she expected to explain to total strangers why she wasn't breastfeeding? And what of the husband of the woman who died of preventable complications of a cesarean section who was criticized for buying formula for his child? Why did he owe anyone an explanation? A mother in my practice was diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy. She delayed chemo and radiation till the child was born. Then she was shamed by friends into breastfeeding! I told her that her son needed a live mother more than he needed breast milk. I had another mother in my practice who gave birth to several children after a double mastectomy for cancer.
OK, you might excuse these people for their predicaments, once you know about them. But why do you have to intrude into their lives and give them pain? Keep your nose out of other people's business.
OK, you might excuse these people for their predicaments, once you know about them. But why do you have to intrude into their lives and give them pain? Keep your nose out of other people's business.
79
So Jonathan, great idea! For all those moms that for health reasons can't breastfeed, you can buy the pastueurized donor milk. That is approximately $3000 in the first month alone, by 6 months probably $5000 based on infant needs. Times that by all the women who have had health issues that preclude them from producing breastmilk. So why don't you put your money where your mouth is, even just few dollars? Because that would mean actually caring about children, rather than shaming women.
13
And perhaps he could also produce a "Jonathan Approved Non-Breastfeeder" button or patch they could wear when bottle feeding their children the expensive breast milk he bought them. Wouldn't want anyone thinking the women you save are still part of the evil, selfish contingent of formula feeders.
5
I breast fed both my babies. With the second one I was told our blood incompatibility was causing his jaundice. baloney. I also worked. I went back to work part time when my first child was 3 months old, I had to. She was nursed until 14 months. I watched my sister in laws with their cans of formula, often having to be thrown out. There still is a sexual thing about breasts that embarrasses women. How about baby milk? It is for the baby. The only thing I would add is women who breastfeed must be well hydrated and fed; it uses up a lot of calories. That could be a problem in countries where women are second class citizens and their is a food shortage.
14
It's much easier to find food for a mother than for her infant. The adult physiology turns any edible, and even unclean water, into healthy breast milk.
31
Blood group incompatibility can cause jaundice, but it is transmitted through the placenta, not through breast milk. It is no contraindication to breast feeding. However, a jaundiced child, particularly with a first time mother, may need additional hydration to deal with the jaundice and avoid the ICU.
6
The shame is that common sense, the innate understanding developed through millennia of brain wiring and rewiring, that we all in some way have is too often discounted or dissuaded through external ignorance or plan.
I suspect if women were left to themselves they would naturally nurse their newborns. Seems odd there is even a discussion of this sort.
I suspect if women were left to themselves they would naturally nurse their newborns. Seems odd there is even a discussion of this sort.
7
It is clear that the issue here isn't whether breastfeeding is best for babies--it clearly is--but the issue is how to educate women fully and completely so they can make choices based on good information.
The argument that "women should be free to choose" only works if the woman is educated and knows the facts. If a woman, whether she be mother or midwife, believes that contaminated water and honey is best and knows nothing of the benefits of colostrum and the dangers of botulism, that is not a "choice."
How can we create a simple and straightforward campaign that informs women of basic facts about breastmilk--basic facts about colostrum, infant death rates for children who do not breast feed (and though it 14x higher in undeveloped areas, it is almost 2x as high in the U.S. for babies who do not breastfeed, so this is not a non-issue in the developed world!) to feed early and often, to avoid supplementing with water, to try to reach "around six months" of exclusive breastfeeding? Just the basics--basic statistics, facts and recommendations, along with where to get help (if any is available) as new breastfeeding moms often need support and encouragement.
If mothers who have this information choose not to breastfeed, then I support that choice. I don't support not giving them a true choice, and the only true choice comes with being fully educated.
The argument that "women should be free to choose" only works if the woman is educated and knows the facts. If a woman, whether she be mother or midwife, believes that contaminated water and honey is best and knows nothing of the benefits of colostrum and the dangers of botulism, that is not a "choice."
How can we create a simple and straightforward campaign that informs women of basic facts about breastmilk--basic facts about colostrum, infant death rates for children who do not breast feed (and though it 14x higher in undeveloped areas, it is almost 2x as high in the U.S. for babies who do not breastfeed, so this is not a non-issue in the developed world!) to feed early and often, to avoid supplementing with water, to try to reach "around six months" of exclusive breastfeeding? Just the basics--basic statistics, facts and recommendations, along with where to get help (if any is available) as new breastfeeding moms often need support and encouragement.
If mothers who have this information choose not to breastfeed, then I support that choice. I don't support not giving them a true choice, and the only true choice comes with being fully educated.
47
well said!
1
You do realize that it tends to be the wealthiest in the developed world who breastfeed, right? Healthy and wealthy mom means healthier kid; breastfeeding has nothing to do with it. Take out those confounders, and you find that in developed countries it doesn't matter one bit if you breastfeed or not. Colostrum is nice, until you don't make enough of it and the baby starves (yes, to death sometimes, to needing hospitalization on a disturbingly regular basis). What matters is feeding the baby; if you have access to clean water, which people in the developed world generally do, formula or breast milk is irrelevant so long as the baby is getting fed.
3
This article is not actually about the developed world, so not sure why you're even commenting unless you happen to have had a formula-fed baby and did some half research to make yourself feel better. That said, I could care less that someone in the US (or other developed area) don't breastfeed. However, misinformation IS a huge problem in areas where there is a lack of clean water and poor early breastfeeding practices cause women to literally put their infant's life at risk by becoming hooked on formula (or worse) because they never get a full milk supply. There are hospitals in Asia that will readmit postpartum women into the hospital with breastfeeding issues because it is such a public health problem! It is less of a crisis here because poor women can get free formula with WIC or food stamps, but the level of misinformation is still ridiculous. I've heard every crazy story in the book, but the saddest are the moms who come to me saying they want to breastfeed their baby but are having trouble because they allowed the hospital to give formula so they could rest a bit and were never informed that this affects breastfeeding success! So please don't underestimate that this is a genuine issue just because formula-fed babies receive adequate nutrients to survive. At best, your comment is ignorant and irresponsible, but at worst...
1
Everything you have said is true, but it is incomplete. Breast milk only works if you can keep the woman hydrated and healthy. Her body requires nutrients and water to offset the trauma of child birth. Sadly, women typically get the worst nutrition in the developing world as they are treated as second class in their own homes by giving men (bread-winners or workers supporting the family's subsistence) better nutrition. Part of the education and help from the developed world should be to insure women begin breast-feeding immediately as you've said, get heightened nutrition/safe water for a period, and obtain appropriate medical help as needed (death in child-birth or the aftermath is also common).
35
A breastfeeding mother needs lots of good nutrition herself. I was always hungrier when I breastfed, than when I was pregnant. Of course: I was supporting a bigger baby. Rather than just preaching at third world mothers, we need to help their countries support new mothers with well-funded nutrition programs.
30
I breastfed both of my children for the 15 months (integrating with solids beginning at 9 months) Indeed, I remember at the time how hungry I was, and was surprised when I read that a nursing mother's daily caloric needs are greater than while she is pregnant. It is incredible to think that you need to eat more to breastfeed your baby than while it is developing in your body. Good nutrition (including access to clean drinking water, unfathomably not available to so many on our planet!) seems to be the starting point in many cases. Educating new mothers on how to breastfeed is also so important -- even in the most modernized countries. I have been a volunteer breastfeeding consultant in Italy for almost 15 years as a result of how grateful I was to the info passed to me by other "in the know" moms when I needed it. Reassurance and myth busting (in any culture!) is therefore a big part of this picture if the goal is to increase breastfeeding...
My newborn son was the first baby I held in my arms. A bookish only child, I never babysat. My mother- and sister-in-law both warned me off breastfeeding. A Lamaze course which my husband and I took strongly encouraged breastfeeding and I chose to try it. It was a miracle. My baby thrived on my milk and I was officially a mother. I nursed my son until he became too busy exploring the world to feed at my breast, around his first birthday. He is now forty years old and, except for a few colds, has been healthy and hardy.
I first read about formula companies selling their wares in Third World countries when my son was a baby. It is outrageous that this practice still exists.
I also see young women in the US who choose not to breastfeed although they do not work outside the home, and this is sad. It is also sad that lack of sufficient family leave time for young mothers who choose to breastfeed makes them revert to pumps (there are even breast pumping apps out there!), which defeats one great aspect of breastfeeding - mothers don't know how much milk their babies intake - they only know that babies thrive or not, which makes breastfeeding the first step in preventing childhood obesity.
I first read about formula companies selling their wares in Third World countries when my son was a baby. It is outrageous that this practice still exists.
I also see young women in the US who choose not to breastfeed although they do not work outside the home, and this is sad. It is also sad that lack of sufficient family leave time for young mothers who choose to breastfeed makes them revert to pumps (there are even breast pumping apps out there!), which defeats one great aspect of breastfeeding - mothers don't know how much milk their babies intake - they only know that babies thrive or not, which makes breastfeeding the first step in preventing childhood obesity.
13
I am a serial breast feeder! It's true. Both my children were breast feed until they indicated they no longer wanted it, which was coincidentally about the time they started walking. It is easy, free, already warm and is always where you need it when they want it. My mother-in-law was a food radical in the 1950s who breast fed all four of her children. My mother who fed me and my siblings some concoction that required bottle boiling in huge pots tried her best to convince me it was a terrible thing to do. My maternal grandmother was delighted supporting and assisting me all the way. I think that it is corporately criminal for manufactured baby formula to promote sales of their product in countries where the infrastructure does not allow for readily available clean water.
An aside: The hospital where my children were born gifted me a case of baby formula when we checked out. An insidious, underhanded way to undermine a new mother's attempts to breast feed.
An aside: The hospital where my children were born gifted me a case of baby formula when we checked out. An insidious, underhanded way to undermine a new mother's attempts to breast feed.
34
Actually that case of formula can be a life saver for women who just don't have a decent supply coming in. Formula is not evil.
Yes, Nestle (now bottling water from drought-stricken California) was one of the first to promote formula feeding to mothers in developing countries that did not have clean water. Nestle owns lots of other companies and waters..google it...and boycott them
6
The main (biological!) job of the breast is to feed. A "decent milk supply" can be had by virtually any woman. Difficulties can almost always be traced to inadequate information, a poor support system and general ignorance that almost all women face when initially confronting the task of being a new mother and learning (yes learning!) the optimal ways to nurse their babies. A breast that truly does not produce adequate milk is quite rare. If it were as common as some have been led to believe, the human race would have died off several millennia ago! I am a volunteer breastfeeding consultant and I am always surprised how quickly I can help a woman's milk production increase, even when she has turned to formula because she did not know what could be done to increase it, or perhaps did not know how to "understand" that the baby was getting enough of her milk. Sometimes it is not obvious or easy to get into the sync of breastfeeding. If you have well-placed, well-timed help you can clarify a lot of doubts and it comes together. Admittedly not always easy. I went through it myself 18 years ago with my firstborn and was lucky to find help -- and I was "off the bottle" within 1 week and my milk supply had skyrocketed.
3
Only a man would suggest that "breastfeeding is free." Breastfeeding is NOT free--those calories and nutrients have to come from somewhere (women). Breastfeeding women must be well-nourished. In developed countries, this is not a problem. In the developing world, women mostly get whatever food may be left after her husbands and sons have eaten their meal. Women must also have time and leisure to breastfeed, and we know that, as in the US, breastfeeding and working are often mutually exclusive. This is as true in developed countries as it is in under-developed countries.
Callousness, ignorance, poverty, the status of women, formula marketing and polluted water are all part of this equation.
Callousness, ignorance, poverty, the status of women, formula marketing and polluted water are all part of this equation.
92
What you say is true, yet it would seem a mistake to promote breast feeding by explaining to women in poverty that it will come at a cost. I don't think Nicholas was being very insensitive. I have heard my wife say the same thing. All methods of nurturing infants have their pitfalls. That said, I agree with your last sentence.
3
I'm left wondering: why is breast-feeding always spoken of strictly in terms of work? Nursing a baby gives intense pleasure, as I know from experience; it relieves the natural congestion in the breasts, and it tightens the muscles in and around the uterus. Perhaps many women who don't breast-feed may be suspicious of a physical pleasure not received from their husbands, since they first gave the breast to him in sexual love.
Understandable - and yet the consequence of that love is their child. Why deny that child a place in the circle of physical love and connection, along with the benefits of maternal milk? Is it to avoid the husband's jealousy, and to preserve the breasts as belonging to him and not the child? Certainly patriarchal traditions can reach as far as that, denying the woman, also, her reward after giving birth.
Understandable - and yet the consequence of that love is their child. Why deny that child a place in the circle of physical love and connection, along with the benefits of maternal milk? Is it to avoid the husband's jealousy, and to preserve the breasts as belonging to him and not the child? Certainly patriarchal traditions can reach as far as that, denying the woman, also, her reward after giving birth.
26
JB, you say nursing gives intense pleasure, as if it is a universal thing all experience, but I extended nursed both of my kids (including a year of tandem nursing) and this "intense pleasure" wasn't ever my experience. I found it time consuming, exhausting, often painful due to repeated thrush, oversupply and mastitis, but yes, there was a kind of joy in it, in the mandatory connection that comes with nursing round the clock 24/7. It could be overwhelming and I often felt "touched out," but in the end the connection was a positive. Nursing is a burden and a blessing. To say it is "free" devalues the time, energy, resources often required, medical care and intervention for issues like I had, and is ignorance indeed.
I am one of the lucky ones, able to educate myself about breastfeeding and stay home with my kids and treat caring for them like the full time job that it is. Many mothers are faced with this job plus another outside of the home, are given no time to pump, and have no access to breastfeeding resources. When it is going smoothly, nursing can potentially be simpler than formula, but support and education have to factor into that.
To those others who have expressed that mothers should nurse no matter what and those who liked those comments--please leave mothers alone and check the judgment. Without education, without support, this isn't an easy choice, and sometimes impossible. Even when nursing is exclusive, it isn't all pleasure and roses.
I am one of the lucky ones, able to educate myself about breastfeeding and stay home with my kids and treat caring for them like the full time job that it is. Many mothers are faced with this job plus another outside of the home, are given no time to pump, and have no access to breastfeeding resources. When it is going smoothly, nursing can potentially be simpler than formula, but support and education have to factor into that.
To those others who have expressed that mothers should nurse no matter what and those who liked those comments--please leave mothers alone and check the judgment. Without education, without support, this isn't an easy choice, and sometimes impossible. Even when nursing is exclusive, it isn't all pleasure and roses.
1
Great essay, Mr. Kristof. I wasn't a fan of the op-ed piece earlier this week that you mentioned. Although the author said she wasn't doing so, the article cast breastfeeding in a bad light. But most of the concerns she had were first world problems. WHO has its breastfeeding initiative for a very good reason: for many women and babies around the world, it is the best way to feed a baby. It's inexpensive, safest, and readily available. I will continue to promote breastfeeding in my work as a nurse.
28
I'm a little confused. The author glosses over the new mother's intentions and charges right in to the evil corporaton's perfidy. It was the MOTHER who refused to breast feed immediately after birth. She planned to follow the TRADITIONAL advice from the BIRTH ATTENDANT and give her newborn tea--with the possibility of contaminated water--and honey, which is not recommended for infants under 1 due to the danger of botulism spores. So yes, that baby might die,but it won't have anything to do with breastfeeding not being encouraged. The explanations of delaying breastfeeding is casual, there is a paragraph about giving water and early solids and then WHAM--"Western companies are also to blame."
Well, they probably do have some culpability in the problem, but three paragraphs of issues that need to be addressed from a cultural standpoint would go a long way towards decreasing newborn mortality. THere's lots to do before concluding that formula is the enemy.
Well, they probably do have some culpability in the problem, but three paragraphs of issues that need to be addressed from a cultural standpoint would go a long way towards decreasing newborn mortality. THere's lots to do before concluding that formula is the enemy.
6
The poor uneducated mother you are blaming believes in the advice of her midwife as much as you believe the advice of your obstetrician, and she does not understand about contaminated water the danger of botulism from honey. You are expecting too much from her. The blame truly lies with the social structure that does not provide clean water or an adequate child and maternal health system.
I do wonder whether Mr. Kristof tried to explain to her that colostrum is healthy and she should breastfeed right away?
I do wonder whether Mr. Kristof tried to explain to her that colostrum is healthy and she should breastfeed right away?
1
Kristof's column should be renamed "Master of the Obvious". Although, I find IQ enhancing studies to be laughable. Researchers seeking the answer they wish to find will always find it.
5
Thank you so much for this. We should educate new mothers on the benefits of providing breast milk when they can safely do so, and not stigmitize them for breastfeeding in public or using the breast pump. How can anything created in the labs be as nutritional as mother's milk, straight from nature?! Our society stresses the importance of feeding cow's milk to our children, and yet we've been so fickle about mother's breast milk. Maybe it's because we call it breast milk and we over sexuality and objective the female breasts, forgetting their biggest purpose in life, to provide life to babies and toddlers! Ms. Jung recently wrote a piece about how we oversell breast milk and demonize formula. Oh how I flipped out reading her article. I almost unaubscribed from NY Tines. So thank you so much, Nicholas, for restoring my faith in this paper.
http://www.philandmama.com
http://www.philandmama.com
35
It takes a genius from Harvard to tell poor women in India that natural breast feeding is the right way to feed a baby. If only that poor woman in the picture could be so brilliant as to develop a new marketing idea like the pet rock to market to millions across the globe like powdered milk formula to poor Africans like Nestlé's megalomania greedy push in the 1960s & 70s which led to widespread health problems. Just like the pet rock patent, Nestlé's infant formula netted over $11.5-billion per year for the Corporation and 40% control of the infant formula market. Where were the brilliant Harvard researchers who wanted to prevent poor women in remote villages from becoming ill in the 60s & 70s, at the height of this preposterous marketing push? Where were "save the world" journalists like Mr. Kristof to tell poor women that Mother Nature's brand of breast milk was really the healthiest after all, go figure. Of course it takes Western men to both invent the concept of infant formula as well as save poor women from this very invention that netted them billions of dollars, decades after the fact. Mind boggling.
7
It is very good to see this topic covered, but I am concerned by the suggestion that this is a developing world problem. I think we can all agree that in primary (hunter-gatherer) and peasant agricultural societies virtually all babies fed on mothers' milk. As people across the world have been variously forced and cajoled into the industrial-capitalist orbit of the west (first through colonial conquest, then through economic globalization, I cannot imagine that the breaking-up of traditional lifeways has not resulted in the breaking of this most basic mother-child bond. Consider the two-million Mexican small farms that were pushed out of existence by NAFTA and the dumping of cheap, subsidized corn on that countries markets. Those families are now struggling in Mexico City, maquilladora factories on the boarder, or in the U.S. and one can imagine the effects on child care and family relationships. Of course, the nurturing work of motherhood (and fatherhood, too) does not contribute to profits and GNP, so NAFTA was still a win in by the measures that matter, right? This is a global problem, and a problem of power and oppression and needs to be considered in those broader terms.
10
Well, yes, most definitely add Carla van Rjk's argument regarding Nestle et al. to this. Kristof at least does touch on this but doesn't do it justice.
2
I applaud the encouragement of breast-feeding, but I cannot stomach men saying that women should "exclusively" breast feed for six months as recommended by the WHO. Oftentimes, this so-called advice is downright sadistic to the baby. After the age of 4 or 5 months for many babies (depending on their weight), breast milk alone is not enough for them and there's only so much a woman can produce. Both my children were growing very well and really needed food by the time they were five months old. My younger one went from sleeping 8 hours stretches to waking up every 2-3 hours because she was so hungry. I ended up having to supplement with formula because I couldn't produce enough to satisfy her, and that started spelling doom for my production. The poor baby just needed food, and it was punitive to deny it to her. So many of my friends have this same problem starting around 4 or 5 months, because we all kept trusting these unfounded WHO recommendations. So please stop with these "only such-and-such number exclusively breastfeed for the first six months" because that is clearly a judgment, and an incredibly unfair one at that!
9
I understand, myself having supplemented breastfeeding since *day* 4, for various mother+baby medical reasons, and at 3 months now it's a chore to mantain supply--let alone the multiple strategies, not fully successful for me, to try to increase it. Will be lucky to replace formula with solids eventually but we'll see.
Nonetheless the WHO recommendation is an *ideal*, and I don't think my problems or the one you describe detract from that. Life happens, and ideals are not reality. You and I would both probably be happier if people simply toned down the judgment. Let's all do our best while trying to be as well-informed as possible.
Nonetheless the WHO recommendation is an *ideal*, and I don't think my problems or the one you describe detract from that. Life happens, and ideals are not reality. You and I would both probably be happier if people simply toned down the judgment. Let's all do our best while trying to be as well-informed as possible.
8
I don't have any good answers for you, because having a baby is a somewhat masochistic experience. However if you sleep with your baby and let them nurse throughout the night when going through the traditional growth spurt periods (around 4-5 months is one of then), your milk production will increase drastically to catch up with their needs. You didn't 'have' to feed formula, but the standard in Western societies is to make the choice not to night-nurse all night long, though some people do it (it is very hard and can be sleep-depriving, depending on how well you and your baby sleep together and if you can sleep through nursing). This is what women have been doing in traditional cultures for all of human existence, until modern life.
3
The next question is how do outsiders go about changing traditional practices. If most mothers in India are young, uneducated and low status in their new family it is unlikely they are making the decisions about how the baby is fed. The key is to incentivize the midwives, mothers-in-law and village elders to support breast feeding and to insure that young mothers are adequately nourished. Easier said than done.
While western mothers may be motivated by studies showing and increased IQ, I suspect a more direct incentive will be required to change centuries old beliefs and practices. Of course the real answer here is raising the status of women, promoting education and delaying marriage. Easier said than done.
While western mothers may be motivated by studies showing and increased IQ, I suspect a more direct incentive will be required to change centuries old beliefs and practices. Of course the real answer here is raising the status of women, promoting education and delaying marriage. Easier said than done.
14
She is awfully pretty and so elegantly dressed. It shows that grace is possible even in poverty while sitting on a cot (a charpoy) in a room whose walls seem like they are made of bamboo.
Long life to her and her baby!
Long life to her and her baby!
3
When someone is claiming a 5 or 3 point gain in IQ for infants who were breast fed, it may be better to not talk about it all. 3 or 5 points might be a result of a burp or a mistake in addition but it is not a really significant amount of increase in intelligence to be measured accurately . Stick with the fact that breast milk is safe, it is not affected by bad local water and it is nutritionally designed specifically for the baby.
14
Thank you for this timely article - after reading comments in another article today of the mothers who chose not to breast feed, for whatever reason, it is nice to see a clear article pointing out the advantages of breast milk.
I breast fed my three children for 18 months each, six months breast milk only and another year of mixed foods plus breast milk. They went directly from the breast to a sippy cup, we never had bottles.
I was also breast fed in the 1950's, the only baby on the ward at the time of my birth in the hospital, and against the dire warnings of the doctors at the time that it was old fashioned and dangerous. Fortunately my mother had the support of her mother.
How disheartening to see that formula companies are advertising heavily in the third world.
I breast fed my three children for 18 months each, six months breast milk only and another year of mixed foods plus breast milk. They went directly from the breast to a sippy cup, we never had bottles.
I was also breast fed in the 1950's, the only baby on the ward at the time of my birth in the hospital, and against the dire warnings of the doctors at the time that it was old fashioned and dangerous. Fortunately my mother had the support of her mother.
How disheartening to see that formula companies are advertising heavily in the third world.
11
Oh lovely. Just what we need. A man who has never breastfed getting smug about breastfeeding, It is not always as easy are you are making it out to be.
13
It's an old and pervasive issue.
The reasons women abandon, or discount, breast feeding is different in every culture and nation. But generally I believe the migration from 'nature' towards modernity is a false dichotomy that plays out in societies that mostly have emerged from patriochal constructs and struggles to define women (and their breasts). Subsequently, breast feeding becomes laden with myths, confusion, ignorance and judgement. A natural, incredibly powerful and important form of nourishment and human bonding has been, and continues to be, a lightning rod issue...if we go to the source of the issue, my guess we'll find a man's world view.
The reasons women abandon, or discount, breast feeding is different in every culture and nation. But generally I believe the migration from 'nature' towards modernity is a false dichotomy that plays out in societies that mostly have emerged from patriochal constructs and struggles to define women (and their breasts). Subsequently, breast feeding becomes laden with myths, confusion, ignorance and judgement. A natural, incredibly powerful and important form of nourishment and human bonding has been, and continues to be, a lightning rod issue...if we go to the source of the issue, my guess we'll find a man's world view.
14
Two thoughts.
The marvel of breast milk includes dynamic change in its composition. For example, the more premature the baby, the more concentrated the protein and caloric density of the mother's milk. In my mind, this supersedes the arguments about whether the child experiences marginal cognitive gains in inconsistent studies. The third world concerns are difficult to dispute and a profound problem (think Nestle's well-documented avarice).
However, in our country, breast feeding advocates can be manipulative and insensitive of a new mother. I have a friend whose daughter nearly died because she was isolated from supportive women and was pushed to breast feed at the time of birth. She suckled her daughter around the clock, but the child had a congenital abnormality not apparent at the time of birth, and could not derive sufficient nutrition to sustain growth. Had she not been so forcibly persuaded that breast feeding was the only proper way to feed her baby, she may have been more open to bottle feeding.
Of course, this alludes to the lack of post-natal support we offer in the US as a fundamental travesty in such an affluent society...
The marvel of breast milk includes dynamic change in its composition. For example, the more premature the baby, the more concentrated the protein and caloric density of the mother's milk. In my mind, this supersedes the arguments about whether the child experiences marginal cognitive gains in inconsistent studies. The third world concerns are difficult to dispute and a profound problem (think Nestle's well-documented avarice).
However, in our country, breast feeding advocates can be manipulative and insensitive of a new mother. I have a friend whose daughter nearly died because she was isolated from supportive women and was pushed to breast feed at the time of birth. She suckled her daughter around the clock, but the child had a congenital abnormality not apparent at the time of birth, and could not derive sufficient nutrition to sustain growth. Had she not been so forcibly persuaded that breast feeding was the only proper way to feed her baby, she may have been more open to bottle feeding.
Of course, this alludes to the lack of post-natal support we offer in the US as a fundamental travesty in such an affluent society...
6
Yes, yes . . . as a very bright 75 yo, I was not only not breastfed but my mother had to stay in bed for two weeks while I was brought out to be fed on a rigidly four hour schedule. Mum was told her 'bosoms' were not big enough to breastfeed (think primates??!), she was kept in bed for fear of things like post part hemorrhage, infection, and emboli. Luckily she didn't die! but had six children and lived to be 96, dying only of old age. Had I not been a first child to a mother doing what she thought she was supposed to do (like the Somali woman at the MGH) and had not the ambient culture decreed that babies should learn a grown-up's schedule, I might not have been a 'three hour baby on a four hour schedule'. I enjoy being very bright, but wonder if I might not have been a genius had I been given colostrum, rooming in, and food on demand!!
2
Yes Nich you pointed out correctly that Breast Feeding is very essential & its very healthy..Here in INDIA no matter how much you explain to these village people they wont change because they are soo much blinded by traditions!
Even our Politicians are not worried about this issue because they are only worried about there votes & for votes they are totally polarizing our societies in the name of religion & caste!
Dalits(Low caste) are burnt & stripped here in INDIA & on one side our PM says 'sab ka saath sab ka vikaas'(Collective Efforts Inclusive Growth) & there is no effort from our Govt's to curb all these issues !
First we should bring these Politicians on right track then all the issues will be solved !
Even our Politicians are not worried about this issue because they are only worried about there votes & for votes they are totally polarizing our societies in the name of religion & caste!
Dalits(Low caste) are burnt & stripped here in INDIA & on one side our PM says 'sab ka saath sab ka vikaas'(Collective Efforts Inclusive Growth) & there is no effort from our Govt's to curb all these issues !
First we should bring these Politicians on right track then all the issues will be solved !
3
Manufacturers of infant formula can be asked to devise campaigns to promote breast milk feeding for the first six months to ensure that those newborns survive. This could be good for business as well because they will have more six-month-old and older babies later for their products - thereby increasing their market. It is a win-win situation if ever there was one
1
Why the perpetual war on women from the NYT? First, women can't choose their own healthcare and must accept the ACA guidelines, and now they are chastised for not feeding children with breast milk? Why does the NYT endorse these lack of woman's rights to choose?
If a woman can be allowed to decide to abort a fetus, surely she can decide what milk to feed a baby.
s
If a woman can be allowed to decide to abort a fetus, surely she can decide what milk to feed a baby.
s
1
Breast feeding by a healthy mother unquestionably is best for infants. When the mother is unhealthy, without a competent, employed husband, or otherwise indigent might it not be even better for contraception or sterilization to have prevented that unnecessary, pitiful situation in the first place?
4
Are you saying that any woman who cannot breastfeed does not deserve to have a wanted baby? That any woman who is poor or has to work should be sterilized? If they want to be sterilized or be given implanted contraception, fine. But forced sterilization of people of whom you do not approved is unethical.
The really tough part is convincing and educating Indian and Third World mothers to breastfeed their newborns and continue as long as they possibly can. Having lived in Haiti for many years, the problem was getting women to do it. There is a lot of misunderstanding and superstition that influences a mother's decision.
2
For the first two years of their life, all human infants have the right to be breastfed by their biological mother, or failing that by a wet nurse. Only in the last resort should stored human milk or powdered human milk substitute be used instead of feeding the baby at the breast.
This is what used to happen – since the dawn of our existence as a species. Only when, somewhat more than half a century ago, the Swiss giant food business Nestlé saw the profits to be made, and got in on the act, were women around the globe falling left right and centre for the lie that infants do not need to be breastfeed, and falling for the dupe that it is a woman's right to choose whether or not to breastfeed her baby.
Human infants have fundamental inalienable rights just like all other humans do. Along with the right to life, one of those rights is to be breastfed until no longer biologically necessary which is usually up until about the age of two.
A breach by any person of an infant's fundamental inalienable rights need to be seen for what it is – child abuse by that person. Child abuse by a family member is a form of domestic violence. Arguably, it is the most serious and egregious form of domestic violence because, unlike an adult or an older child, a baby is completely at the mercy of the adults around it.
Just as we rightly conduct campaigns against feckless males who abuse family members, we need to conduct campaigns against those equally feckless females who do the same.
This is what used to happen – since the dawn of our existence as a species. Only when, somewhat more than half a century ago, the Swiss giant food business Nestlé saw the profits to be made, and got in on the act, were women around the globe falling left right and centre for the lie that infants do not need to be breastfeed, and falling for the dupe that it is a woman's right to choose whether or not to breastfeed her baby.
Human infants have fundamental inalienable rights just like all other humans do. Along with the right to life, one of those rights is to be breastfed until no longer biologically necessary which is usually up until about the age of two.
A breach by any person of an infant's fundamental inalienable rights need to be seen for what it is – child abuse by that person. Child abuse by a family member is a form of domestic violence. Arguably, it is the most serious and egregious form of domestic violence because, unlike an adult or an older child, a baby is completely at the mercy of the adults around it.
Just as we rightly conduct campaigns against feckless males who abuse family members, we need to conduct campaigns against those equally feckless females who do the same.
6
@RedHotMomma
Wasn't someone on the Internet offering free tee-shirts for wet nurses?
Wasn't someone on the Internet offering free tee-shirts for wet nurses?
What 'used to happen' was also that the babies just died. That's nature's way with other mammals - natural selection knocks out a certain number of individuals through a variety of means.
We decided we didn't like nature's way. So formula was invented to make it possible for women who didn't have the means to engage a wet nurse, and couldn't produce adequate milk on their own, not to have to watch their babies starve and die.
We decided we didn't like nature's way. So formula was invented to make it possible for women who didn't have the means to engage a wet nurse, and couldn't produce adequate milk on their own, not to have to watch their babies starve and die.
6
Here is a suggestion to anyone considering commenting on Kristof's "The Miracle Breast Milk Elixir". Over in another part of the Times in the Sunday Review is this: "Overselling Breast-Feeding". That OpEd generated 4 Letters to the Editors at "The Opinion Pages | Letters The Choices Over Breast-Feeding"
Since I am just an observer I would not think of commenting on Kristof until and unless I had read the other OpEd and sampled the 500+ comments there. Do not have time yet since I am busy reviewing a medical manuscript comparing the incidence of a rare disease in a so called ethnic Swedish population with incidence in the non-ethnic Swedish population (immigrant population 1/9 the size of the ethnic Swedish group. I mention this because we have here in the American breast-milk "wars" a situation in stark contrast to the situation Kristof is presenting.
My message: Whenever you make a comment in the NYT about medicine be very careful to specify if you are referring to research that is done from an American medical point of view.
Just a suggestion. Maybe off topic, but submitted in part because of the Denmark not for Hillary debate.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Since I am just an observer I would not think of commenting on Kristof until and unless I had read the other OpEd and sampled the 500+ comments there. Do not have time yet since I am busy reviewing a medical manuscript comparing the incidence of a rare disease in a so called ethnic Swedish population with incidence in the non-ethnic Swedish population (immigrant population 1/9 the size of the ethnic Swedish group. I mention this because we have here in the American breast-milk "wars" a situation in stark contrast to the situation Kristof is presenting.
My message: Whenever you make a comment in the NYT about medicine be very careful to specify if you are referring to research that is done from an American medical point of view.
Just a suggestion. Maybe off topic, but submitted in part because of the Denmark not for Hillary debate.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
1
'Sometimes promotion of breast-feeding carries an unfortunate edge of reproach for women who can’t breast-feed or choose not to, and that’s counterproductive. In America, there’s tension about these issues; an essay in The Times on Sunday warned that promotion efforts can degenerate into shaming women. That’s a fair caution.' ~ Nicholas Kristof
I disagree, Nicholas. The most effective advertising campaigns aimed at reducing drink driving and smoking have not been those that state the obvious and tell us what we already know. Rather, they are the ones that disgust, or better still shame and ridicule our unacceptable behaviour using humour.
Humans are a gregarious species who for the most part respond to public shaming by changing their ways - unless of course they are that small minority which is shameless. There is nothing wrong with shaming humans of both sexes and all ages into changing their ways and improving their behaviour.
I disagree, Nicholas. The most effective advertising campaigns aimed at reducing drink driving and smoking have not been those that state the obvious and tell us what we already know. Rather, they are the ones that disgust, or better still shame and ridicule our unacceptable behaviour using humour.
Humans are a gregarious species who for the most part respond to public shaming by changing their ways - unless of course they are that small minority which is shameless. There is nothing wrong with shaming humans of both sexes and all ages into changing their ways and improving their behaviour.
3
Women are used to being publically shamed. And yet, here we are. Still owning our bodies and saying NO. Hands off.
1
BREASTFEEDING mothers with children are one of the most iconic of images. Turns out that its appeal is due to factors far beyond its use as a religious symbol. Breastfeeding is good for babies and the mothers who nurse them as well.
Saving millions of lives of nursing mothers and babies sounds like a project that should be on everybody's list of top priorities for groups like the World Health Organization. Except when the commercial interest of the producers of baby formula are permitted to outweigh the health of nations.
Bill and Malinda, are you reading this? Since Bill likes to get the biggest "bang for his buck" (a very un-philanthropic-sounding turn of the phrase), he could begin by saving over 1 million babies per year with their mother's milk.
Saving millions of lives of nursing mothers and babies sounds like a project that should be on everybody's list of top priorities for groups like the World Health Organization. Except when the commercial interest of the producers of baby formula are permitted to outweigh the health of nations.
Bill and Malinda, are you reading this? Since Bill likes to get the biggest "bang for his buck" (a very un-philanthropic-sounding turn of the phrase), he could begin by saving over 1 million babies per year with their mother's milk.
9
Thank you for an informative piece on the benefits of breast feeding.
10
Nicholas Kristof:
The slant and bias in your article surprises me. You appear to be elevating breast feeding of babies over providing them a nutritious source of food.
Your article would have more impact if you were advocating for the nutrition needs of these children and not merely the Western-culture-based notion that only breast feeding should be used. Moreover, the notion that breast feeding contributes to a higher IQ is reprehensible; especially when you consider breast-feeding mothers are likely to have many more societal benefits than non-breast-feeding mothers. Of course IQ tests are always unbiased.
The slant and bias in your article surprises me. You appear to be elevating breast feeding of babies over providing them a nutritious source of food.
Your article would have more impact if you were advocating for the nutrition needs of these children and not merely the Western-culture-based notion that only breast feeding should be used. Moreover, the notion that breast feeding contributes to a higher IQ is reprehensible; especially when you consider breast-feeding mothers are likely to have many more societal benefits than non-breast-feeding mothers. Of course IQ tests are always unbiased.
You are missing the point--in developing countries with issues of clean water availability, breastfeeding (when possible) is always superior and more nutritious than formula simply because newborns are susceptible to infectious disease in the water used in the preparation of formula bottles. In contrast, breastfmilk as anti-infective, in particular containing the mother's antibodies.
The most nutritious source of food for a baby is milk from the baby's mother, if available. In the developing world, efforts should be aimed at support, education, and nutrition for women, especially women with children.
The most nutritious source of food for a baby is milk from the baby's mother, if available. In the developing world, efforts should be aimed at support, education, and nutrition for women, especially women with children.
26
Mr. Kristof stated that his goal is not to shame women who cannot breast feed. The research is clear that breast feeding, when possible, does provide the best nutrition for the vast majority of babies. Today's formula is a life saver for some babies that cannot, for whatever reason, breast feed. But, formula must be mixed with water and in many developing countries that water is contaminated making the formula option less ideal. Human breast milk evolved to provide the best nutrition for human babies.
11
Western-culture bias FOR breastfeeding? I think you have that backwards. The western-culture/economic bias for FORMULA, as Kristof noted, has been devastating for babies in developing countries with unclean water access for decades. Having interviewed women in rural Uganda who've lost many children to contaminated water, I take exception to the suggestion that anything other than their mother's milk would have been nutritious for these children. Breast milk IS the most nutritious source of food for newborns. Fortunately for mothers and/or babies who can't successfully nurse, formula is available, but it remains a second-best option.
7
Thank you Nicholas Kristof. Breast milk is the obvious solution for babies to thrive and survive. Mother nature does know best. Mothers need support of the right kind for this simple solution to be effective. Women are treated poorly around the world by men. They are exploited and not supported. Once men wake up to the human tragedy of the plight of most women and give them the protection and support they need for our race to thrive, we will have made the leap required. Human rights for women is the absolute minimum required for children to thrive. In advanced societies, there are mandated physical and financial support for women to care for their children. Sadly, even the United States behaves like a third world country in this regard, cutting support for poor mothers and children. How can a mother breast feed when she must work two or three jobs and doesn't know what her hours will be for the week? each and every week? Human rights for women are at the core of the lack of proper breast feeding, as it seems to take a back seat to commercial and dominating interests of men.
75
Exactly. For millions of women, breastfeeding is a luxury that only the relatively wealthy can enjoy. It's time consuming and comparatively labor intensive. (Long gone are the days of associating breastfeeding with Oakies or the poorer classes, as in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. It's now generally the relatively affluent moms who have the luxury of nursing.) If we want to increase breastfeeding rates, we need to first elevate more women to an economic class in which they can take the time to breastfeed.
3
THEN - I ran into La Leche League, just getting started in my Chicago suburban area. I went to meetings while pregnant with child 3, had mentors who'd call and encourage me, physicians I could call for advice, etc. Child 4? (who is now 53) a cinch. Breast-feeding, just like his nearest 21-month old sibling at that time. In fact, for those last two, things worked out successfully, and I was able to donate extra breast milk to a few mothers who needed it for preemie babies.
I agree that it may not be for everyone, but I had a heck of an easier time (and a great cuddle routine with the younger two) . It did, I think, make a stronger bond with them than with the older two. By the 4th child, I found the hospital nurses championing breast-feeding.