When a mother has her new child, she faces a tough decision: breastfeed or formula feed? Perhaps a combination of both? Many mothers have reservations about breastfeeding because of the time commitment and concerns over producing enough milk, but also fear that formula feeding could impact their baby's health. Are these fears warranted, or is formula feeding a safe and effective alternative to the natural method?
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Infant Feeding is a Lifestyle Choice
- From Joan B Wolf PhD
By Joan B. Wolf, PhD - Texas A&M University
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Formula companies' messages insidious
I think that there are financial interests that have significantly affected the community's views on breastfeeding. Formula companies promote their products from conception via pre natal care, mother and baby magazines etc. There is not nearly as much spent on supporting women who want to breastfeed or at least give it a go.
Formula feeding a baby is not easier than breastfeeding. With some guidance, help and support at the very early stages, until breastfeeding is established, most women and babies find the whole process positive and worthwhile from a health and bonding perspective.
Unfortunately this help may not always be available whereas formula is heavily promoted via fear campaigns (your baby isn't thriving, be sure your baby gets all it needs etc etc). Many mothers feel the most pressure from family members and friends (many of whom themselves were intimidated into formula feeding because they did not have the support they, themselves needed.
- cath7472
September 18, 2008 3:52PM
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"Lifestyle Choice" is a flawed concept
The idea that women "choose" formula feeding or breastfeeding is itself flawed. If a woman is too poor to afford formula or physically unable to breastfeed, she does not have a choice. If a woman is in a community where breastfeeding is encouraged or discouraged, her choices will be constrained. If society is so structured that a woman is compelled to return to work while she is still breastfeeding, then that woman's choices about breastfeeding are restricted. If race, class and other social locations have a powerful influence on women's choices, then the very idea of choice is problematical.
There are social rules that constrain women from breastfeeding their infants in public. These "rules" are a powerful deterrent to breastfeeding. When it becomes just as acceptable to breastfeed in public as it is to bottle feed, then we, perhaps, can start talking about "choice".
- Michael Glass
September 19, 2008 5:17PM
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infant feeding choices, breast or formula, should be respected
Mr. Glass is right that in many places, social practices make breastfeeding harder than it should be. Cath7472 is right that in some places, the pro-formula message is too strong. Neither of these facts changes the terms of the present debate, however: women ought to be able to make choices appropriate to their individual situations without pressure or hindrance from either the state or society.
- Scardanelli September 21, 2008 7:14PM
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Personal choice
I completely agree. Women should be able to choose which method works best for them and their family. Yes, there are clear health benefits and protections to breastfeeding. However, mothers who choose formula feeding should not be made to feel less than or shamed because they choose not to nurse. It is a completely personal decision either way.
- nmay88 September 21, 2008 8:50PM
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Personal choice and the level playing field
There is no argument here. Choice is not choice where no choice exists. I agree with nmay88 that there are clear health benefits and protections with breastfeeding. For that reason every legitimate step should be taken to promote it and facilitate it. However, when promotion steps over the mark and becomes unacceptable pressure, this too should not be accepted. Remember, though, that formula manufacturers have all the power of advertising to promote their product and their profits.
- Michael Glass
September 21, 2008 11:28PM
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Proper support might encourage breastfeeding
I agree that it is important breastfeeding be promoted. I definitely think it is worth it for women to try before deciding against it. I did it with all 3 of my children and experienced many of the benefits listed in the debate above. I think with the proper support more women would probably choose to nurse. I have several friends who tried it briefly, became frustrated, and gave up. With proper support, they probably would have continued longer. I also do think some women give it up because it's just easier to use formula and with more women working outside the home and having busy schedules it becomes more convenient to use formula as a substitute.
- nmay88 September 22, 2008 1:49PM
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Why??
Why is choice about everything seen as the Holy Grail? Some things are just better because the documented evidence (the science, if you will) demonstrates it to be the case. We don't say that people should have the choice to drink drive, for example. Just because you have the power to choose doesn't always make it your right, it just proves that you are the more powerful in the relationship. I don't believe that it is a completely personal decision either way, because you are putting your wants and desires above another less powerful person's wants and needs - usually a person that parents claim to love, want and cherish more than any other thing on the whole planet(except where it's inconvenient?). Of course some women will formula feed and there babies will be OK but hopefully that shouldn't be a matter of choice in the normal course of events, but a necessity.
- cath7472
October 2, 2008 3:54AM
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How about babies birth right?
I am a pro-choice person and I do believe in the power of making your own decisions. However this choice has to come from well informed decisions. Many healthcare professionals only learn about breastfeeding in physiology –more about how we lactate than breastfeeding-, and trying to give bias information provided by the multi billion industries. If you look at the formula boxes it says “mother’s milk is the best food for the baby” in very small print. Does this remind you of the warning signs on the cigarette packages?
What is more how about the maternal benefits of breastfeeding? Again it is proven that the breastfeeding reduces the woman’s chance of getting breast cancers –as per World Health Organization-. How many formula packages can do this?
How about the babies “Birthright”? How come every one talking about the mother’s right to choose, but no one ever mentions about the babies birthright?
So there is more than meets the eye as you see. Do please remember human babies born to have human milk; it is normal, it is natural, and it is the best possible choice for the mother and the baby. Therefore please use your right to choose, and make this one a well informed one.
- raiec
September 27, 2008 5:17PM
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Has anyone considered this?
>How about the babies “Birthright”? How come every one talking about the mother’s right to choose, but no one ever mentions about the babies birthright?
There is a hazard in substituting any formula that contains soy!
Soy is estrogenic enough to be marketed in capsule form refined and called genestein. The use of this product is touted to be able to suppress testosterone enough to be of use in testosterone reducing protocol in treating prostate cancer. The fact that it does this is capable of bringing the usual side effects of lowered testosterone to the user.
Any milk formula based on soybeans will be estrogenic in nature. Giving this to girl babies is likely to cause earlier puberty in girls- not necessarily a benefit. Fed to boy babies it is capable of confusing their sexual development. We already seem to be having evidence of some things in the environment causing lowered male fertility, lowered sperm motility, higher defective sperm.
I realize there will be cases where the use of formula may be better than inadequate breast milk. I am pleased that my wife was able to breast feed all 4 of our offspring.
Hal 84
- Hal 84
December 28, 2008 8:39AM
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Why?
Why, if a mother chooses to formula feed, for whatever reason, are they told their choice was an uninformed one? Why is this assumed? I've seen it mentioned here a few times that mothers have to make an informed decision. How does one person know that another persons decision is uninformed?
- candlemomma124
October 1, 2008 9:35AM
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I think what they mean is....
If a person knows that breast milk is far superior, then WHY would someone choose to give their child less than the best. They assume that the person is uninformed because what it would mean if they were informed and still chose formula (barring any physical inabilities to produce milk)? I think they are giving the person the benefit of the doubt instead of saying oh they really know, but made an incredibly selfish and bad decision for their child. A decision that will effect that child's health for the rest of their lives. I certainly don't get someone making the "choice" to not breastfeed beyond extenuating circumstances that I wrote above.
- Iknowbetter
October 1, 2008 1:57PM
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Lifestyle?
Women are advised not to do many things when their babies are in utero for risk of adversely impacting on their health - drinking, smoking, taking medications etc. Yet once the child is born how to feed it becomes a "lifestyle choice"?? I accept that some women may find breastfeeding difficult for a number of reasons, but that does not change the fact that breastfeeding is a far superior form of nutrition for a baby. And as for scientific proof breastfeeding is healthier - the World Health Organisation is already pretty clear on that one. How can you possibly suggest that an artificial product, to which many babies can be allergic or intolerant, can be better than the nutrition created by nature? We are the only mammals who choose to feed our babies something other than breastmilk. Babies digestive systems were designed to process breastmilk, not cows milk formula. Breastmilk was designed to nourish babies.
As a mother who breastfed for 23 months (including whilst working) I have seen the health benefits breastfeeding can bring not only to my baby, but also to me, with the immunity benefits breastfeeding offers not just to baby but also to mother when one of us has had highly contagious illnesses (eg: chickenpox) but the other did not contract it due to the antibodies in one of us passing through to the other via breastmilk.
- jloukath
December 10, 2008 10:16PM
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not breastfeeding is risky
"If, in the future, science demonstrates that breastfeeding has serious health advantages, then public health officials, women, and their families will have to determine whether the benefits of breastfeeding override its costs. In the meantime, in the overwhelming majority of cases, either breastfeeding or formula-feeding is a healthy option." quote: mrs Wolf
Well, of course breastfeeding is in no way to be put forward as beneficial or better, it is just the biological norm. All substitutes of a norm will have to prove their necessity and safety. Human milk substitutes have for now failed to do so. Not breastfeeding is proven to be risky and morbidity is in the ranges similar to those of unsafe sleep arrangements and severe child abuse. See press release of NIH: http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/may2004/niehs-02.htm , but more evidence is out there.
Formula feeding is not a lifestyle choice, it should rather be seen as a prosthesis, like a prosthesis to replace a missing hand, eye- or ear-function, in case a mother is medically unable to breastfeed. Even then, human milk would be the preferred option. Only in very rare cases of metabolic disorders, like galactosemia, will an infant not be able to tolerate human milk.
Breast or bottle is not a lifestyle choice, it is a child health choice and a women's health choice. Not lactating increases the risks of developing ''female'' diseases like reproductive organ cancers, postpartum depression and osteoporosis.
- Gonneke
May 8, 2009 3:49AM
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I totally agree with Gonneke
It is a choice. My baby was extremely little and had some health problems and his peditrician recommended that i use a formula formulated especially for him. I had planned to breast feed but of coarse I wanted what was best for my baby and that is what the dr recommended.. He did wonderfully.. Grew off like no baby i had ever seen. I was so pleased with his growth and how healty he turned out that I had the dr formulate a formula for my 2nd child even though he was a big healty baby. I have never regretted this and my kids are in their 30's now .... breast feeding is like anything else a choice an i get a little sick of people trying to say it is the best because that is not always so..
- cbooh
October 30, 2009 11:07PM
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