Good article: “The Risks of NOT Breastfeeding”
I like the way it is phrased. Instead of the “benefits of breastmilk,” it’s “the risks of formula.” Exact same data….different psychological interpretations.
I feel like I’d be screwing my kid over if I didn’t breastfeed.
Yes, I know parents have the final decision on whether or not to do it and for how long…..and people have to work and it’s hard work to pump that much milk or make other arrangements financially so you can be with your nursing baby…..and some people regret not breastfeeding (and I’m glad they’ve changed their minds)….but seriously, are all these risks of formula worth it for the so-called “convenience” of bottle-feeding (which is NOT convenient after all)? Why WOULDN’T you breastfeed? Why ISN’T it the norm to do it for a few years, or at least for 6 months before weaning??? (and cereal is a solid, by the way!)
Augh! I already know the answers to these, but people don’t like to hear them because it makes them “feel bad.” And then you get lots of defensive comments, people think you’re “judging them,” you get told that a parent gets to decide what’s best for their kid, etc. etc.
Maybe someday I’ll have the guts to say everything I really think about bad breastfeeding practices in America.
Here’s one to start. Breastfeeding is best for your kid, NOT formula. And, no, I’m not judging you as a bad parent if you bottlefeed/fed, but I do think you should have breastfed instead. BUT there is no sense in regret; just acknowledge it and move on with the knowledge you have now, and from now on, encourage every young mom you see to breastfeed.
PLEASE ask someone for help if you are having trouble nursing, and don’t be afraid of the answer….and don’t be afraid to tell someone if they are messing up their breastfeeding. I won’t make that mistake again. I’m trying not to regret being too silent about the bad breastfeeding practices & ideas I’ve seen in my short stint as a breastfeeding advocate (if you will).
(Future apologies to my sisters, who will feel the full wrath of my Breastfeeding Arsenal if they have kids and try to use formula.) 
*edit*
In response to a random comment about this post….
I just want to clarify that in my last post, I said “I” would feel like I’m screwing my kid over if I didn’t breastfeed him. That’s how I would feel about me. Not how I would feel about someone else who wasn’t breastfeeding. And I’m not trying to make anyone feel guilty who TRULY is having problems breastfeeding, even after educating themselves about their particular problem to the fullest extent of their abilities. I was venting my frustration at the lack of self-education I keep seeing in people who are having problems breastfeeding (that are self-caused, not medically caused). I just didn’t go into detail about the situations I was thinking of, so perhaps the vague comments could be interpreted as being personally judgmental to someone in a way that they weren’t intended to be. I am not calling anyone or their kids stupid for being bottlefed. And good for you if you turned out just fine after being bottlefed, or you have an amazing bond with your kids. Not everyone gets that, though, and you are an exception.
Believe me, this is the first time I’ve actually been somewhat outspoken about what I keep hearing and seeing. I wouldn’t be surprised if people get upset about it, but just make sure you are clear what I’m trying to convey in my written opinion before getting upset. Or don’t get upset at all, whatever. Since it’s rather hard to hear someone’s tone of voice online and to clarify what they mean (my writing isn’t perfect, sorry…please don’t judge me for my lack of ability in areas different from your expertise), perhaps we can leave the getting upset part to the birds.
Yes, I believe breastfeeding and natural childbirth are the best way to go in most cases, but I also believe in fully educating oneself about those things. I believe in making informed choices about these things….Sorry, but I am not going to support someone’s decision to formula feed that is based on lack of information. Unfortunately, it is hard to easily learn about it these days because true knowledge about these things is often not passed down from generation to generation because long-term breastfeeding and intervention-free childbirth are not the norm in our society anymore. If more women older than us had ignored the explosion of formula company ads in previous decades, we might have more experts around in the community so people wouldn’t have to drive 2 hours to a LLL meeting. In this day and age, though, it is the lack of self-educating about childbirth and breastfeeding that I find troubling. It seems like some people who have told me they “couldn’t” nurse for one reason or another didn’t really try that hard or didn’t exhaust all possibilities. And then there are others who have nursed for 5 months before their baby finally latched on right and started gaining weight properly! Or people who fed their newborn baby for three weeks with a feeding tube attached to their finger from a bottle of pumped milk….before she finally latched on! Or the people who try to nurse for several months with bleeding, sore nipples and are still pumping and struggling even though everyone around them has told them to quit. That is trying….not just having lazy or selfish reasons to quit right away…like, “it takes too much time,” or “it hurt the first time.” I am proud of those people for trying – truly, truly TRYING – and that they are still going. It is when someone fully exhausts all possibilities and still has trouble breastfeeding that I will support her decision. But I am not going to console people who didn’t really try very hard just to make them feel better about themselves. Nor am I going to be on their case about it, because obviously they have already made up their minds.
As for people who won’t donate formula to Haiti because they support breastfeeding so much, they are ridiculous. Not only do those women have to deal with the ads of American formula companies that try to convince them it’s healthier to formula feed, but they don’t have the resources like we do to educate themselves about the truth. There are people down there working to educate and help those women with breastfeeding, and that is awesome.
