Reading Daphne Caruana Galizia’s opinion, Land of the giant Boobies (TMID, 7 September), I was utterly shocked. Ms Caruana Galizia is ill-informed, incorrect, narrow-minded and insulted all breastfeeding mothers.
It shows that Ms Caruana Galizia is against breastfeeding in public but I could not rationalise why. After all, that’s what breasts were made for! It’s very naive to think of the breasts only as sexual organs.
One cannot compare breastfeeding with sex.
Sex can be performed according to personal taste, whereas there is only one way to breastfeed... just latch a baby or toddler to the breast. After all, it is every mother’s right to choose how, when and where to breastfeed, certainly not in a toilet. Nobody would like to eat a delicious meal in a toilet, neither would it be fair to breastfeed a baby or a toddler in a toilet. It’s disgusting!
It is a mother’s right to defend her young. It’s a child’s fundamental right by nature to breastfeed. If breastfeeding is carried out discreetly in public it should not annoy anyone.
Breastfeeding has many benefits. It helps both the child and the mum in various ways. Breastfeeding is good for every part of the child’s body, from the brain to the diaper. What’s good for the baby is also good for the mother.
By breastfeeding, a mother benefits from reduced risk of breast, uretine and ovarian cancer, reduced chances of osteoporosis. Breastfeeding also helps child spacing, promotes emotional health, promotes post-partum weight loss. Furthermore, it costs less to breastfeed and obviously, even the most busy mum has to sit down and relax while breastfeeding.
No wonder then, the Health Promotion Department is organising this campaign. Breastfeeding should not be considered as something suitable only for third world countries. We all know that celebrities too breastfed or are still breastfeeding their children.
Celebrities such as Pamela Anderson, Laura Bush, Hillary Clinton, Melanie Griffith, Madonna, Demi Moore, Princess Diana, Princess Grace of Monaco, Margaret Thatcher and many more... the list is endless. Would you consider these celebrities idiots for breastfeeding or accuse them of living a third world country style of life?
Major health organisations promote exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and it should be continued for at least a year or two and beyond or for as long as mother and child desire. The following are just a few organisations which promote breastfeeding based on years of studies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American Dietetic Association, American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Nurse-Midwives, NAPNAP, Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Breastfeeding Committee for Canada, the World Health Organisation, and UNICEF. There is also an address of Pope John Paul II, encouraging mums to breastfeed. So why shouldn’t us Maltese do so?
Formula companies have forked out millions of dollars in promotion campaigns, encouraging mums to formula-feed. Funnily enough, they all try to imitate breast milk claiming formula milk to be “closer to breast milk”. They are therefore implicating that breast milk is the gold standard to which all formula milk is compared but can never surpass.
Among other properties, breast milk contains white blood cells which actively help the baby to fight diseases. In the USA, mums who cannot breastfeed are paying sky high prices to get human milk. In the USA, Canada, the UK and in other countries there are milk banks, which collect expressed breast milk from breastfeeding mums and use it to feed babies in SCBU.
Cow’s milk is made for calves, whereas human milk is tailor-made for human babies. Studies show that cow’s milk has properties to develop a calf’s brain which is small compared to the human brain. On the other hand, human milk has properties which help the human body develop all its potentials.
Breastfeeding offers more than just milk, it also offers security and comfort for the baby. Breastfed babies may want to feed more often but this offers security and comfort for the baby. Indeed, breastfed babies are more socially adjusted because their needs have been met more often.
Moreover, I don’t agree that bottle-feeding is more convenient than breastfeeding. Keep in mind that in order to bottle-feed, a mum has to buy tins of formula, sterilise bottles, boil water and wake up at night to prepare a bottle and carry loads of things when going out. Whereas with breastfeeding it’s so simple, the mother just takes the baby out with her, needing nothing more than her boobs (big or small). At night, a breastfeeding mum does not have to wake up to prepare a bottle, the breast is always available if the baby is near.
I do not intend to say that mums who decide to bottle-feed are doing anything wrong.
They have their reasons and I accept and respect them. But I also expect that people accept and respect a mother’s decision to breastfeed.
J. Spiteri
Mqabba