As a comment on Erica Mangion’s If you love someone, let him go (TMID, 18 February), one must look at the basic needs of the newborn: breastfeeding, if the mother can manage it.

Every effort should be made by the state and the community at large to support the mother to bond and breastfeed the baby for as long as possible, especially the first year.

It would save many physical and social problems down the track. It is also a baby’s right. Nuns or foster parents cannot provide the vital nourishment that’s freely available to the mother of the newborn.

Lucy Calleja

Sydney, Australia