Why are so many people freaked out by breast milk?

[Isla]

I breast fed all of my kids and they are all remarkably healthy, remarkably intelligent, and I have a good, balanced relationship with all of them.

It was not necessarily easy (it can be quite difficult) but I did stay home with each of my children through infancy... my feeling is that nurturing each child to the best of my ability is the greatest thing I could ever do with my life. Rather than making me feel like less than a person, it makes me feel more whole and fulfilled in my role as a mother. I could win a Nobel Peace Prize and it wouldn't compare to the satisfaction I get from helping my children to eventually achieve independence with the best start in life I can give them.

My mother, a retired math and science teacher, breast fed all of us for at least a few months each. My siblings and I are all above average in intelligence, above average in health, and are successful economically. She did it DESPITE the fact that it was NOT cool to breast feed back then. In fact, there was a LOT of social pressure not to breast feed and I am amazed that it still exists today.

 

[Scott Newton]

Emulex: I really hope that you were kidding....

It might not be proper to feed without covering in the States since we have made the nude body an evil thing and therefore Kids (and many adults) would be traumatized by it. With your statement, I can see you slamming on your brakes to throw a blanket over a cow feeding its calf since it is such an obsene act. What is the difference? No wonder we eat those evil instruments of Satan.

I am now on a mission.... COVER THE COWS!!!!! Wherever cows may be seen feeding their young, I will be there too. Covering the obsene scene so that we can live in a calmer, more peacefull society. OH MY GOD!!!! The Zoo! The Elephants have huge breasts....Those are even more obsene. I need to have them put signs up preventing children from entering the pachiderm area. THIS NASTY PUBLIC DISPLAY OF OVERSIZED BREASTS MUST BE STOPPED!!!! AT LEAST PUT A BRA ON THE DAMN THINGS.


PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES..... BREASTS ARE DESIGNED TO FEED BABIES.... NOT ONLY SEXUAL PLEASURE OF MEN AND OTHER WOMEN.... LET THEM BE.

 

[happykitten]

Thank you, Scott.

Beast ~ That wasn't my argument at all, actually. There are laws against walking around naked (at least, here in the US), and besides... what practical purpose/function would that (walking around nude) serve? When a woman with a baby is in a mall and her baby is hungry, she has every right to unbutton her shirt and feed her child. THAT is perfectly natural, and comparing breast feeding in public (sometimes a necessity) to walking around in public topless (not necessary) is nonsense.

 

[Pastore]

No, kitten, its not nonsense... breast feeding is completely natural, and nudity is also completely natural, but that doesnt mean it is right to walk around nude, right? You can feed your baby in public all you want, but why not throw a towel over the area? no big deal...

 

[BoberFett]

happykitten

What's so hard to comprehend? Clothes are not natural. You're not born with them. No other creature on the planet covers themselves. Nudity is perfectly natural. So it's not nonsense.

 

[Isla]

About covering up...

I would always take a blanket to cover up with, but babies can be pretty frisky and think it is time for a game of peekaboo! I sat in an International Airport once and my 4 month old kept pulling down the blanket, giving everyone a peep show~! Sometimes babies let you cover up, and sometimes they don't. You just have to relax and get over it.

My personal choice was to TRY to be discreet but if someone had a problem with what I was doing or the fact that the baby didn't feel like being covered up, I would have given them quite a tongue lashing.

The most beautiful picture I have is one of my babies breastfeeding. I am in no way, shape or form ashamed of it, but I am aware that there are many people who have issues and neurosis about these things, so I try to be sensitive to them.

 

[HKSturboKID]

When my ex was pregnant she made pancakes with her breast milk...
I always thought milk comes after the baby is born. Can someone clarify that?

 

[happykitten]

Beast ~ Option (to be nude/not to be nude, no skin off your back) vs. Necessity (feed the baby/don't feed the baby, baby's gonna be PISSED if it doesn't get fed). Towel or no towel... individual preference, it's up to the mommy.

 

[Pastore]

Isla, I respect that you tried to cover and be respectful... And if a baby pulls the cover off, its not your fault... But I really dont agree with people that dont try to cover it up at all...

 

[SSP]

Buncha pussies... I was breast fed.. you gotta problem with that?

 

[SSP]

Beast, your just jealous the kids getting some and your not.

 

[HKSturboKID]

While we are on the milk subjects, for those that uses formula, what do u use, similac or enfamil. I use both. Which ever is on sale. Sometimes I use the one with Iron, sometimes I use the Prosobee or soy milk.

Anyone?

 

[Pastore]

well SSP, me and my ex just broke up about a week ago, so.....

 

[SSP]

Sorry to hear that Beast.

 

[LadyNiniane]

HKSturboKID, use whatever your pediatrician suggests. Ask before using the ones with added iron - some babies don't tolerate the extra iron at all. As for soy or not, again discuss it with the doctor, or choose based on your eating beliefs.

Breast milk is a better food for infants, but all situations must be evaluated individually by the mother. I did the breast feeding thing with both of mine, and even did the pumped milk routine after I went back to work outside the home; it was a bit of a nuisance, but worth the trouble as far as I was concerned. Both kids are healthy and hearty - and now they're both taller than I am (even the newly-turned 12-year-old), so I think they turned out okay.

Lady Niniane

 

[HKSturboKID]

Thanks for the headz up LadyNiniane.

I did ask the pediatrician and they told me that they are pretty much similar, I went to one they told me similac cuz its less gas and the other one told be enfamil. Than my baby is getting a lot of rash and pimples, the first one told be because of the milk and tell me to switch to soy milk and she give me some lotion for the baby. So I went to another one for a second opinion, and the doc told me that the lotion that was prescribe is too strong and not to use too often. He told me to get some hydro-cortizone which help it, as for the milk the second doc say that changing the milk should be the last resort. Eliminate other possibility first. As for breast feeding, my wife stops cause its too hard and I just want my wife to be happy and not to stress her out. Hey, shes the one that bought the beautiful baby to our life.

 

[Scott Newton]

We have tried different similac formulas with both our children and they both threw it up like it was a bad Egg Salad Sandwich. The only thing they will hold down is mothers milk..... It's odd how it works like that.

 

[rahvin]

<<Isla, I respect that you tried to cover and be respectful... And if a baby pulls the cover off, its not your fault... But I really dont agree with people that dont try to cover it up at all...>>

A breast is not a sexual organ. It is for feeding babies, if you get offended by seeing a baby eating I REALLY feel sorry for you. The US is way to caught up in nudity, if breasts were seen more they wouldn't be so scandalous and we wouldn't have bunch of self righteous people running around proclaiming how improper it is for a baby to eat in public. Get over it.

And for the record, there shouldn't be a law against women going topless either. Stupid Puritan History, it's no wonder Europe kicked them all out, unfortunate thing is we have to live with the legacy of that.

 

[BoberFett]

LOL rahvin.

While from a purely functional perspective, breasts are meant for feeding babies. However, the term &quot;fun bags&quot; does not exist without reason.

 

[rahvin]

<<While from a purely functional perspective, breasts are meant for feeding babies. However, the term &quot;fun bags&quot; does not exist without reason.>>

And because you view them as an entertainment device instead of a feeding device it means someone using them for their proper purpose should have to cover them? Get real man. All the people screaming about how it's obscene are the ones with the problems, insecurity and inability to control hormones.

 

[fobbman]

First off, this is where I'm coming from.

Now, as far as those folks who are offended by public breastfeeding are concerned it is pretty safe to assume that the woman who is breastfeeding wants to show you her breasts about as much as you want to see them. While newborns are fine with the blanket-covering-the-feeding scene, the kids over 6 months of age often times will not stand for blocking their view. They are alert, curious creatures that love to sightsee while they dine, much to the dismay of their embarrassed mother.

As for when breastmilk becomes available, it depends on the woman. Some can start lactation while pregnant while others start shortly after birth.

They guy who said that breastfeeding is sick and not natural is, quite frankly, sick and not natural himself. :|

Lastly, if you or someone you know is breastfeeding a youngster, do them a favor and support them 100%!!! What they are doing is both physically uncomfortable and, sadly, socially unacceptable by the majority of the population so any support that they can get is readily appreciated.

Breasts are beautiful for a multitude of reasons, but most importantly they are beautiful because they feed our babies.

 

[Isla]

fobbman, you are my new hero.

 

[BoberFett]

<< And because you view them as an entertainment device instead of a feeding device it means someone using them for their proper purpose should have to cover them? Get real man. >>

Get a grip pal. Was I arguing that they should be covered? I just get tired of hypocrisy. Why are breasts acceptable to expose when used to feed, but the moral snobs in this country frown on toplessness?

 

[fobbman]

I dig out sock fuzz from my toenails from the same pocket knife that I slice sandwiches with, I lose valuable computer files of my wife's every time I reformat the drive, I spend way too much on computer hardware (good prices, too many purchases), and I have an aversion to housework that borders on obscene.

Talk about a new breed of hero!

 

[Stallion]

My Son got his milk right out of the &quot;Jug&quot; for 11 months and I thought it was awesome. And now that She is pregnant again I'm looking forward to it all over again.