Is this country so prude that it can't tolerate something so natural as a mother breast-feeding her child? I was shocked to hear about people getting bent over the issue of BabyTalk (distributed in doctors offices) which showed a child breastfeeding. It was a well done pic from the side (no nipple or anything), yet people still got squeamish over it.
2006-07-27 11:59:42 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
I think there's a couple of reasons. I nursed my twins for just over 2 years, my third child for a year, and I have an 8 month old now that is still nursing. I think the sexualization of breasts is part of it, but there's something more important to look at.
I think the primary reason people, male and female are "offended" by breastfeeding is because for one reason or another that parent, or partner chose NOT to do it. I think that women that don't nurse their kids, although they may not admit it, feel guilty, like they didn't give their child the very best they had to offer. Ask any bottle feeding mother about breastfeeding, and over 90% will come back with a very very defensive answer.
To fix this problem, I think mothers have to be more willing to give of themselves than to take. It's a very selfless thing to nurse a baby. It's time consuming and giving in a way that propping a baby in a seat with a bottle is not. JMHO
btw, if my kid is hungry, there's nothing that's going to stop me from feeding her regardless of where we are. :)
2006-07-27 13:07:20 · answer #1 · answered by bratsk13 4 · 10⤊ 1⤋
Why WOULDN'T a magazine like BabyTalk have a picture of a mom breastfeeding in it? People are so hung up on breasts as sexual objects that some of them think we're borderline child molesters for nursing. The only thing perverted about breastfeeding are the people that think it's perverted.
Why is it that men can go topless and show their nipples to the world and no one cares? I'm sorry but I have seen over weight men who have bigger boobs than me!
2006-07-27 15:15:20 · answer #2 · answered by all_my_armour_falling_down 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I used to get some glares when I would breast-feed my children in public, but I wasn't showing anything. I had purchased a sling, and when my baby was hungry I layed them down in there, and then adjusted my breast so they could latch on. A couple walked up to me and told me that I should be doing that in private, not where people could see me....when I responded that there are many other directions that they could be looking if they did not like the fact that I was doing the best thing for my baby, they shut up immediatly.
It is nothing to get "squeamish" over. It is a beautiful thing. Encourage all pregnant females to breast feed. It is very rewarding!!
2006-07-27 15:57:30 · answer #3 · answered by Just_me 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If people are disturbed by this they can just look the other way. Most nursing mothers are very discreet about breastfeeding in public. It is a very natural act, and is makes a special between Mother and Baby. I applaud any woman today willing to take the extra time to spend with their child!!
2006-07-27 12:04:37 · answer #4 · answered by angel93055 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I know. I've gotten strange looks several times when I have had to feed my daughter in public. Hey, she's hungry, what would you like me to do? I think that's part of the problem: parenting isn't NATURAL anymore. More and more people formula feed, feed their children processed foods (I'm sorry but there's no need for 3 year olds to eat frozen dinners for lunch every day) and they plop their kids in front of a T.V. as a babysitter.
I breastfeed, make home made baby food, and it's rare my daughter watches TV. We play, go outside, read books, sing songs.......you get the picture. We have more and more children, yet the parents are less and less involved. We're becoming-detached. Sad, truly.
2006-07-27 12:05:48 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't paint the entire country with a broad brush. There is always going to be someone who is offended by something...that's human nature. When necessary and when done properly, breast feeding in public is not offensive. However, if you cannot relax in a public setting, the baby will react to you and may not nurse well. Use your judgement.
2006-07-27 12:06:07 · answer #6 · answered by carolewkelly 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because breasts are considered sex organs...it reminds me of this joke that goes, "How are breasts and electric trains alike? They're meant for the kids, but the dads play with them too!"
Thing is they have a dual function. If you see a man and woman "getting busy" and you see her breasts, that's one thing, if you see a woman nursing her infant that's quite another.
As long as it's discreet I don't see why anyone should have a problem with it...that's what a woman's breasts are there for, plus breastfeeding is good for the health of both the mother and the child.
2006-07-27 12:04:30 · answer #7 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Thats a good question. Some will say because of the "sex appeal" of the breast, but I don't understand that because everywhere you look there are ad's for clothing,make-up ect. with half naked women in them. Sex is already everywhere anyway. Maybe the people that get squeamish are just prudish and aren't comfortable with their bodies. Who knows??
2006-07-27 12:31:08 · answer #8 · answered by JL's Mom 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't know why there is such a problem with it. I did it. I figured I eat in public places, why shouldn't my baby? I just covered her up with a blanket so the entire world didn't see my breast.
2006-07-27 12:20:09 · answer #9 · answered by prmb1999 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think as long as it's done discretely then there should be no problem..I nursed my son and I know a large number of women who nurse if people don't like then they need to not look.
2006-07-27 12:04:25 · answer #10 · answered by Kitikat 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋