Our baby girl's pediatrician said that breastfeeding is only necessary among poor, undeveloped people...?

Question

Our baby is now 5 months old.
My wife had a hard time breastfeeding her after she was born, due to uncomfortness and soreness.
Since having that problem, one of our questions to the pediatrician was if not breastfeeding our baby would be risky for her immunity, to what he answered, "that is only true among poor people that live under unhealthy conditions, you won't have that problem".
The doctor is a very known and respectable professional, but that statement goes against most of what I've heard about that topic.
What do you think?

Answer 1

I don't think that your Dr. meant that breast feeding is only for people that live in poor underdeveloped countries.I'm thinking that what your Dr. may have actually meant is that your baby is NOT at risk from not breast feeding, and that only kids in poor countries are at risk if they DON'T breast feed. He must know that breast feeding is nature's way and in general the best for your baby. But in this day and age there are completely fine alternatives. I also think that 5 months is a pretty good start for any baby, some mother's ween their baby's after only 6. And I know plenty of very healthy people that were never breast feed past the colostrum, and some even less... If your Dr. is reputable there is a chance that there was a miscommunication. (hopefully anyway, cuz otherwise what a horrible thing to say...)

Answer 2

Wow - crazy talk there. Ok, I've just finished reading an article on the 'myths of breastfeeding'. One of these myths is that pediatricians/doctors actually know something about breastfeeding. Depending on this Dr's age, he could have had little to NO training on breastfeeding. The only thing he likely hears about feeding babies comes from formula companies (and you can bet they arent real Pro-Breastfeeding.) Maybe this Dr was referring to the fact that your baby wont DIE from not being breastfed by catching a disease that could have been warded off had the mother breastfed, but even then he should know that breastfed babies are less likely to suffer from SIDS. There are all sorts of other health considerations, such as diabetes and obesity, that breastfed babies are much less likely to suffer from, that I really am sad a pediatrician would say such a thing. It isnt just the general public that needs to learn a thing or two about breastfeeding, pediatricians dont even know what they are talking about sometimes. Makes you lose faith in them a bit, doesnt it? I sure did with my own personal experiences with them, my first two pediatricians were TERRIBLE. I got a referral from a friend and found the most wonderful, warm, younger man who I can tell knows what he's talking about in relation to breastfeeding. I dont know if that is the key - to find someone younger who hasnt grown up in an anti-breastfeeding world - or if it depends on the person.

I hope your wife has contacted someone with the LLL or another group/close friends who can help her through difficulties with breastfeeding. It isnt always easy but so much better for your baby. She needs support though, so give her as much as possible. Good luck!

Edit: Ok, I just reread the ?, and I think I missed something the first read through. Did your wife already completely stop breastfeeding? Depending on how long ago, there is the possibility of starting again although that would take a lot of work, but if she has already stopped more than a week or so I would say that you need to reassure her that she has done the best for your baby in a difficult situation. Without proper support it can be impossible to continue sometimes! There are millions of us that werent breastfed at all, and being breastfed even if for a short time is much better than nothing! So, she shouldnt feel guilt for stopping if she has already, you both know a lot more for your second baby if you should choose to have more children, and things will hopefully go much easier for you.

Answer 3

Get a new pediatrician please. Neither of my children were breastfed, it was a descision made by not only myself and my pediatrician but also included my ob/gyn and a lactation nurse. My son did not take to breastfeeding and rather than starve him he became a formula baby. Breastmilk is best for a baby, but breastfeeding is not right for all mothers. I've seen a few studies floating around the web that say formula fed babyies deal better with stress as adults. But I still standby breastmilk is best, any doctor who tells you otherwse is a crackpot.

Answer 4

That is crazy! Breastfeeding is not only the recommended form of feeding for all babies 6 months and under by all health organizations but it's also good for the mother's health! In fact most organizations state that the longer the mom can breastfeed, the better. It decreases the baby's risk of dying in the 1st year fourfold, even in developed countries. It provides the child with lifelong protection from chronic illnesses such as asthma, diabetes and heart disease. It also decreases the mother's chance of developing breast and ovarian cancer as well as diabetes. Maybe the doc was just trying to make your wife feel better?! But at the expense of their health? The best person to go to for breastfeeding help, even at this stage is an IBCLC lactation counselor..contact your local La Leche League and find out who's available.

Answer 5

I think your doc wasn't very supportive of breastfeeding. I think he took the easy way out instead of providing her with breastfeeding help. Most docs know very little about breastfeeding. It typically amounts to about 1 lecture of their education. You really need to seek info from a Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or a La Leche League Leader if you have breastfeeding questions. I think the doc did what a lot of unsupportive docs do, give an answer that makes it "OK for mom to wean" because he doesn't want to make the mom feel bad if she does choose to wean and doesn't want to pressure her, etc. I wonder where the last paid vacation he got from the formula company was?

I would RUN from this doctor.

Answer 6

I am sorry that you are faced with such a decision. Personally I would not feed my child formula, but that is just me. Especially with everything that has been going on with it lately. Have you ever heard of a milk bank? You can get breast milk from other moms that have donated it to help out moms that for one reason or another cannot breastfeed, but still want the countless benefits that breastfeeding offers. Here is a link that has a lot of useful information.

Answer 7

Breastfeeding is obviously necessary if that's the only way to feed a child.

I formula fed my children and they have hardly ever been ill and do very well in school. In all honesty, the kids I know that were breastfed were sick more often then my kids. I don't know why but I believe that it has something to do with the fact with over medicating people with antibiotics which break down the immune system.

Breast milk in many cases these days may actually cause damage to the infants immune system.

Answer 8

I think your ped is a little over paid by the baby formula makers, Rich or poor breast milk has ingredients that cannot be replicated in man made baby milk.

whilst a child can be very healthy raised on powdered milk, breast milk is still the preferred feed.

on the other flip of the coin a poor and unhealthy mother may not have a good supply of breast milk.

Answer 9

Your doctor is off his rocker.

When I brought my son in for his 2 week check-up in May of this year, I brought my 19 month old daughter and the nanny.

All of us got a horrible stomach virus that was going around EXCEPT for my 2 week old, which was being breastfed.

I breastfed him in between throwing up. I believe that he got his immunities from me even though I was sick, my body was building immunities against this virus and giving them to him.

Once I stopped breastfeeding my son at 4 1/2 months, I have noticed that he gets sick fairly often. My daughter is now 2 and brings home illnesses from her Mother's Day Out program, which is only 2 days a week.

Answer 10

What a pig! I would change doctors immediately. You don't want someone with that sort of attitude taking care of your child. Heaven forbid she gets sick with something he doesn't think she's poor enough to catch, and doesn't treat it properly.

But to calm your breastfeeding fears, your daughter will be ok. My grandma was unable to nurse either of her children, and both my mom and my uncle are very healthy. Breastfeeding does bolster immune systems and contains the perfect balance of vitamins and nutrients for the baby, but today's formulas are very close and are not bad at all for the baby.

Good luck with the dr. situation!