The pressure to nurture a child in the correct way is placed onto women before they’re even pregnant. Baby books, social norms, and much more effect the route a mother is supposed to take during and after her pregnancy. You could be hounded for wanting to use medicine during your birth, or scolded for trying to take the natural route. The same goes for the immense structure set in place for breastfeeding.
For any mother, the need to breastfeed their child is placed at the upmost importance for them post-pregnancy. The only issue with this is that many children do not latch on. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends women breastfeed exclusively for the first six months of a baby’s life, and continue for a full year or more. But in reality, very few women actually do this. In the U.S., according to the CDC, less than half of babies are still breastfed at three months postpartum. By the six month mark, it’s down to 25%.
This pressure is put on mothers through institutes like this, experts in lactation, and other mothers. Women are deemed incompatible because they are not “trying hard enough”.
The Toll On Mental Health
On top of grappling effect on mothers, there’s research that’s also shown that children whose mothers have postpartum depression are at greater risk for behavioral problems and language delays, for example.
What Should Be Done?
When all is said and done, there is no right way to feed a newborn child. Regardless of clash between these opinions, the first thought on anyone’s mind should be that of health. Continuing to help a child grow should be done outside of the womb, in the safest and least harmful way.
