Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm a grandma, but have been wondering about this.
All of a sudden, you hear, left and right - that so-and-so is having trouble breastfeeding - the baby won't "latch on."
I'm pretty sure all mammals breastfeed instinctually, so what in the world could the problem be that would affect so many moms/babies?
It just seems crazy to me.
You don't hear about puppies "not latching on" - for some reason human babies can't breastfeed like they were intended to.
Why would this be the case?
I know that moms maybe aren't around to help their daughters and tell them just the basics of how it works - but it really is quite simple and self-explanatory.
Cuz I'm old, and I have just started hearing what a problem it is for so many moms.
It never used to be a problem.
And it's an instinctual process - so "most people" should be able to do it without a hitch (say 99%)
You assume it never used to be a problem. But in reality it has never changed. The difference is, nowadays it's ok to admit you are having issues with breastfeeding.
Let me add...back in the day...there weren't so much options as it is today. So you many times had no choice but to keep trying. Also, women had more time on their hands to sit there all day and try to feed their new born baby. They tried to their nipples were bleeding pretty much.
Nowadays, women have options. If BF isn't working out like it should after a couple of weeks, many women turn to formula. Noting wrong with that.
It has always been a learning process for mothers and newborn babies to establish breastfeeding. Do a little research--say, find some old books written for new mothers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries--and you will find that breastfeeding is by no means described as an instinctual thing that 99% of moms and babies will have no trouble with.
Latching is not the only problem mothers and babies can experience with breastfeeding. Insufficient supply, tongue-tie, thrush, mastitis, cracked nipples, plugged ducts--the list of potential issues seems endless.
Maybe you're only hearing about breastfeeding problems now because people are talking more openly about them; I can assure you, they have always been there.
You assume it never used to be a problem. But in reality it has never changed. The difference is, nowadays it's ok to admit you are having issues with breastfeeding.
I disagree.
Breastfeeding is instinctual and all animals do it.
There is no biological reason why a preponderance of babies wouldn't be able to do it easily - that would go against nature and the species would eventually die out due to some genetic mutation or malfunction.
The thinking that it's "normal" to have this problem is mind-boggling to me.
I know a number of people--myself included--who had a great deal of trouble breastfeeding. The precise reasons are not important, but the species does not die out because people are intelligent and resourceful and find other means of feeding their babies. In the past, they got another woman to feed the baby for them (a wet nurse). Or they fed the milk of another nursing mammal (goat, mare, camel, etc.), and in modern times, infant formula.
I do think that when alternative feeding methods were hard to come by, mothers were more obligated to persist in breastfeeding through the difficulties because they had no other options. Some of those babies failed to thrive and some even died. Much of the time, I suppose, the problems eventually resolved over time. Now it's very easy to switch to a bottle when breastfeeding isn't going well.
I can assure you, though, without going into details, that my three babies would have starved to death if I had insisted on breastfeeding only and not providing a supplemental food source.
Breastfeeding is instinctual and all animals do it.
There is no biological reason why a preponderance of babies wouldn't be able to do it easily - that would go against nature and the species would eventually die out due to some genetic mutation or malfunction.
The thinking that it's "normal" to have this problem is mind-boggling to me.
That's illogical. WHY would that be the case.
WHAT do you imagine the problem to be?
Im guessing you never had any issues breastfeeding any of your kids. Congratulations.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
