Breast Feeding in PublicNot long ago, I remember reading an article in a well respected magazine for restaurant owners. This magazine included an editorial (a women) describing her loathing for women who choose to breast feed in public. I appreciate that everyone is entitled to their views, however this particularly scathing attack got me thinking more than usual about whether breast feeing in public should be allowed? The mother in me cries out at this point, what is more natural than taking the time to feed your own baby in exactly the way that nature intended? Why on earth would we want to discourage mothers from doing this, especially since it has been proven that babies on the breast as opposed to babies on the bottle will have a higher IQ in later life. It also goes against the whole medical movement of trying to encourage more mothers to breastfeed. The law on breast feeding in public is quite simple, there is none. Mothers are free to breast feed their children in public, yet many choose not to. This is quite understandable considering some of the more snidey comments that can be found in some quarters of the press. So what are the options? Well, I'm firmly in the camp of if you have to go you have to go. Which basically transfers to; if junior wants his milk, he'll get it. In most cases, people will prefer me to discreetly feed my son rather than listen to his hungry howls of hunger. Which to me is pretty much the point, young babies have their feed on their terms, breast milk is altogether a better source of nourishment, everyone knows this so why is there still disapproving looks? Personally, I think it has to do with snobbishness. As if the sight of a women sat with a baby at her nipple with barely a piece of flesh showing offends their values. Often these are the same people dragging on a cigarette and throwing their butt down onto the pavement rather than using a bin. Or worse, the type who support fox hunting, capital punishment and have convinced themselves they know where the weapons of mass destruction were hidden. The type of people who disapprove of breast feeding in public do not deserve to have their views listened to. Most women are more than capable of feeding their young one at the breast without anyone even noticing in most cases, whilst some are just unfortunate to do so in the same vicinity of a Victor Meldrew, the type of person that would find affront at the slightest change in wind direction. Hopefully my views on breast feeding in public are quite clear, it's a woman's right of passage. Much like every man has to get drunk, drop his trousers and show his back side at the first camera he spots on his way home. It's our duty as mothers to ensure we take care of our infants in the best way we decide, if breast feeding in public is part of that choice then I am a fully paid up member of the breast feeding in public mothers brigade. Read more of our articles on breast feeding Breast Feeding Problems |