I just found this article on an Australian news site that Mothers from lower income families are 'less likely to breastfeed". I think it is really sad that these mothers are missing out on the support that mothers from higher income families are able to pay for such as lactation consultants etc.
Families with lower incomes would be harder hit by the extra costs of formula and the extra doctors visits etc associated with the increased illness etc caused by formula.
Why is the government not spending more money to help women access services to support breastfeeding.
By support I do not mean pressuring mothers to breastfeed or guilting them into it. I mean real support such as free breastfeeding classes for pregnant mothers, I mean free access to properly trained lactation consultants, I mean educating doctors and child health nurses so that they do not give bad information that compromises a mothers efforts to breastfeed her child. I mean legislation with real teeth that protect mothers from discrimination or harrassment.
I was really lucky, I had some great midwives and a fantastic child health nurse. I even had access to a free hospital physiotherapist who used her 'laser' to treat sore bleeding nipples.I was strong/confident/educated enough to stand up to a paediatrician who told me to wean and then get some real information from the ABA website.
I really wish all women had access to the same sorts of support that I had (and even with the support I had it wasn't always easy).
Did you get enough support to breastfeed?
What sort of support did you have access to?
What other support do you wish you had been able to access? |