New Breastfeeding Campaign: Gone Too Far?

Well, they have now taken the breastfeeding campaigns to a new level informing mothers that not breastfeeding their children is putting their child at risk. The 2 year breast-feeding campaign was launched this spring with a commercial comparing a woman who doesn't breastfeed to a woman who is being flung from a mechanical bull in a bar while clenching her pregnant belly. The advertisement says, "You wouldn't take risks before your baby's born. Why start after?"

In addition, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has proposed requirements for warning labels to be placed on cans of infant formula, much like the Surgeon General’s warning on cigarette packages. And just what should these warnings state? They would say that the Department of Health and Human services has determined that "breast-feeding is the ideal method of feeding and nurturing infants" or that "breast milk is more beneficial to infants than infant formula."

While I am an advocate of breastfeeding and do believe in the wonderful benefits of it, I can’t help but wonder how this is going to affect those women who can not breastfeed. Telling them that they are puttng their child at risk by not breastfeeding is only going to add to the guilt they already face. Now, I can see launching a campaign to try and get women who simply choose not to breastfeed to give it a try. But, why go to such extreme measures that can hurt other mothers in the long run? I can see the domestic arguments stemming from this springs campaign commercial. Mothers who are already feeling inadequate are going to have the blame thrown at them for everything that could ever be wrong with their child because they either couldn’t breastfeed or choose not to because of the hectic lifestyle they live. I mean lets face it, not every WORKING MOM can take time out of their busy office routine to hide in the bathroom and pump.

Give Moms a break people! We have enough on our plate to have guilt trips thrown our way.