The following is the speech I made in support of Deputy Burford’s amendment in relation to helping improve breastfeeding rates in Guernsey.
I’m pleased to support Deputy Burford’s amendment and agree with her that, rather than follow targets for breastfeeding, the aim must be to make an informed, supported choice
And the key word for me is choice.
The trouble is women are bombarded with advice from so-called experts, on what they should and shouldn’t do from the moment they get pregnant. Don’t drink this, don’t eat that, avoid this, make sure you take that which goes beyond general health advice such as not smoking, keeping fit and eating a balanced diet.
And much of the advice is contradictory, with media headlines such as these that appeared within months of each other in The Times earlier this year.
‘Warning, tiny amount of alcohol during pregnancy can harm child’s IQ’
‘Drinking alcohol occasionally when pregnant does no harm’
Well, let me tell you, when I was 9 months pregnant, felt like a beached whale and had something doing somersaults inside of me, the very occasional glass of wine was found to have clear medicinal benefits for this mother.
And then, when you do give birth and amazingly the baby is ok despite the fact you didn’t take all the advice but used your natural instincts, the guilt trip and contradictory advice continues.
A classic example is about babies sleeping on their backs. We are told ’put your baby on its back to sleep to avoid cot death, BUT at the same time we are advised ‘don’t let them lie on their backs too long otherwise they will be developmentally delayed and will get a flat skull.’
And then we come to breastfeeding. No one would deny that breast is best. However, the WHO recommendation of exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months should also be considered alongside its other recommendation that babies should be fed on demand.
Just how practicable is that for women who have to, or choose to, go back to work before then. As someone who has been through it myself I’d say it isn’t easy. Obviously you can’t be there to feed your baby when it demands it and let’s just say expressing milk is not for everyone.
I would say that we should be encouraging women to breastfeed for as long as they can, but not to set an artificial date that, for many hard working women is impossible to achieve, especially if they have more than one young child, and just adds to all the other advice that can serve to make them ignore their natural instincts as mothers.
As the journalist Charlotte Philby wrote in the Independent recently, mother’s guilt is the heaviest of burdens, and with the constant juggling modern motherhood demands there is plenty to feel bad about without being confronted with a blazing reminder of your imperfections every time you reach for the powdered milk.