Quote From: lettiecsI find this to be really sad. While you have breastfed your children was a good choice for you and your babies, you don't need to be so harsh towards bottles. Not all mom's can breastfeed for so many reasons. If you have a daughter, what if she grows up and is unable to breastfeed? It is good to know that their are options.
Breastfeeding and bottle feeding alike each offer different advantages. Each mommy has that choice to make. Neither choice is wrong.
My daughters always pretended to breastfeed as that is what they saw from our relatives. I never breastfed,but certainly didn't see anything wrong with my daughters knowing that breastfeeding is indeed a great option.
Education is the key.
Saying that breastfeeding is a "choice" is like saying that it is a choice to have my body produce insulin. My body simply produces insulin, I would have to choose to not use it and force my body to stop producing it. Of course insulin can be replaced in those that have diabetes, but if you were physically capable of making it you would not force your body to stop making it just to then replace it with a manufactured version. It is the same with breastfeeding, the vast majority of those that bottle feed are physically capable of producing milk.
Again it would be like saying using your own insulin and testing your blood sugar then injecting yourself with insulin both have different advantages. 1.5 million babies die each year because they are not breastfed. Don't pretend they are at all equal. BTW, breastfeeding protects against diabetes.
I find it hard to believe that your non breastfed daughters breastfeed their dolls, to be honest with you. My daughters do also, but they are also influenced by our culture. You would be hard pressed to find a baby doll that does not come with a bottle, they are taught in school to bottlefeed and I didn't see Dora the Explorer's mom breastfeeding those new twins. If even my girls succomb to it in a family where all their relatives BF ( their aunt and I are currently BFing), we don't allow bottles in the house, we boycott Nestle, we own shelves of BFing books including kids books...
Education is key... but I will not lie to my daughters or sons and tell them bottlefeeding is a great option.
