For some mothers, bottle feeding their babies is something they have always wanted to do as it gives them flexibility and helps them maintain a good level of independence. Artificial infant feeding has been culturally marked as more advanced and is socially more accepted than natural infant feeding.

Fortunately, breast feeding is on the rise as more and more new mothers acknowledge the endless benefits for themselves and, more importantly, for their offspring. Yet, in order for the use of breast milk to become normal again rather than the “alternative”, we still have to overcome cultural taboos.

The History of Bottle Feeding

Archaeological findings have shown that breast feeding substitutes were used thousands of years ago. Historically, substitute milk was given to infants whose mothers died or were too sick to feed their babies, usually with limited possibility of wet nursing at hand. Cow’s milk or goat’s milk were commonly used to replace mother’s milk. In addition, babies were sometimes given supplementary solid food, such as a paste made of bread or flour mixed with milk or water. Needless to say that infant mortality rate was extremely high – from 50 to 99% . History and cross-cultural studies have revealed that the increase in bottle feeding resulted in an increase in infant deaths, especially where standards of hygiene were not met. It is a fact, that artificial infant feeding can hold more risks for baby.

During the industrial revolution artificial feeding became popular in Britain as women had to leave their children behind to work in the factories. The first scientific breast milk substitute was invented in 1867 by a German chemist. It was a combination of cow’s milk, flour, potassium bicarbonate and malt. However, the popularity of bottle feeding increased when condensed milk was developed in the late 19th century. The social consensus about how best to feed baby in a modern world which was filled with new scientific achievements, changed towards artificial infant feeding. Bottle feeding was sold as nutritious, safe and easy to prepare with no need for refrigeration. More importantly, pasteurization of milk and sterilization of feeding equipment made artificial infant feeding a safer alternative; thus, making bottle feeding more popular. In addition, medical representatives and scientists celebrated this new supposedly convenient way of feeding baby. As a result, breast feeding became comparatively unpopular as figures show that only 20 to 30% of babies were actually breastfed during WWII in the USA. However, the 1980s proved difficult for companies such as Nestlé when their involvement with medical establishments in order to sell formula feeding in the third world was revealed.

Bottle feeding is still the number one choice for many new mothers. This can have different personal or even medical reasons, although modern living standards are mainly to blame for the change in maternal attitude over the past century.

Why is Breast Feeding a Challenge?

Organisations such as the La Lèche League or the Breastfeeding Network help to promote breastfeeding with all its benefits which, as a result, is becoming increasingly popular.
Fortunately, more and more women decide to at least try to feed their newborn themselves. National statistics show that there is a steady increase in initial infant breastfeeding (66% in 1995 to 69% in 2000). However, statistics also reveal that many new mothers give up breastfeeding after only a few weeks: after only one week, 55% of women breastfeed, after six weeks 43% and after 4 months 28% still feed their babies. In our modern culture, natural feeding is a challenge because bottle feeding still tends to be regarded as “easier”. Generations of parents who bottle fed their babies pass on what they have been sold decades ago. In addition, new breastfeeding problems arise that find appropriate discussion grounds in our civilisation, such as the “insufficient milk” syndrome. Yet, only about 5% of mothers show real physical difficulty to breastfeed, thus confirming that the idea of not making enough milk is a modern invention. Women may actually feel that they do not have enough milk to feed their baby but the reasons are not physical. It is more likely that the early difficulties mother and baby experience together result from stressful birthing environment, such as the hospital, where unknown staff and routine as well as doubtable reputation feed initial anxiety and thus, can add to the overall picture of the insufficient milk syndrome. Breast feeding can be highly influenced by psychosomatic elements, such as stress, anxiety, worries, depression and much more. Feeding is a natural self-regulating and extremely efficient process which is susceptible to how mothers feel, as much as anything. If a new mother does not receive the support she needs, the let-down reflex (milk flows from the ducts towards the nipple) is more difficult to be stimulated.

Besides the modern argument of “lack of sufficient milk”, many more interruptions help reduce the chance of breastfeeding, such as aesthetically motivated breast operations or if a separation of mother and baby after birth is unnecessarily prolonged. In addition, our natural desire for information societies has caused multiple parenting theories to shoot out of the grounds. Instead of helping reduce new parent’s fears they tend to increase and even confuse them. One of the often cited parent strategies is “feeding on schedule”. However, feeding in intervals causes unnecessary stress because the composition of the milk changes in a way that causes baby to feel hungry all the time. As a result, the mother will think that she does not produce enough milk whereas the truth is that she has waited too long.

Modern ways of living can make it extremely difficult for new mothers to embrace breast feeding. Their cultural background, lack of support within their own family or friends and misleading parenting information facilitate the return to bottle feeding. Moreover, cultural expectations of women who often have to return to work early in order to earn a living or pursue a career do not improve early parenting conditions.

While breast feeding is part of our natural survival strategy, bottle feeding is part of our modern culture. It gives new mothers the chance to cope easier with expectations and to help handle natural infant needs in an over-regulated world. We are aware of the fact that human milk is best for baby. Thus, it is the mother’s individual choice of how to feed her infant and to build a strong bond.
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“Malnutrition caused by poor child feeding practices claims over 10 times as many lives as actual famine,” says researcher William Chandler. “Coupled with diarrheal dehydration, malnutrition is the leading killer in the world.” Often, the ‘poor feeding practices’ begin in infancy.

Breast milk is the ideal food for most infants because it contains all the needed nutrients. It is easily and rapidly digested. It is always fresh and at the right temperature. It contains antibodies that protect and help the baby to build up resistance to infections. Breast-feeding also provides an infant with loving attention, essential to emotional development.

As women take on secular jobs, however, breast-feeding declines in many developing countries. Consequently, many African babies are fed powdered formulas. Such formulas are nutritious when correctly prepared under sanitary conditions. “In poor areas of the world, however,” reported Time magazine, “that is sometimes impossible. Mothers may unknowingly mix powdered formula with contaminated water or, to save money, dilute it too much.” The results can be deadly.

Queen, a Nigerian mother of seven, recalls that hospital nurses introduced her babies to bottle-feeding right from the start. Queen continued the procedure at home. However, her six children all suffered from serious and repeated diarrhea—one almost died. Her husband says: “We realized that our sixth child was being infected through the feeding bottle, so we stopped using it, and she recovered. Now Queen is breast-feeding our seventh child during its first few months.”

The message? Put your baby to the breast as soon as possible! Eat a balanced diet yourself so that you can produce healthy milk. A side benefit of breast-feeding is that it tends to delay the onset of menstruation after the birth of a baby. It is thus called nature’s contraceptive.

Feed Them Right!

Sometimes, though, African children are fed breast milk exclusively well into their 18th month of life. “When weaned,” says William Chandler, “many children are given adult foods they cannot chew or digest, or that are unnourished.”

UNICEF’s office in Côte d’Ivoire produced a poster that advises mothers: “After five months, more than the breast.” Mother’s milk should be supplemented by fruit, cereals, and vegetables that have been cooked and strained and that are thus soft enough to be chewed and swallowed by an infant. A Nigerian mother named Ijeoma breast-fed each of her four children during their first four months. She continued breast-feeding for up to 12 months, gradually replacing it by spoon- or bottle-fed meals of fruit juices, pap, and other preparations. She observed strict hygiene in preparing meals. The result? Her children have grown up healthy and have had few infections.

As the child grows, a balanced diet will help him stay healthy. A meal of only carbohydrates, such as yams, cassava, or polished rice, will not provide sufficient nutrition. His body also needs proteins, vitamins, and minerals, which are found in meat, eggs, milk, beans, corn, and a variety of vegetables and fruits.

Important too is how food is handled and stored. It may seem tempting to use spoilable food that has been left standing unrefrigerated for a couple of days, but do not use it! “Contaminated food is frequently unsafe and may lead to repeated attacks of diarrhea and other infectious diseases.” Therefore, (1) wash your hands before touching or preparing foods. (2) Eat food immediately after it is cooked—don’t let it stand for long at room temperature. (3) Keep your kitchen, your cooking utensils, your clothes, and yourself clean and tidy at all times.—World Health magazine.

Germs and parasites abound in polluted water. So filter or boil water before using it. Rinse eating utensils with boiling water, and wash your hands before handling food.

Indeed, perhaps the simplest health safeguard is to maintain a high standard of cleanliness. In developing lands, though, this can be a real challenge.

A survey of developing lands revealed that in Latin America, the majority of mothers want no more children. “Only in Africa did a decided minority of the women have this view.”—State of the World 1985, Worldwatch Institute.
About the Author:

Weaning your child from breastfeeding is not the easiest thing
to do. As I understand it, weaning a baby from breastfeeding is
like quitting smoking or giving up chocolate. It’s best not to
quit cold turkey. It’s not easy for you or the baby, but it has
to be done. You can wean baby to a bottle or a cup. I
recommend weaning baby to a sippy cup. Some babies will make it
easier on you the mom, and start to lose interest in
breastfeeding usually around nine months or so, and some babies
need their nightly night cap, making it close to impossible for
you to wean your baby. Well for all you moms out there, whose
baby needs their nightly night cap, here are some tips to help
make it easier for you to wean your baby from breastfeeding.

-Long before you even try to start weaning your baby from
breastfeeding you should get baby used to drinking from an
alternative source, a cup or a bottle; preferably a cup as
mentioned earlier. Still continue to breastfeed but give baby
either water, juice or breast milk from a cup. Try this at
mealtimes when feeding baby solids or when giving baby a snack.

-For the stubborn baby who refuses to take a cup or bottle, it
can be a good idea to skip a breastfeeding session once daily
usually after breakfast or lunch, and only offer him/her what’s
in the cup. This may be hard for three or four days, but after
that baby will get the idea. Once baby is used to drinking out
of a cup once daily, you can skip another breastfeeding session
and drink what’s in the cup. Do this until you are only nursing
once at night before bedtime.

-Wait at least a week in-between skipping a breastfeeding
session, so both your baby and your breasts get used to the
changes.

-If baby is sick or there is another event such as a move or a
change in daycare postpone weaning baby for a couple weeks to
ensure baby is okay and ready to wean.

-The last feedings to go are usually the morning and the night
time feedings, I recommend cutting out the morning feeding
first. Your baby will be hungry and will eat a good nutritious
breakfast.

-When it is finally time to wean baby from the night time
feedings, it is easier to have your breasts out of sight.
Having your spouse put baby down for bed can make this
transition easier. Tell your baby goodnight and hand baby off
to dad. It takes a good week of dad putting baby to sleep for
baby to get the hang of it. Before you put baby to bed make
sure baby is full. Give baby a nighttime snack and a full cup
of milk. When the week is complete go back to your regular
bedtime routine only replacing breastfeeding with milk.

This isn’t the easiest thing to do and it takes quite a bit of
time, but with some patience it will happen for you and your
baby. Good Luck!!
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