Weekly Update 6/13: Advocates get Chocolate Formula Pulled, Another Mom Harassed & More

By Elita of Blacktating.com for the Best for Babes Foundation ©2010

Babes, give yourselves a pat on the back for a job well done this week. After breastfeeding advocates, parents and The Atlantic spoke out against Enfamil’s chocolate toddler formula, the company has decided to pull the product off the market. Talk about harnessing the power of social media! Now we need to work on getting them to ditch the vanilla version and the Restfull nighttime formula which is marketed as helping babies sleep longer.

Another week, another mom harassed for nursing in public. This time the harassment happened at a Colorado Rockies Game in Coors Field. A mom moved to an empty row behind her seat to breastfeed her baby and was asked to move to the “family bathroom” by an usher. The accommodations in the “family bathroom”? A toilet stall. Unfortunately this seems to be another case where the company has a policy that supports breastfeeding but a rogue employee didn’t get the memo. The Rockies say nursing is allowed in any public area of the ballpark.

A pediatrician in India has won the breastfeeding photography contest organized by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action as part of World Breastfeeding Week (WBW)2010. Dr. Rajinder Gulati’s two winning entries depict communicating breastfeeding policy to healthcare staff and initiation of breastfeeding within the first half hour of life and can be seen on the >WBW site.

Are the DHA/ARA supplements added to infant formula about health or marketing? This is the question posed by food activist Marion Nestle on her Food Politics blog. According to Marion, there is no research backing up the claims of improved health of babies who consume formula enhanced with functional ingredients, yet formula companies have increased the costs of their products based on these claims. Soon formula will have even more functional ingredients, like probiotics, prebiotics and betacarotene, which will likely increase the price of formula again. So what do you think, are the formula companies getting closer to the breast milk recipe or is it all a marketing gimmick?

Do you consider yourself a feminist? If you’re like me and you do, you should read this fantastic blog post by Dr. Alison Stuebe, “What does feminism have to do with breastfeeding?” Dr. Stuebe discusses how we should remove the idea of “choice” from the infant feeding discussion because it is really more of a class-based privilege. It’s thought-provoking stuff that we need to keep in mind as breastfeeding advocates. If breastfeeding can be framed as a choice, women will continue to be discriminated against in both public and private, and isn’t the most basic tenet of feminism that there should be equality for all women?

You may have heard recently that breastfeeding can be bad for your relationship, so one time for all of the partners who wholeheartedly support breastfeeding! I love this post on the Kitchen Witch Mama blog by her hubby, “A Dad’s View on Breastfeeding.” He gives some great advice to new dads on why they should support the lady in their lives while she’s nursing.

There was a ton of activity on our Facebook page this week, but my favorite conversation was about how many kids our Babes have nursed. We asked, “I’ve breastfed ____ babies,” and you were overheard saying…

Nonie Veccia Well, my own two, and I can think of two others I’ve put to my breast when mom wasn’t available. If we count the ones I pumped directly for there are 5 more. Then the ones I pumped for through the milk bank … but they are anonymous and unnumbered ..

Keva Williams This is my first time breastfeeding with baby number 4. So very glad I took the time to breastfeed cause it has been a wonderful experience.

Penny Mahan One. First baby, and 100% EBF for 2 months, 1 week and 1 day so far :)

Apologies to Elita & our readers for the delay in posting.  Summer flu, end-of-school year, and a hot Best for Babes ad coming out in USA Today waylaid the editor.



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