I think that as a society, we easily forget that breastfeeding is the biological norm for human babies. For any kind of babies, honestly. Puppies are meant to drink dog milk, kittens are meant to drink cat milk, calves are meant to drink cow milk, and infants are meant to drink human milk.
I hear people talk every day about the “benefits” of breastfeeding, but really that isn’t the case! There are no “benefits” of breastfeeding, because that is the way that God and Nature intended for babies to be fed. The fact is, that there are risks and dangers associated with formula. For instance, we say that breastfed babies are less likely to have otitis media (ear infections). But the truth, because breastfeeding is the natural way to feed babies, is that formula-fed babies are MORE likely to have ear infections than babies who are fed what they are meant to be fed. Likewise, we say that breastfed babies have lower rates of SIDS. No, the truth is that babies who are fed formula are MORE likely to die from SIDS.
I think that all of this talk of the “benefits” of breastfeeding may have been stirred up by the formula companies. Wouldn’t that make sense? They are interested in one thing, and that is selling their product. They will say what they need to say in order to sell their product. If it were common knowledge that feeding formula puts babies at higher risk for so many problems, including SIDS, there would be fewer people buying formula. So they have to convince everyone that formula is just fine, comparable to breastmilk, and that if you choose to feed breastmilk instead of formula, you are only adding EXTRA benefits. Which is not true at all, but they can’t advertise the fact that they are putting millions of babies in danger by creating and selling an inferior product.
I am not here telling anyone what they should or should not feed their babies. It’s your choice as a mother what you will put into your baby’s body. But I think that people who are buying a product, any kind of product, should be fully informed. And the formula companies make their living on the fact that their customer base, as a whole, is NOT fully informed. People are buying this baby formula thinking it is just as good as breastmilk, and it is NOT. And instead of putting money into figuring out how to make a better, healthier product, these companies are pouring billions and billions of dollars a year into advertising. It’s an unethical business practice to say the least, and babies are dying every day because of it.
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