Thank you, Linda, for standing up for the rights of babies to their
mothers' presence. As usual, you have put your finger on the heart of
the matter.

>All babies need their mothers, regardless of how they are fed. All
babies need lots of loving touch, physical contact, carrying,
comforting, etc.
Dare I suggest that bottle-fed babies (including those getting
breastmilk in the bottle) need their mothers' physical presence and
touching even MORE than breastfed children? Separating mothers and
babies is bad for babies.<

Of course I would rather see a mother put her own milk rather than
formula in a bottle, and of course I want her to know the safest way
to feed it to her baby, but that ignores the elephant in the living
room. In the USA (and some other places too) it is now almost the norm
for mothers to return to work just a few weeks after giving birth.

Not only is it bad for babies, but it is also bad for mothers.
Nor is it the best solution for communities as a whole. As a wise
woman once said, "If babies were meant to be raised in  groups then
they would be born in litters!"

This is not a criticism of mothers who are forced to be separated from
their babies by their economic situation, but a condemnation of the
societal systems and values which force them into having to make such
decisions.

If we do not stand up for the rights of babies, who will?

norma

Norma Ritter, IBCLC, RLC, LLLL
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