Dear Lactnetters

I agree with Anne Merewood, at least for breastfeeding in France. We are
here at the rear ! Strictly and absolutely NOTHING is done for the promotion
of breastfeeding at a national level. LLL, as an mother's association, is
often seen as a sect of fanatics, who want to force women to breastfeed (the
name given to us in a journal : breastfeeding stalinist). Recently, I went
in an information day on breastfeeding for the health professionals in my
region. There was booing when a speaker (doctor, working in another
association for promotion of the BFHI) explained the advantages of
breastfeeding for the infant, the mother and the society. As soon as someone
wants to give even a little information, there is someone who said  "what a
shame to try to make this poor mother guiltry, you want force her to
breastfeed..." and so on. A nurse working in a pediatric consultation wants
to put a poster on breastfeeding near the poster on bottle feeding ? Answer
of the boss of the consultation : no way, it will make guiltry the mothers
who don't want to breastfeed. Always the same thing everywhere ! Here, it is
good manners to breastfeed a few weeks, a few months, but if a women persist
when she has difficulties, or if she breastfeed more longer, she is often
seen as a little crazy (when it is not as completely and dangerously insane
!)

We have still a lot of work to do here. Not tomorrow I can have holidays !
:-)

Françoise Railhet
LLL France Medical Associates Program