Here we are at the end of 2003 trying to get ads on TV which show the known
risks of not breastfeeding.  Yet, having read the excellent book "Don't Kill
Your Baby:  Public Health and the Decline of Breastfeeding in the 19th and
20th Centuries" by Jacqueline H. Wolf, PhD, I am aware that "Don't Kill Your
Baby" was actually a slogan used to promote breastfeeding versus the use of
cow's milk formulas in the early 20th century in the US.  Now, what would
happen if we tried using THAT message today?  I highly recommend Dr. Wolf's
book to anyone interested in a well-documented study of how the use of
breastmilk substitutes gained popularity in the US.  What I found
fascinating about her book was that the formula companies' ads in the early
20th century were remarkably similar to the ones we see today, i.e., "breast
is best, but..."

One poster shown in Dr. Wolf's book, the target audience for which was new
mothers, was entitled, "The Appeal of the Babies" which includes the phrase,
"Take not away from us that food which God in His wisdom provides.  Except
of extreme necessity force not upon us an unnatural food."

The title of the book  comes from a placard created and distributed by the
Civic Federation of Chicago which equated unsafe feeding practices with
infant death.  Breastfeeding was promoted as the safest option for babies.
One illustration which was used by health agencies in their campaigns to
promote breastfeeding was entitled, "Mother's Milk for Mother's Babe, Cow's
Milk for Calves (God's Plan)."

This is the early edition of the bumper sticker I now have on my van, "Human
Milk for Human Babies."

Who says this new ad campaign is radical??

Sara Dodder Furr
LLL Leader
Lincoln, Nebraska

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