A mother I was in email contact with had a very large family (double 
figures), all formula fed from birth.  She would have tried 
breastfeeding - and I exchanged several information sharing emails 
with her -  but her husband in the end said no, because according to 
him, it was 'contraception by the back door'....the very words used.

: (((((

They belonged to a religious sect which was very strict about many 
aspects of love and life. I suspect (because she told me about others 
in their sect who did breastfeed) there was nothing specific in their 
'rules' about not breastfeeding, but this is how the father 
interpreted 'no contraception' and it certainly was in the 'rules' 
that the wife obeyed the husband.

Nevertheless, I have come across many women who are unable to 
breastfeed because their male partners either do not allow it, or 
undermine it in ways that prevent its success....and religion didn't 
enter into it.

In all these scenarios, historical and contemporary, my view is we 
are talking about aspects of patriarchy, pure and simple.

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc, tutor, UK

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