Sharon Craig shared an e-article on how and why the current and past
breastfeeding messages are proving ineffectual. (Yes, those were important
points from Liz Brooks, too, about copyright and intellectual property, and
the imperative of seeking permission.)
The article covers the issues very well. Essentially, the message is to look
at women's lives and what is really impacting on them negatively, as regards
breastfeeding. To listen. The factors are multiple and will not be exactly
the same in every area, as you will note. Mothers will be in situations or
localities where some factors are stronger or weaker.
As I've said many times, we need to come to the mother where she is at, to
listen and help her move forward from that, rather than from an idealised
vision of where we think she is. One of the points that came out in my PhD
thesis (on 20th-century influences on Australian mother's infant feeding
decisions) was that the companies have long listened to mothers' concerns,
and used them in their marketing. At the same time, public health
authorities and the nurses in charge of infant feeding were promoting
breastfeeding by telling them what the professionals thought mothers ought
to know and do, especially during some periods. (Putting a 94,000-word study
into a few words is oversimplifying it, but that is the essence that stays
with me, several years later.)
The points raised in the article are a good starting point for discussion in
the workplace, with colleagues, and more broadly.

Virginia
Dr Virginia Thorley, OAM, PhD, IBCLC, FILCA 
Cultural Historian of the History of Medicine
Private Practice Lactation Consultant
Brisbane, Qld, Australia 
E: [log in to unmask]

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