Nothing wrong with a little outrage.  People learn better and remember more
when they are emotionally involved in the information (either positively or
negatively).  People get "seduced" by the gentle language of "the benefits
of breastfeeding" because they are used to accepting formula as the standard
-- it's fine, it's OK, it's good enough.  But it isn't.  When you jolt them
into thinking of breastfeeding as the standard and formula-feeding as being
risky, you have their attention.

And I am positive that every "outraged" nurse goes and tells a bunch of her
friends about the ridiculous thing she heard you say, while the ones who are
not outraged put their handouts in a file (perhaps even the circular file)
and promptly forget about them.  I've heard tales of outraged nurses leaving
my presentations and going back to their units to tell their co-workers
about the ridiculous garbage I was spouting -- about kids nursing til 6 or 7
years, about the normalcy of co-sleeping, etc. -- only to have their
co-workers agree with me and come out of the closet about their own toddler
(and beyond) nursing and co-sleeping practices.

Sometimes you need to shake people up -- they need to hear and understand
the current research, even if it makes them uncomfortable.  It doesn't
matter if everyone "likes" you or gives you all wonderful evaluations --
what matters is the health of mothers and babies.

Kathy Dettwyler

P.S.  You can always recognize the ones who are outraged.  They sit in the
back of the room, usually leaning back in their chairs with their arms
crossed defensivly/aggressively in front of their chests.  And if they are
there with a friend, they spend a lot of time shaking their heads and
staring daggers at the speakers and whispering loudly back and forth in
shocked voices.  Yep.  I considered them unintentional ambassadors for
spreading the word. . . .

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