A few generations ago an alternative was not even considered... all mothers breast-fed their babies. There was no really safe alternative. If, for some reason, a mother could not breast-feed her baby, another mother, called a ‘wet nurse’, was found to carry out this service. Since Biblical times, in some parts of the world wet nurses are still used. In Sri Lanka too this service is considered as a noble deed meriting a blessing, and is still available only in villages while a wet nurse is called a ‘Kiri Amma’.

Modern trend in feeding newborns
The more affluent countries, especially the United States of America has seen a rapid change in the way infants are fed. Giving babies a prepared formula in a bottle has become the preferred method. Statistics show how breast feeding fell dramatically along the years, from the start of the mid nineteen hundred’s and today in the west, almost all mothers bottle feed their infants.

Maternal nursing has declined drastically even in the world’s ‘poorer countries’, while substituting it with cow’s milk. Many still reminisce about the time when they took their infants to church/temple and breast fed them when the necessity arose, discreetly. Those in the ‘upper class’ of society still recall, how they nursed baby at evening tea-parties, ‘get-togethers’ and other functions.

Unfortunately, today many persons grow up without ever seeing a mother suckle her child. A new mother may be interested in breast-feeding but, sadly she may be ignorant as to just how to go about it.

Is it a status symbol?
Since bottle-feeding is considered the ‘done thing’ in this fast developing society, many new mothers seemingly view it as a status symbol, and breast-feeding as old-fashioned. Research shows that it’s almost impossible to persuade a black or Mexican-American mother to breast-feed, because they consider it to be beneath them, or a lower-class practice, for it’s what their poor relatives do. Unfortunately, this trend is catching on even in Sri Lanka, especially in the cities.

Many admit to the fact that bottle-feeding often does fit the modern city life-style better. A nursing mother must be available almost around the clock to feed her child. An infant who drinks out of a bottle, on the other hand, can be fed by someone else, as mother cares for a secular job or steps out for an evening with friends.

Did you know that in many hospitals abroad, (male dominated) breast feeding is officially discouraged? Unless the new mother has clearly signified her will to breast feed, she is given a shot of estrogens before she is even out of anaesthesia so as to ‘dry her up’. This preference in the medical profession for bottle-feeding is due largely as a method of convenience when it comes to caring for mother and child, with less follow up consultations, owing to breast feeding.

Is bottle feeding the ‘scientific’ and ‘modern’ breakthrough?
The current trend of bottle-feeding obviously suggests that it is better than, or at least as good as, breast-feeding. But is this true?

The ideal food for a young infant is human milk. It supplies all of the nutrients in amounts and variety necessary for good growth and development because Mother’s milk is specifically designed for infants, as much as cow's milk is suitable in every way for a calf!

Why is this? One reason is that powdered milk, apart from being nutritionally inferior to breast milk, is often over diluted using unclean water and then served in unsterilized feeding bottles. So bottle milk can easily be contaminated with bacteria and viruses which cause diarrheic disease and respiratory infections, the major killers of children in developing countries. In contrast, milk straight from the breast is not easily contaminated, requires no mixing, never gets spoilt, and dilution is not required.

Repeated observation by some of the world’s leading authorities on infant feeding, that mortality in breast-fed infants is significantly lower than in those artificially fed is noteworthy, and therefore, the bottle-feeding fad is now called “criminal.”

Human Milk – The best nutrition for infants –
UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) states: “Breast-milk alone is the best possible food and drink for babies in the first four to six months of life.” Breast milk contains all the necessary proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, fats, enzymes, growth stimulants, antibodies and trace elements that are vital to an infant’s healthy growth during the first few months of life.

Not only is breast milk the best food for newborn babies but it is also the only food they need. The World Health Assembly reaffirmed in May 1992 that “during the first four to six months of life no food or liquid other than breast milk, not even water, is required to meet the normal infant’s nutritional requirements.” Breast milk contains enough water to quench a baby’s thirst even in hot, dry climates. Of course, after the first few months of life, other food and drink need to be gradually added to the baby’s diet.

Bottle-feeding extra water or sugary drinks is not only unnecessary but can cause the baby to stop breast-feeding entirely at an early age.

Benefits to both mother and infant
Breast-feeding doesn’t benefit just the baby; it benefits the mother as well. For one thing, an infant’s suckling the breast stimulates the release of the hormone oxytocin, which not only helps milk release and flow but also causes contraction of the uterus. When the uterus contracts promptly after delivery, prolonged bleeding is less likely. Breast-feeding also delays the return of ovulation and menstruation. This tends to delay the next pregnancy. Longer intervals between pregnancies mean healthier mothers and babies.

Another big plus for women is that breast-feeding lowers the risk of ovarian and breast cancer.

Not to be overlooked is the benefit of mother-child bonding.

God has granted all mothers the physical ability to provide enough milk for their infants. Breast-feeding should begin as soon as possible after birth, within the first hour after the delivery of the baby, which is only natural. The first breast milk, a thick yellowish substance called colostrum, is good for babies and helps protect them from infections. Thereafter, babies should be fed on demand, including at night, and not according to a fixed schedule.

Reverse trend -
Advertising gimmicks made many people think that breast milk was inferior to the infant formulas of modern technology. Today, that trend is being reversed as more and more mothers come to realize that “breast is best.”

Mothers need the support of hospitals if they are to give their babies the best possible start; but if they are to continue breastfeeding, they will also need the support of family members, employers, trade unions, communities—and of men.