This topic came up recently on the message board I scour daily for juicy tidbits about the babies born the same month as mine. The topic being that studies show breastfed babies grow up to have greater IQ's and be healthier than formula-fed babies.
There have been several studies that show this, so it's really not new information. But each new study stirs the pot of the breast-versus-formula debate that seems more pronounced in the US than anywhere else.
Just a few of the generalized arguments include: breastfed babies are healthy and smart. Formula-fed babies experience more illness. Women who formula feed are selfish and didn't try hard enough. Women who breastfeed are strange and flaunt their ability to do it in public.
Some of the arguments are proven by fact - studies show breastfed babies are, on average, healthier than formula-fed. They have higher IQ's. The rest is more public opinion and swayed by the general zeitgeist at the time (don't you love that word? Zeitgeist?) In the '70s, when I was born, breastfeeding was looked down upon and most pediatricians recommended formula.
I wonder if it had to do with the feminist movement - you know, taking back your body and reclaiming it for womankind and all that. The mood in this country shifted, and now it's highly encouraged to breastfeed. In fact, it's pounded into your brain pretty much from the moment you conceive. You MUST breastfeed.
And I completely understand the reasons behind it. I don't dispute the benefits, for sure. But what gets to me, as one of those overly sensitive formula-feeding moms, is the implication that I may not be doing what's best for my child, in a health and developmental sense.
I think that's why the debate - if there really is a debate - continues on. No one likes to think they are harming their child's development. We all want to have super-intelligent, healthy babies (probably to make up for our own shortcomings).
But at what cost? Do we continue to breastfeed if a child isn't thriving on it? The example used is that in nature or third-world countries, there is no other option. Sure, these babies then die. That's the problem. No one would agree to that.
What if the mom is depressed and can't handle the stress and anxiety that comes with breastfeeding (it sure isn't a piece of cake). Should she continue to force it and be miserable to the point of resenting her own child? Especially during the time when everyone tells you to enjoy it because it goes by so quickly?
I don't think there are any easy answers to these questions, and as long as there's formula around, we will continue to debate the merits of "the easy way out" versus "the best option." I guess the ultimate question is, does anyone really care once your kid starts eating real food and cow's milk?
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I can attest that this cannot possibly be true for all. While on AVERAGE, the subjects that they tested may have had higher IQ's, I'd like for them to prove that it was because of the breastfeeding. I know a woman who breastfed her children until they were in kindergarten (oh yes, you read right, kindergarten) and it did not make her children's IQ's any higher. She had four or five of them and let me tell you, one is as dumb as a doorknob, the other is a giant dork (although he's pretty smart), the third smoked a lot of weed in high school (I know because I was there) and I'm not sure she even ended up graduating. The other two I'm not sure about because they are way out of my age range. I still think it has more to do with genetics and nurturing/environment than whether you got milk from the tap as a baby. Also, nowadays, don't they have formula that is enriched with all of those things that breastmilk has?
I'm not for or against either--whatever makes you happy/sane.
--Kym
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