“Fed is Best” Erm, no. Supported and Informed is.

A lot of people have been throwing this phrase around, for a long time.

In fact, one highly regarded antenatal education business said it on social last week and it BLEW. UP.

Fed is the absolute minimum.
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Informed and supported are THE MOST IMPORTANT considerations when you’re talking infant feeding.

Allowing a woman to make a choice for herself and her family after receiving all the facts is vital. But this education must begin BEFORE baby arrives.

All the options should be open. Breastfeeding, expressing (still breastmilk, FYI), donor milk, or formula if other options have been explored.
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Knowing what’s possible, how to feed, to identify when things aren’t right and when and where to get in-person help is so important.
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If, after receiving all the information and support, formula feeding is the right option for the family, then let’s not judge.

The Royal College of Midwives supports this view. It says: “If, after being given appropriate information, advice and support on breastfeeding, a woman chooses not to do so, or to give formula as well as breastfeeding, her choice must be respected.”
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But the stats around support are sad. According to a blog by @student_to_midwife, Public Health England released a report revealing that although 74% of women started off breastfeeding, by 6 months, 36% of babies continued to have some breastmilk, and only 1% were exclusively breastfed after that (UNICEF, 2019). The reason the majority did not continue was because they did not receive enough support.
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WHOAH. That has to change.
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Let’s offer information and support, not judgement. Let’s stand together to offer the information families need to make the right choice for them.
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No pressure, no force, just open mindedness and respect.

All our antenatal courses now offer in-person (currently via Zoom) support with either a midwife or antenatal teacher.
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We also have a feeding expert @themilkhub on hand if you need personalised feeding support.