Exclusive breastfeeding for six months may be ‘unhelpful advice’

The breastfeeding debate will rage on with a new study suggesting exclusive breastfeeding for six months may be ‘unhelpful advice’.

According to research published online in BMJ Open, new mothers should be aiming for more ‘realistic’ and ‘achievable goals’.

The current advice from the World Health Organization says that exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months is of great health benefit to both mother and baby.

But the incredible pressure put on new mums to exclusively breastfeed causes many to buckle.

Some taking part in the study said they felt pressured to breastfeed and encountered an all or nothing approach.

Researchers conducted 220 face to face interviews with 36 women, 26 partners, eight mothers, one sister and two healthcare professionals to find out views on infant feeding from the last month of pregnancy until six months after birth.

The impact feeding had on the wider family was also examined.

One woman taking part in the study said: “It all seems to be ‘don’t ever do anything that would interfere with breastfeeding,’ it’s all got to be very purist, which is fine, but it just doesn’t fit in with the rest of your life….I think people just give up because it’s too difficult.”

Editor in Chief of BMJ Open, Dr Trish Groves, says “Any research or other article that seems to be “anti-breast feeding” is, rightly, highly controversial. This study is not, however, against breast feeding: far from it.

“We hope that parents, and anyone supporting mothers with breast feeding, will read the full paper. It provides first person accounts of how families actually feed their babies and how they feel about it, and the researchers have discussed their findings sensitively and in great depth.”