Pinter and Martin's Why it Matters series offer succinct, balanced and evidence-based introductions to the topics that affect family life in the 21st century. The Politics of Breastfeeding, first published in 1988, described how big business and vested interests influence the intimate relationship between mothers and their babies to the detriment of all, rich or poor, in the West or in the developing world. In Why the Politics of Breastfeeding Matter, the central ideas of The Politics of Breastfeeding are distilled into a concise form, making it the perfect introduction to understanding the complex forces that govern what many think of as a simple choice to breastfeed or not.

Now fully updated, this text explores the political, economic, and social implications of bottle feeding versus breastfeeding in today's society.

"Breastfeeding has become a moral imperative in 21st century America. Once upon a time, this moral imperative made sense. Breastfeeding was believed to bring multiple health benefits, including increased resistance to many chronic and even fatal diseases, protection against Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), improved intelligence, and countless immunities. The irony now, however, is that breastfeeding continues to gain moral force just as scientists are showing that its benefits have been greatly exaggerated. In 2012, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention declared the failure to breastfeed "a public health issue, " thus placing bottle-feeding on par with smoking, obesity, and unsafe sex. Recently, politicians too have launched highly visible breastfeeding initiatives, such as former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's well-publicized Latch On campaign. And, meanwhile, women who don't breastfeed their babies have found themselves with a lot of explaining to do. Physicians, public health officials, and other mothers are pressuring them to breastfeed even though the best science shows that the advantages of doing so are minimal at best. What is going on? In Lactivism, Courtney Jung offers the most deeply researched and far-reaching critique of the breastfeeding imperative to date. Drawing on a wide range of evidence, from rigorously peer-reviewed scientific research to interviews with physicians, politicians, business interests, activists, social workers, and mothers from across the social and political spectrum, Jung presents an eye-opening account of how a practice that began as an alternative to Big Business has become Big Business itself"--

An authoritative, friendly and accessible look at the debate on infant feeding, offering parents and health professionals evidence-based information on why breastfeeding matters.

Milk matters: more than you know Maureen Minchin's latest book is a call to all who are interested in the long term health of humanity to take a better educated and research driven view of the effects of early diet. It is an impressive trilogy: - Book 1 advances the milk hypothesis, that immune disorder can be communicated vertically, compounding intergenerationally, through early infant nutrition and pregnancy and birth experiences; Book 2 describes the development of replacements for breastmilk, outlining their past, present and future deficiencies and excesses, and the known or likely consequences; Book 3 links the science and history to everyday infant problems, and gives practical advice about preventing or resolving diet-related distress in young children. With her usual intelligent passion, Maureen provides compelling evidence for the necessity of feeding species-specific milk. What will it take for clinicians who are charged with the health of our most vulnerable citizens - our babies - to finally improve their management of infant nutrition? This book should be an essential text for all health professionals and required reading for all medical and midwifery students. Heather Harris, MMid, IBCLC. Director - Boroondara Breastfeeding Centre Maureen Minchin's Breastfeeding Matters (1985) was a milestone in the history of breastfeeding. We applaud this amazing new trilogy, Milk Matters: infant feeding and immune disorder. It provides a global overview both of the manifold benefits of breastfeeding, and the futile attempts of vested interests to create and promote safe alternatives. Maureen argues that alternative feedings pose unrecognised risks and have trans-generational effects, including the emergence of immune disorders. Factually, breastmilk is ALIVE, with millions of stem cells, while infant formulas are industrially-processed mixtures. Breastmilk provides long-term benefits for the baby's microbiome, immune defences, and brain development. Yet a 2008 survey showed that only 15.8% of urban Chinese mothers exclusively breastfed their one child. (The Chinese State Council hopes to increase this to 50% or more by 2020.) We are not called Mammals for nothing. Our newborn young evolved to be totally dependent on the subtle secretions of its mother's mammary gland. Maureen Minchin's new books could not have appeared at a more important time, and they have much to teach parents, professors and paediatricians the world over. Please read on... Professor Marilyn B. Renfree AO DSc FAA FAIBiol Professor Roger V. Short AM ScD FAA FRS

George Kent's book is an articulate and incisive analysis of the ways in which some governments actively promote the use of infant formula. They do this despite the predictable harm it does to children's health. The book is a timely and powerful reminder to governments in the rich and poor world of their obligations under international law to protect children's health and the right to food through framework legislation and the regulation of non-State actors including corporations. Effective remedies are urgently required.

Monitoring mothers: a recent history of following the doctor's orders -- The science: does breastfeeding make smarter, happier, and healthier babies? -- Minding your own (risky) business: health and personal responsibility -- From the womb to the breast: total motherhood and risk-free children -- Scaring mothers: the government campaign for breastfeeding -- Conclusion: whither breastfeeding?

In recent years, breastfeeding has been prominently in the public eye in relation to debates on issues ranging from parental leave policies, work−family balance, public decency, the safety of our food supply, and public health concerns such as health care costs and the obesity “epidemic.” Breastfeeding has officially been considered “the one best way” for feeding infants for the past 150 years of Canadian history. This book examines the history and evolution of breastfeeding policies and practices in Canada from the end of the nineteenth century to the turn of the twenty-first. The authors’ historical approach allows current debates to be situated within a broader social, political, cultural, and economic context. Breastfeeding shifted from a private matter to a public concern at the end of the nineteenth century. Over the course of the next century, the “best” way to feed infants was often scientifically or politically determined, and guidelines for mothers shifted from one generation to the next. Drawing upon government reports, academic journals, archival sources, and interviews with policy-makers and breastfeeding advocates, the authors trace trends, patterns, ideologies, and policies of breastfeeding in Canada.

This book centers on the role of media in shaping public perceptions of breastfeeding. Drawing from magazines, doctors’ office materials, parenting books, television, websites, and other media outlets, Katherine A. Foss explores how historical and contemporary media often undermine breastfeeding efforts with formula marketing and narrow portrayals of nursing women and their experiences. Foss argues that the media’s messages play an integral role in setting the standard of public knowledge and attitudes toward breastfeeding, as she traces shifting public perceptions of breastfeeding and their corresponding media constructions from the development of commercial formula through contemporary times. This analysis demonstrates how attributions of blame have negatively impacted public health approaches to breastfeeding, thus confronting the misperception that breastfeeding, and the failure to breastfeed, rests solely on the responsibility of an individual mother.

This work shows that breastfeeding is much more than a matter of personal inclination. Women all over the world are still being tricked into feeding their babies artificially, and this affects everyone - people's health, the environment and the global economy.