7 Reasons a Mother's Choice Whether to Breast Feed or Bottle Feed Their Baby Should Be Respected Period

Everyone these days think that they have the right to tell a new Mom what she needs to do, especially with regards to breast-feeding. Here are 7 reasons that both decisions need to be respected.

1. There is already enough pressure on a new Mom.

There is so much pressure on new Moms these days; there is no reason to add this stress. Too many times women are made to feel guilty if they decide not to breast-feed. Whether a child is breast-fed or not does not alone determine their health, their future success, or anything else.

2. It is the Mom's body.

Ultimately, it is the Mom's body. She is the one who will have to go through the entire process in order to be successful. Why should it be anyone else's decision? Who, other than the Father of the child, even has a right to question that decision. It is appalling that people in our society insinuate that others are bad parents simply due to the fact that certain people make different decisions when it comes to parenting.

3. Breast-feeding women should be able to do so in public without feeling ashamed.

Recently, there have been certain stores that discriminated against breast-feeding women. In essence, they were asked to leave simply due to the fact that they were breast-feeding in public. That shouldn't be the case. Women who breast-feed should be able to do so in public.

4. There is no reason for women who try and are unable to successfully breast feed to feel ashamed.

There is so much pressure for new Moms to breast-feed that many feel like failures when they are unable to do so successfully. They are led to believe that they are harming their child and are failures as parents. There are a lot of healthy children who were not breast-fed, and women shouldn't be pressured into something they might not wish to do. It is even more reprehensible for women who wish to breast-feed but are unable to do so to be made to feel bad about the outcome.

5. The Dad needs to be taken into consideration.

Many Dads feel left out of the entire process of breast-feeding and rightly so. While it is important for a baby to bond with his or her Mom, it is equally as important for the child to bond with his or her Dad as well. Dads should have the option to feed their newborns as well, even if it is water.

6. It may not be realistic for a Mom to breast feed for a year or more.

Women are made to feel that if they do decide to breast-feed, they will have to do so for an entire year, if not longer. That simply isn't realistic in a society in which many women want and need to work outside of the home.

7. It is no one else's decision except for the parents of the infant.

Ultimately, only the parents can make the decision for the infant. The pediatrician may suggest in favor of one option or another due to the specifics of the situation, but it is no one else's decision to make. The pros and cons of each can be debated until both sides are blue in the face, but that gives no one the right to make someone feel bad regarding the choice that she made.