The Price of NOT Breastfeeding
Right now, in the UK, families are facing the cost of living crisis in its harshest form. The cost of infant formula has increased by around 25% in the past two years. Parents are left with the choice to put infant feeding costs ahead of other expenses like housing or utilities, or - the most dangerous option - water down their baby’s milk feeds or use non-recommended alternatives.
This situation is not new - it has played out around the globe for decades - but in the UK and other western countries, the impact is hitting higher up the socio-economic ladder than before and questions are being asked.
The United Kingdom has one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in the world. Babies born there are less likely to be breastfed at birth, let alone being exclusively breastfed in the first six months. At 12 months - the Australian recommended minimum for babies to be breastfed - just 0.5% of British babies are still having breastmilk. And the global recommendation of at least two years for all babies? There are no statistics for the UK, so low are the numbers.
Now women of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are issued with the same breasts as women in similar countries and their babies are just the same too. The culture and lifestyle of British, Australian and New Zealand mothers are much the same. You can look to the US and Europe and see many similarities. So why are so many British babies dependent on infant formula. It's a good question.
Marketing of breastmilk substitutes is part of the problem. The UK government has not implemented the WHO Code in a way that protects parents from advertising. However, they are not alone in that.
Paid work is often seen as a barrier to breastfeeding but the UK does have paid parental leave available, like Australia and New Zealand.
Community attitudes to breastfeeding and acceptance of bottle feeding are a factor. Current generations of grandparents and great-grandparents were infants and parents during the lowest rates of breastfeeding in recorded history. Marketing of infant formula was rampant for much of last century. But even America, where the WHO Code is not implemented at all have higher rates than the UK.
Breastfeeding support is a key factor in establishing breastfeeding. The UK, like similar countries, has both professional and community support services available to help mothers and babies overcome common problems. Awareness of support is equal to countries like Australia and Canada.
Whatever the unique challenges British mothers face, which discourage them from even breastfeeding at the start, they are now in a vulnerable situation. Even breastfed babies in the UK are more likely to be mixed-fed, so very few households with infants under 12 months are not buying any infant formula.
The cost of producing formula is not reflected in the cost to purchase it. Inflated prices are the result of marketing, transport and retailing a range of products. Infant formula varieties are largely unnecessary and all products should meet a standardised recipe. Infant formula is a commercial product which sees huge profits to multinational corporations operating on a global level. Even in countries where the dairy industry is a significant part of the local economy - Ireland, New Zealand, Australia - much of that is shipped overseas and often imported back again as the end product.
Where breastmilk is not available, babies in the first year need to be fed infant formula. Financial barriers put babies at risk of unsafe alternatives which can and do lead to malnutrition and other significant risks.
Government investment in protecting and promoting breastfeeding, with all mothers and babies having access to skilled support to overcome challenges, is needed urgently. The lifelong impact of poor infant feeding practices should not be underestimated and British babies should not be more vulnerable than their cousins in other parts of the world.
But this is not a British problem. It is a global issue which is only going to increase.
