Is the surgeon general's breast-feeding campaign really necessary?

The nation's top doctor, Regina Benjamin, has issued a "call to action" to help out women who want to feed their babies breast milk

Three out of four of babies start out breast feeding, but just over 10 percent continue to breast-feed exclusively for six months.
(Image credit: Corbis)

Surgeon General Regina Benjamin is calling for families and employers to make it easier for mothers to breast-feed their newborns. "Many barriers exist for mothers who want to breast-feed," Benjamin said. "They shouldn't have to go it alone." Studies show that newborns reap numerous health benefits if they are breast-fed for the first six months, something only one in 10 babies experiences. (Nursing has even been linked to higher IQs.) Is Benjamin's "call to action" much needed, or will it only provoke unfair criticism of parents who choose to feed their babies formula?

There is no downside to Benjamin's call: This is a "bold" and overdue move, says Tanya Lieberman in Motherwear's breast-feeding blog. Mothers need easier access to breast-feeding education and counseling. Hospitals need to become more "baby friendly," instead of pushing formula on new moms. And employers need to make it easier for mothers with newborns to find the time and privacy they need to pump breast milk. Benjamin's call should put pressure on everybody to help out.

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