When Did Breastfeeding Become a Bad Thing?

So, I was watching this video on Current about Gisele Bundchen and the comment she made about breastfeeding being mandatory for the first six months of a child’s life and I was shocked.



I cannot believe that so many media outlets demonized Gisele and, subsequently, bashed breastfeeding. When you look at Gisele’s entire comment, it is clear that it is more of an idealist vision rather than something she is going to promote on her next run for president:

"Some people here [in the U.S.] think they don't have to breastfeed, and I think 'Are you going to give chemical food to your child when they are so little?’… I think there should be a worldwide law, in my opinion, that mothers should breastfeed their babies for six months."

Gisele is merely making a point that breastfeeding is often pushed aside and formulas, which do have chemicals that may or may not be good for babies, are used instead. She even had to make a statement to clarify her comment. Breastfeeding (in the majority of cases) has been proven to be better for newborns than formula. And let’s not forget, breast milk is the result of thousands of years of evolution and completely natural, compared to formula which is a relatively new invention and, again as Gisele noted, made up of chemicals.

I think that breastfeeding should be talked about more, but I think that these media outlets did a disservice to many mothers. I also feel that this was total crap that so many portrayed Gisele as an irrational dumb model when she was merely trying to make a point and advocating something quite smart.