Breastfeeding is an instinctual and natural act, but it is also an art that is learned day by day. The reality is that almost all women can breastfeed, have enough milk for their babies and learn how to overcome problems both large and small. It is almost always simply a matter of practical knowledge and not a question of good luck.
From Why Is LLL Necessary?

The benefits to the new mother of immediate breastfeeding are innumerable, not the least of which after the weariness of labor and birth is the emotional gratification, the feeling of strength, the composure, and the sense of fulfillment that comes with the handling and suckling of the baby.
– Ashley Montagu, Touching: The Human Significance of the Skin
I totally agree that with the right preparation and support, that first breastfeeding session can be tremendously empowering. This quote reminds me of the flip side, though — how discouraging and emotionally difficult it can be for a new mother who feels uncertain about …read more

“…the idea of bottle feeding just to ‘involve the father’ is one more instance of preserving the status quo at a price to the baby.”
—Marni Jackson, The Mother Zone. p. 78.

If a multinational company developed a product that was a nutritionally balanced and delicious food, a wonder drug that both prevented and treated disease, cost almost nothing to produce and could be delivered in quantities controlled by the consumers’ needs, the very announcement of their find would send their shares rocketing to the top of the stock market. The scientists who developed the product would win prizes and the wealth and influence of everyone involved would increase dramatically. Women have been producing such a miraculous substance, breastmilk, since the beginning of human existence….
– Gabrielle Palmer, The Politics of Breastfeeding (Issues …read more

Wall Street Journal columnist Sue Shellenbarger recently tackled the question of whether there have been any changes in employer support for breastfeeding mothers. Shellenbarger wrote:
Employer support has risen; about 26% of employers offer such programs as a space to pump or access to a lactation coach, up from 19% in 2005, says a 2007 survey of 590 companies by the Society for Human Resource Management, Alexandria, Va. Support is mounting in state capitols; four states in the past two years have passed laws encouraging or mandating employer support for lactating mothers, says the National Conference of State Legislatures, bringing the …read more

Public health leaders say the weight of the scientific evidence for breast-feeding has grown so overwhelming that it is appropriate to recast their message to make clear that it is risky not to breast-feed.
Breast-Feed or Else By Roni Rabin
The New York Times, June 13, 2006

Formula feeding is the longest lasting uncontrolled experiment lacking informed consent in the history of medicine.
Frank Oski, MD
Retired editor, Journal of Pediatrics
Thanks to Laura for bringing this one to my attention!

This breastfeeding quote comes to us from the late James P. Grant, past Executive Director of UNICEF:
Breastfeeding is a natural safety net against the worst effects of poverty. If a child survives the first month of life, the most dangerous period of childhood, then for the next 4 months or so, exclusive breastfeeding goes a long way towards cancelling out the health difference between being born into poverty or being born into affluence. It is almost as if breastfeeding takes the infant out of poverty for those few vital months in order to give the child a fairer start in …read more

Business lobbyists sometimes fight legislation that would protect breastfeeding in the workplace. Here’s some powerful data to show why businesses should in fact support breastfeeding:
A study of Working Well Moms, CIGNA’s corporate lactation program for employees who breastfeed, revealed a savings of $240 thousand annually in health care expenses for breastfeeding mothers and their children. In addition, a savings of $60 thousand annually is realized through reduced absenteeism among breastfeeding mothers at CIGNA. The study also found that pharmacy costs for breastfed children are lower, because they require 62 percent fewer prescriptions.
UCLA Study of CIGNA Corporate Lactation Program Proves that …read more

As long as you can – breastfeed! And get that protection into your child.
Dr. David Rose, Deputy Director, Maternal and Primary Care Administration, DC Department of Health. “Asthma and Allergies in Children” The Kojo Nnamdi Show, WAMU American University Radio, April 5, 2007.