Breast-feeding raises children's IQs, study says

[rebeccajo 14]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

Well, especially when you are talking a 7.5% spread.

It's not like we are talking the creation of geniuses.

[Jenn! 918]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

[rebeccajo 14]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

What if somebody tried to convince you that it was proven that men who ate jello every day for a year prior to inseminating their partner would raise the IQ of the child?

[one...two...tree 2,762]

no one is hating on breastfeeding.. we are hating on the fact that they are trying to say that breastfed babies have a higher IQ.. that sounds like bull ####### to me...

Don't be hating the science though. It's an attack on science and all that is sacred with science.

Steven -

A couple of studies does not 'science' make.

True, but I don't think it should be dismissed either, unless the study was faulty to begin with. There have been studies that suggest classical music can also help with a child's brain development. We should welcome such research - not to dictate parenting, but to give us insight into the environmental factors that effect a child's development.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

Dubbya drank formula. What does that tell you?

[Jenn! 918]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

Dubbya drank formula. What does that tell you?

Ewww, mental image of Barbara Bush's breasts.

[rebeccajo 14]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

Jenn -

Let me clarify where I am coming from, cause it isn't about whether the study is right or wrong IMO.

As a parent, I can tell you that some of the ridiculous 'pressure' you get when you are raising a child can be overwhelming. Parenting is a pretty daunting task anyway. About half the time you are doing it, you wonder if you are going to completely f*** up the process.

Sensible people are usually able to raise a child who will turn out to be a productive, happy member of society. I'm frankly sick of experts telling us how to raise 'better' children. The human race has been going on for millions of years without it.

There's a lot more to be said for maternal instinct than what some scientist scribbles in his notebook.

[Dr. Obvious 49]

I was not breast fed and neither were my brothers and I got A and Bs in school....

There was a time when it was not socially acceptable to breast feed a baby. It was considered something that 'poor people' did.

I get annoyed about this because I think it's more pressure on women to conform to whatever the current 'perfect mom' model might be. IMO it ranks right up there with pigeonholing families based on what kind of car seat they have; what their kids wear; how many social activities the kids are in, etc.

Good kids don't equate to a kid with a high IQ, anyway.

Gah - let's all get out our cookie cutters and try to create the perfect child. Pffffffffft.

Breastmilk is probably better than formula just because it is, however, I do agree with the rest. The point is that not all women can breastfeed. It is not in the best interest of all women and all babies to breastfeed. When studies come out like this, they only serve to kick women in the face that could not perform a simple biological function. Great.

IQ is still a tricky thing. My husband's cousin was watched like a hawk from day 1 doing everything *right*. He was extremely smart, put in extra activities and lessons, scored a just flooring score on his Abitur, got into a fantastic university program. Then he spent the next 2 years he was supposed to be learning doing nothing but playing video games all day, eating McD's, and partying on his parents euro. He lied to them for years about everything. It turns out that he doesn't want to study, doesn't know what he wants to do, doesn't care. Of course, his parents really don't get it. They did everything *right*, right? Completely devestated. Cautionary tale.

[chri'stina 190]

I think everyone would agree that breast milk is the best for babies because of it's content. But the reason it is controversial is because often on VJ people post news articles that support their ideology(look at the politics thread for instance). So women who either chose not to breastfeed or had real problems with it can sometimes feel annoyed about it.

I know I already said I had every intention of breastfeeding but sometimes things don't go as planned. And when a man talks about it to me is a lot different than a woman talking about it who actually gave birth and experienced being the one who is supposed to breastfeed.

Recently when I was on a trip I was around a friend who is very into breastfeeding, their baby is over a year old now, and she had talked to me about bf-ing on the phone after Kavi was born. I told her about problems we had and she said she was sure if I kept trying it'd work out. Well, when I saw her on the trip I actually felt guilty around her while feeding Kavi a bottle of formula while she offered her milk to her son(which makes me uncomfortable to begin with when it's in public, sorry). I felt like a failure and that she would be thinking "oh I can't believe he's eating from a bottle". But I am sure she didn't think that about me, but the pressure to be good at it is immense when you are a woman. I had to tell myself "don't be ridiculous!! and don't feel guilty!"...but it's hard sometimes.

[Jenn! 918]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

Jenn -

Let me clarify where I am coming from, cause it isn't about whether the study is right or wrong IMO.

As a parent, I can tell you that some of the ridiculous 'pressure' you get when you are raising a child can be overwhelming. Parenting is a pretty daunting task anyway. About half the time you are doing it, you wonder if you are going to completely f*** up the process.

Sensible people are usually able to raise a child who will turn out to be a productive, happy member of society. I'm frankly sick of experts telling us how to raise 'better' children. The human race has been going on for millions of years without it.

There's a lot more to be said for maternal instinct than what some scientist scribbles in his notebook.

I understand where you're coming from with the pressures of parenthood and all. In this particular instance though it comes off as though you're dismissing the study simply because you don't *like* what it has to say.

So what if a study has linked breastfeeding with a higher IQ? Does that have to be a personal insult against every mother who has not breastfed for whatever reason?

[Jenn! 918]

Recently when I was on a trip I was around a friend who is very into breastfeeding, their baby is over a year old now, and she had talked to me about bf-ing on the phone after Kavi was born. I told her about problems we had and she said she was sure if I kept trying it'd work out. Well, when I saw her on the trip I actually felt guilty around her while feeding Kavi a bottle of formula while she offered her milk to her son(which makes me uncomfortable to begin with when it's in public, sorry). I felt like a failure and that she would be thinking "oh I can't believe he's eating from a bottle". But I am sure she didn't think that about me, but the pressure to be good at it is immense when you are a woman. I had to tell myself "don't be ridiculous!! and don't feel guilty!"...but it's hard sometimes.

I guess it's easy to think that you won't give a hoot what anyone else thinks about your skills as a mother when you're not actually dealing with it.

I'm sure my feelings on this, as most other things, will come back to bite me in the azz!

[Nessa 23]

breasts!!

[rebeccajo 14]

Saying that there was a study showing breast-feeding raises children's IQs is not the same as saying that non-breast-fed children have low IQs.

duh moment of the day.

thanks jenn.

From the way this thread is going, it seemed that some clarification was needed.

Jenn -

Let me clarify where I am coming from, cause it isn't about whether the study is right or wrong IMO.

As a parent, I can tell you that some of the ridiculous 'pressure' you get when you are raising a child can be overwhelming. Parenting is a pretty daunting task anyway. About half the time you are doing it, you wonder if you are going to completely f*** up the process.

Sensible people are usually able to raise a child who will turn out to be a productive, happy member of society. I'm frankly sick of experts telling us how to raise 'better' children. The human race has been going on for millions of years without it.

There's a lot more to be said for maternal instinct than what some scientist scribbles in his notebook.

I understand where you're coming from with the pressures of parenthood and all. In this particular instance though it comes off as though you're dismissing the study simply because you don't *like* what it has to say.

So what if a study has linked breastfeeding with a higher IQ? Does that have to be a personal insult against every mother who has not breastfed for whatever reason?

Jenn -

Just wait till you're a parent, and somebody who thinks (because they've read and believe something about kids that you are NOT doing) makes a curt comment to you about whatever it is. That sort of thing stings as the implication is 'poor parenting'.

This is kind of one of those weird things you really do have to live through to appreciate. Some women can be REAL biyotches to each other about their kids vs. your kids. Of course, these are usually the same people you wouldn't associate with anyway, but they are in your kids class or play group or something and you just CAN'T get away from them.

LOL - I'm having flashbacks to Zach being in grade school. He'll be home from his first year of college on Thursday. He's got two semesters of Deans List grades under his belt. And never had a drop of breast milk in his belly.

Edited May 6, 2008 by rebeccajo

[chri'stina 190]

Recently when I was on a trip I was around a friend who is very into breastfeeding, their baby is over a year old now, and she had talked to me about bf-ing on the phone after Kavi was born. I told her about problems we had and she said she was sure if I kept trying it'd work out. Well, when I saw her on the trip I actually felt guilty around her while feeding Kavi a bottle of formula while she offered her milk to her son(which makes me uncomfortable to begin with when it's in public, sorry). I felt like a failure and that she would be thinking "oh I can't believe he's eating from a bottle". But I am sure she didn't think that about me, but the pressure to be good at it is immense when you are a woman. I had to tell myself "don't be ridiculous!! and don't feel guilty!"...but it's hard sometimes.

I guess it's easy to think that you won't give a hoot what anyone else thinks about your skills as a mother when you're not actually dealing with it.

I'm sure my feelings on this, as most other things, will come back to bite me in the azz!

I am sure you will do good.

It is kind of a different world when you become a mom and you thought you wouldn't care what other people say or think about your parenting, and then you find yourself feeling awkward or guilty about something like this. And you tell yourself that you shouldn't care or worry, but it doesn't always work!

[rebeccajo 14]

Recently when I was on a trip I was around a friend who is very into breastfeeding, their baby is over a year old now, and she had talked to me about bf-ing on the phone after Kavi was born. I told her about problems we had and she said she was sure if I kept trying it'd work out. Well, when I saw her on the trip I actually felt guilty around her while feeding Kavi a bottle of formula while she offered her milk to her son(which makes me uncomfortable to begin with when it's in public, sorry). I felt like a failure and that she would be thinking "oh I can't believe he's eating from a bottle". But I am sure she didn't think that about me, but the pressure to be good at it is immense when you are a woman. I had to tell myself "don't be ridiculous!! and don't feel guilty!"...but it's hard sometimes.

I guess it's easy to think that you won't give a hoot what anyone else thinks about your skills as a mother when you're not actually dealing with it.

I'm sure my feelings on this, as most other things, will come back to bite me in the azz!

I am sure you will do good.

It is kind of a different world when you become a mom and you thought you wouldn't care what other people say or think about your parenting, and then you find yourself feeling awkward or guilty about something like this. And you tell yourself that you shouldn't care or worry, but it doesn't always work!

Stina -

I believe that falls under the category of worrying 50% of the time that you're gonna mess up!

And yeah, Jenn, I'm sure you'll do fine too.