"It Doesn't Have to Be All or Nothing": How Individuals Who Use Infant Formula Understand the Breastfeeding Master...

Area of Science:

• Sociology of Health
• Maternal Mental Health
• Narrative Inquiry

Background:

• Low rates of exclusive breastfeeding at 6 months in the US (24.9%) despite clinical recommendations.
• Formula-feeding mothers experience stigma and feelings of failure, influenced by the
• breast is best
• master narrative.
• This discourse can negatively impact maternal mental health, leading to depression and anxiety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the narratives of women who used formula within the first six months postpartum.
• To understand how these women interpreted the
• breast is best
• master narrative.
• To explore the influence of this narrative on their maternal identity and mental well-being.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative narrative analysis of interviews.
• Conducted interviews with 20 women who used formula within the first 6 months postpartum.
• Infants were no older than 12 months at the time of the interview.

Main Results:

• Women integrated the
• breast is best
• narrative into their personal stories.
• The master narrative shaped maternal identity, creating archetypes like the
• good mother
• and the
• shameful mother
• .
• Participants desired more diverse and less absolute messaging regarding infant feeding, especially online.

Conclusions:

• The
• breast is best
• discourse can have unintended negative consequences, including stigma and shame for formula-feeding mothers.
• Online breastfeeding messaging should move beyond all-or-nothing framing to embrace the diversity of infant feeding experiences.
• Nuanced narrative messaging is crucial for improving maternal and infant health outcomes.