[MyHypatia]

A lot of comments here and elsewhere focus on how breast milk is better than formula. Many women know that. So let me clearly lay out the math of why formula is critical to so many babies in the US:

Babies start eating solid food at 6 months. Women only get 3 months off (unpaid) after delivering a child. So in the remaining 3 months that the baby cannot have solid food, should the woman feed her baby exclusively breast milk or get fired for not returning to work?

Of course, there are also women who cannot breast feed, don't produce enough milk to exclusively breast feed, or have to return to work sooner than 3 months because bills have to be paid. So while educating people that breast milk is healthy is important. It's really cruel and stupid that for many women the choice is: feed your baby exclusively breast milk for 6 months and get fired, or don't feed your baby exclusively breast milk for 6 months and keep your job. Only the cushiest jobs have 6 months maternity leave and lactation rooms, most other jobs do not.

[dadofsixmoold]

(Note, I have a 100% breast fed six month old right now).

I agree with everything you said. The inability to breastfeed, the very poor time off.

However, the majority of US women have the ability to breastfeed more. Some an extra month, others can supplement less.

Being unable to produce any milk is fairly rare (but real! Wy wife breastfeeds another woman's kid). Anyway women will have to; the only baby food "factory" that can scale in the short term in the quantities needed are breasts!

[MyHypatia]

>> the majority of US women have the ability to breast feed more.

Sure, technically many women can physically breast feed more. The point is that while they physically can, they practically cannot, or doing so is incredibly inconvenient.

The majority of women in the US do not have 6 months off after giving birth to a child. If a woman works an office job, she might be able to take breaks to pump. If she's a teacher, fast food worker, delivery driver, etc. where and when can she pump and store her milk?

Also, there's a lot of social pressure to breast feed but then people get annoyed and pissed off when you do it. Dealing with people feeling offended and grossed out if you breast feed in public, or dealing with their irritation if they have to wait for you to breast feed. So, I'm not surprised that many women who can physically breast feed more, don't do it.