Women Rally Around Widower to Breast-Feed Infant Son

It literally takes a village.....

I think this is nasty to let pure stranger breast feed your baby. They could have anything and be giving it to the baby. Perhaps if it was a close relative or something I could see. He needs to stop the studity and give his son a bottle. To many diseases and unclean things are going around theses days to let all theses women breast feed his new born child. I mean does he know if theses women take a bath or who they are around? I'm not impressed I'm appauled it's poor judgement on his part and he is putting his new born son at risk to all kinds of germs and diseases. I hope for his sake that nothing goes wrong.

The article doesn't specify, but I think the women who are bringing pumped breast milk are providing it for him to feed the baby when they can't nurse him themselves (as in the middle of the night). Bonding is important, for Daddy and baby and all. This little guy will have many families where he has a special place, and his family will know that too. The people who thinks this is NASTY should attend a few Leche League meetings and get an education, but there is a valid point being made about communicable diseases. I hope Dad is sure all the Moms helping out are AOK; however, women who breastfeed are generally very conscientious about their own health as it relates to producing healthy milk. Breast milk is better for baby than any formula, and I admire this community of women for caring for their friend's child in honor of her and her husband's desire to give their son the best start in life.

Actually - I totally agree with you. I tried to breastfeed my kids but it just didn't work out for me so they were happily bottle fed. I feel that the time I sat holding my little ones while they fed was my bonding time. Ocassionally my husband or a sitter fed them but it was mostly me for the first 6-8 months of life. This little guy is being held and fed by a dozen women whose presence in his life may very well all but vanish after the time for breastfeeding is over.
It's not the fluid he drinks as much as who is a constant presence feeding him.

Great show of compassion by all these women. Now...if they could just share the love with the father. I'll keep an eye out on Redtube for that.

I would think he was there to give the baby those wee-hours of the morning feedings.

I disagree. I am a mother of 3. In my 50's now. After the birth of my second child I had more than enough milk to provide for my baby and also provide milk for a childrens hospital for the neo-natal unit. As I was providing milk for my child and the premies,

Since I never expressed milk and stored it in bottles for my own child
my husband never had a moments problem with bonding with our child. Neither our 3rd child. A man whom is insecure with himself and the process of breastfeeding/or jealous thereof, may have a problem of bonding with the child.

I agree or they only need one set of milk jugs.

I think what these women are doing is wonderful , Giving the child what it really needs.I'm sorry that he lost his wife , But more important is that the child gets what he need through these women breast , It's wonderful that these women are helping him .

Didn't you read the the story?Some of the mothers are providing pumped breast milk ,which has to to be fed in a bottle,there is some bonding ,but there is more way a father can bond with his child other than feeding! God Bless all the women that came forward to help.You will be blessed!!!

LOL Chyann sick gross weird cmon this is 2009 not 1908 there are other options besides everyone in the town flopping out there boobs yuuuk thanks I needed a good laugh :)

There are many ways to bond with a child - feeding is only one way. This Dad is bonding when he feeds his child as noted in the article, but he's also bonding every time he holds his son, cuddles him, changes his diaper, gets up in the middle of the night to comfort him, and on, and on, and on. The physical act of breastfeeding ensures the milk Moses gets is specifically engineered for him. The moment a baby latches on to a breast, the mom's body, or wet-nurse's body in this case, immediately has an exchange and begins to produce specific antibodies geared toward the microbial components contained in the baby's saliva. The balance of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates change in response to the saliva as well. During breastfeeding, there is an active exchange of information to ensure the milk is tailor-made to suit the needs of that infant.
Anonymous
Breastfeeding Counselor

Does "La Leche" society still exist? They have been providing pumped milk for decades.

Great idea! I'm for the dad feeding his son too. Especially since this child is now old enough to be fed formula. Had the reverse happened I don't think society would like 25 men stepping in to fill dad's shoes in the nurturing department. There are instances I'm sure when it is absolutely necessary to take such steps, like stranded on a deserted island without anything nutritional to feed a new born. I'd think they should worry about the childs mental development since he can now recognize the feeders, unless they have issues themselves, they're all doing such a wonderful gesture and all and they just can't stop. Or maybe they could narrow it down to pumped milk if they're totally against formula.

For all those who need to be educated about breastfeeding--breastmilk is the PERFECT infant food. Formula is artificial. Breastmilk changes with each feeding to be what the child needs at that time, formula stays the same. Baby's who are breastfed have lower risks of illness. When a breastfeeding mother gets a cold/virus her body makes antibodies to fight the infection which are passed in the breastmilk. With so many different women feeding this boy, I would guess that he is getting so many different antibodies--what a lucky child! Breastmilk has anti-bacterial qualities which eliminates the question of hygiene. Most mother's who breastfeed are very conscious of what they eat because they KNOW it passes through their milk to their babies.

Educate yourselves. Breast is best for babies. Formula is unnatural. If more communities would help each other out like this we could eliminate the formula companies stranglehold on our wallets. The wet-nurse has been around since the beginning of time. Royalty rarely breastfed their infants, they always hired a woman to do it for them.

GOD BLESS this family!

I'm sure he does hold his baby son often while feeding him breast milk from a bottle but if has to go to work each day, this would limit how much time he could do this. It can't harm this little boy to also be held by nurturing, loving women who did not give birth to him.

Some guys have all the luck and at his age no less

These women are also providing a precious bio-mechanical benefit to Moses. The sucking action a child employs on a breast is completely different than the biting action when he's on a bottle. The drawing action at the breast aids in pumping craniosacral fluid around the brain, milks the brainstem and feeds tons of information to the nervous system. The "breast is best" saying goes farther than we know!!

Thank you for sharing your story. It must feel strange to be under such scrutiny for something so natural and beautiful as nursing a baby. It's a little telling of our times. I too, wet-nursed my nephew when my brother was in a pinch. It was a wonderful and natural experience. Blessings to baby Moses and to you and your community.