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Breast Milk Baby Doll Teaches Kids to Breast-Feed
Filed under: In The News, Weird But True, Toys
Are you one of these people who find yourself ever-so creeped out by the sight of a woman breast-feeding her baby in public?
Oh, you ain't see nothing yet.
Picture a 7-year-old girl -- or boy, for that matter -- strapping on little flowered falsies so a baby doll can suckle the imaginary breasts -- complete with slurping and gurgling sounds.
A lot of adults could do without that particular image.
However, the folks at Berjuan Toys in Spain think their new Breast Milk Baby is a dandy way to teach children how to breast-feed an infant. After all, you don't want to start second grade without mastering that skill.
"The Breast Milk Baby will revolutionize our nation's attitudes to good infant health, while letting little girls share in the wonder and magic of motherhood," company executives write on their website. "The Breast Milk Baby lets young girls express their love and affection in the most natural way possible, just like Mommy!"
For $99, kids get a very hungry doll and an apron-like top with painted flowers in lieu of nipples.
Not everyone likes this concept.
"Only a morally corrupt so-called parent would condone/justify this doll being sold and marketed for young girls who have yet to reach puberty and menstruation age," posts one reader in response to a story in the New York Daily News.
But one father tells "Good Morning America" he thinks the doll is a good idea.
"We've got another baby due in June, and I think it's going to be a really neat way for our daughter Grace to identify and connect with Mom," J.C. Renners tells the news program. "It's an interesting concept."
Dennis Lewis, the U.S. spokesman for Berjuan Toys, tells the San Francisco Chronicle some people have even filed complaints on behalf of God. But he's not convinced God is all that miffed.
"About 20 percent of the messages have been hateful and mean," he tells the Chronicle. "We're being called perverts and pedophiles for promoting feeding our babies the way God intended? Churches all over the world are filled with images of Mary nursing baby Jesus, and yet we can't imagine letting our daughters learn how important breast-feeding is for our society?"
America clearly has a problem with breasts, he adds.
"As Americans we've been duped into believing there's something shameful and taboo about breast-feeding, but the truth is that this idea was created to sell more baby formula," he tells the Chronicle. "The Breast Milk Baby is a serious product, created by a small family-owned Christian toy manufacturer who strongly believes in the benefits of feeding babies the natural God-given way. Our dolls are beautiful and well made, and we're proud of them."
"We stand by our statement: Little girls need to learn to breast-feed."
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ReaderComments (Page 4 of 12)
3-30-2011 @ 2:55PM
bradford50102 said...Isn't this why baby dolls are made anyway? I dont see why it is such a huge deal.
Reply
3-30-2011 @ 2:51PM
Sherry said...What will they think of next?? Why not just make a boy doll and girl doll that can have sex and then tell the child, "this is what happens when a boy and girl have sex, you have a baby and then you get to breastfeed your baby. How cool is that ? You want one of these dolls, sweetie??" The child has no idea why she's mimicing breastfeeding and chances are, if she playing with dolls, she's too young to understand the concept of why she's putting a doll to her breast. Sex education starts in the home. It doesn't come in a box with a $99 price tag. This has got to be one of the stupidest ideas. Sounds like they are promoting sex for the sake of selling their product. Watch out, MTV might make this a spin off of the "Teen Moms".
Reply
3-30-2011 @ 2:58PM
Ken said...Sherry, what exactly does breast feeding have to do with sex? If that's the first association you made I think you really need to ask yourself why that is and what exactly is wrong with your line of thinking than be accusatory toward this doll or its manufacturers.
3-30-2011 @ 3:16PM
krazykitty1127 said...I agree ken.....and you're right sex education does start in the home....and if you have a child that likes dolls what better way to explain things to them in a way they can comprehend things...with things they are familiar with.....the problem here isnt the 99 dollar price tag cause even if they were giving them away for free I'm sure you'd say the same thing.....you dont have to go into the details of sex...you're not going to be daft and show them a porn...but as they have a curiosity and try to imitate the "mommy" actions anyway, take the opportunity for what it is and explain it to them properly....kids understand more than what people think....and they may not understand WHY they are imitating mommy but if you take it as a sign they want to bond and take the time to talk to your children then it benefits the child as they grow....half the reason kids are the way they are is because parents dont talk to their kids or sit them in fromt of MTV programs like teen mom and DONT open a dialouge to find out what they are thinking and help guide them in the right direction....if you dont start young you cant complain when they dont have the skills to cope later in life....something that is very visable with todays kids
3-30-2011 @ 3:15PM
Sherry said...I totally agree.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:02PM
Meg said...If this is so outrageous, we may as well not even give them a doll at all! How is it that we are ok with dolls that promote being a "Brat" with dolls named "Bratz." We are ok with dolls that promote sexuality by dressing them in ridiculously skimpy clothes. We allow them to watch Miley Cyrus and other girls who use their bodies as tools to become rich through sexuality. However, we will not promote being a loving, self sacrificing mother. Nursing is natural and it is what God created that part of our body for. I probably would not spend $99 on a doll, but I definately don't have a problem with this toy.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:07PM
rose said...the person that wrote this article talks so negatively about breast feeding while its a perfectly natural thing...i guess all the boobs you see on tv and on ads at the mall are ok.....i dont think id ever buy this doll it is a little weird that a child would have to learn how to breast feed at such a young age...to each their own....
Reply
3-30-2011 @ 5:23PM
Mary said...I also don't let my 4 year old cook but she sure likes to pretend at her play kitchen.
3-30-2011 @ 3:00PM
sue ellen said...Children emulate what they see but that doesn't mean they are ready for that stage in life. Sure it's natural for children to see babies being breastfed but they should be told that that's a mommy activity exclusively. I explained that to my children as they saw their sibling being fed. But they also saw daddy giving babies a bottle and sometimes got to hold the bottle too. Toys allow kids to pretend or try on different roles. Make sure the message is caregiver not pre-teen motherhood.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:07PM
ElectrocuteMikeVick said...This is a great idea. Maybe this will encourage girls to breastfeed their babies when they grow older. The benefits of breast milk are infinite. The real outcry should be against baby formula which is filled with chemicals and preservatives. Besides, girls now adays have become immature and self centered well into their twenties. Maybe this will help them become more nurturing and will help them grow up sooner.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:03PM
Grace said...It is about time that a company create a doll like this. I was was getting very tired of seeing dolls that promoted bottle feeding. Now, girls will know that there is a better way to feed a baby.... THE Natural way.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:05PM
Piper said...Let children be children, no need to speed things up. What's next letting them date at the age of eight? Some things are not meant too be taught to children at a young age. Kid's don't need too see it.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:06PM
meg said...This is how girls play. Kids play house and take care of babies or pretend to build things. I wouldn't force a child to play with it, just like I wouldn't force a child to play with any toy. I just don't think this kind of play is harmful, because children naturally want to imitate adults and do what they do. Allowing children to play in this way encourages them to gain skills, but also to learn their own likes and dislikes.
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3-30-2011 @ 3:07PM
Carole said...What bothers me the most about this is all the people who think it is OK!
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3-30-2011 @ 5:23PM
Mary said...And the only thing that bothers me about it are the people who think breast feeding is sexual or something to be ashamed of and hidden. Do you have a problem with kids bottle feeding dolls? They are sold everywhere. And my 4 year old pretends to breast feed her dolls anyway. She has no concept of sex. So are you saying that she is perverted?
3-30-2011 @ 6:40PM
Carol said...NO...Carole.....NOT all of us think it is OK......~*sigh*~
Hell....I don't even have children....and at 56.....find this concept
OFFENSIVE.
What are they gonna do next.....have a "pretend" "birthing doll" ???
You know.....pop a small doll out of a larger doll's crotch ?? If their
goal is to "teach about the wonders of motherhood".....haven't
they "skipped" over that important step ?? (And can't you
just VISUALIZE THAT ??) LOL !!
And before we get to the "joys of motherhood and nuturing".....
to teach a 4 yr. old that her "friend"...will be "visiting" her one day....
what should I do to teach that......go get my drill and drill a hole
in some dolls' crotch.....so we can make a "pretend" Tampax.....
and teach them about THAT aspect of life ??!?!.......
I don't have a problem with breastfeeding nor do I specifically
associate it with "sex".........however.....
I do have a problem with their statement......
""We stand by our statement: Little girls need to learn to breast-feed."
Little girls do NOT need to learn to breastfeed.....any more than
they need to learn where/how to use a Tampax (YET).......how
to file their taxes...(YET)....how you get pregnant (YET).....
exactly what happens during 'birth" (YET).........and on and on
and on and on.......ad nauseaum.......
IF "Mama Jones" down the block has a 5 yr. old and a new one
on the way......and wants to teach HER individual child about
breastfeeding their new baby.......GO FOR IT !!!!......
Breastfeeding is a very "individual" choice.......and certainly only
ONE of the MANY aspects of "nuturing and motherhood".......
But to make a SPECIFIC DOLL for that ONE aspect and tell
the "public".....they NEED "this doll" to teach this aspect to
little girls.......uh.....uh.......puh-leeeeeze...........
3-30-2011 @ 8:16PM
Meredith said...Carol, in response to your comment talking about "what's next" in the world of dolls:
I am the third of eleven children, all naturally born and breastfed.
When I was little, my mom would watch baby shows on TV where you basically saw the baby "pop" out. I knew before any of my friends how babies came out and I never even thought about how they got in the belly in the first place.
Those aren't the questions that kids typically think of: those are the questions adults think of because they don't like the idea of having to answer them.
I grew up (and my younger sisters have done the same) pretending to breastfeed my baby dolls. It didn't have anything to do with my body. It was all about taking care of my "baby".
Kids don't think of breasts in a sexual way unless they've been influenced by their parents, siblings, friends, or what they've seen on television that that's why breasts exist. When little girls (AND boys) see their moms nursing their little brother or sister, they understand that that's what the breasts are there for. There is no connection from breasts to sex for them.
I grew up knowing how babies came out, I pretended to nurse my dolls, I didn't learn about sex until middle school, and I am an eighteen-year-old virgin. If a kid who plays with this doll ends up a teen mom, it's not the doll's fault; it's the parents.
This doll isn't a problem because it encourages breast feeding. There is nothing wrong with breastfeeding: it's NOT inappropriate, it's NOT crude, it's NOT disgusting. Quite honestly, my only issue with this doll is that it takes away the imagination part of play.
3-30-2011 @ 3:11PM
Linda said...WTF is wrong with people today? There is nothing wrong with breastfeeding. I used to do it in public....kid needed to eat. You morons are turning a beautiful wonderful experience into sexual perversion. Grow up!! With girls having children younger and younger they need some nurturing skills. Besides that breastfeeding is a easy, cheap way to feed your child. A bonding experience between a Mother and Child. Get your heads out of the gutter!!
Reply
3-30-2011 @ 3:30PM
Birdie said...I couldn't agree with you more!
I think people are getting upset because little girls will know the truth about their bodies earlier, the truth being that breats are NOT just for sexual purposes
3-30-2011 @ 3:11PM
Andrea said...This is wrong, not because it's sexual or bringing awareness to the child's breasts, but because it is teaching the child that having a baby is "oh so fun", and encourage young pregnancies more and more. What these little girls aren't being shown or taught is all the responsibilities and pain, diaper changing, watching your paycheck drain for baby food and what not. This is wrong, children under the age of 13 should not be encouraged to play "mommy" to this extent, you idiots that think this is cool or good, lets see what you think when your 13 year old girl comes up to you and tells you in a HAPPY tone that she is pregnant and going to have a baby just like the one she did when she was 7 years old!
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