Italian Breastfeeding stats?

[charlottesmom]

I saw the most amazing three minutes of television in my whole life yesterday..

I think it was an italian soap oprea (I was sick & channel surfing with just four channels-so I am thrilled I found it) Anyway, this woman just gave birth with her "Nona" (I believe that is italian for grandmother) as her midwife. Anyway it was very touching, the Nona was like an angel and dissapeared after the birth-Then right after that she breastfed the newborn... With real fotage of a newborn breastfeeding-no lie it was amazing t.v

Anyway, does anyone here know if italians breastfeed as a rule? I am wondering that becasue it just seemed so beautiful-normal and well done, like its a normal thing in italy to breastfeed and to be breastfed.

Just wondering-Man I wish I could speak italian.

Thanks.

[Viola]

http://www.lalecheleague.org/cbi/bfstats03.html

check it out there.

[Jaimep]

My Husband is Italian, born in Italy. Not speaking for all Italians, but in his family, they breastfeed, co-sleep and cloth diapered. We are following in this pattern. "Nonna" is grandmother in Italian, my husbands grandmother had 9 children (12 pregnancies). We have been to Italy and I LOVE IT THERE.

Jaime

[kerikadi]

Ceertainly not all but most Italians are Catholic and are devout in their religion. The church is very strong in it's support of breastfeeding and extended breastfeeding. It's actually been decreed by the Pope, JPII spoke about it on more than one occasion. It is considered the best way to naturally space children.

Keri

[Tomoe]

Hi, my name is Teresa and this is my first post, I confess, I've lurked for long time.
I'm Italian and I'm breastfeeding my son Flavio, that next week will make 15 months. For the Italian standard that's quite unusual, and when people learn that I'm still breastfeeding the reaction is:
Normally here quite every woman attempt to breastfeed, but as there was a big impact of the bottle culture in the 70ies, they don't have much support from families (their mothers mostly didn't breastfeed) nor from the doctors (peds are big fan of formula).
So most of the mothers quit breastfeeding at the first problems (nipple crackled, pain, poor wheight gain, wrong latch).
and the majority of the babies arent' anymore breastfed at 3 months. Moreover, as the delivery in the hospital is the norm (a home birth is seen as something of weird and dangerous), breastfeeding is ruined by the hospital procedures (nursery, rooming in is rare), by the formula and pacifiers and so on offered to newborns.
I'm sorry, I think that you did see on tv something of very rare today (but in the past, before WWII, was the norm), a homebirth in Italy.
Talking about attachment parenting, you won't find any web site about this subject in Italian language, while in any bookshop you'll find easily a Ferber-like book about making children sleep alone by a Spanish that copied Ferber (his name is Estevill), that is a best seller here. Cosleeping must be a secret, especially if you share the bed with your baby (even the crib in the parent's bedroom is blamed) otherwise you'll receive nasty comments: the norm is putting babies sleeping alone since birth (pushed by pediatricians and psicologists).
Recently I got nasty comments on a forum about my being perverted for breastfeeding a toddler (for my pleasure, of course!).
That's the situation in Italy, for what I've seen in real life and by reading many forums about parenting in Italian, where my opinion was always the minority's opinion.
ciao

Teresa aka Tomoe
Mother to Flavio, 2 December 2002

[kerikadi]

Teresa,

I am sad to read Italy is much like the US when it comes to AP and breastfeeding. I always thought Europe was so much more AP than we are I was led to believe that co-sleeping was normal in most of Europe and that Americans were the silly ones - guess that's not true at all :

I am so glad you have found Mothering to support your parenting choices.

Keri

[mariamommy]

Hi,

I recently added a page on my site about breastfeeding in public worldwide.

Someone from Italy did leave a posting there, it's painting a similar picture as was posted here.

Any international mothers here, please consider adding to this page! It is relying upon visitor input.

http://www.007b.com/public-breastfeeding-world.php

Maria