The Embodied Practices of Breastfeeding: Implications for Research and Policy

Abstract

Breastfeeding is a uniquely embodied part of parenting. It is a time-consuming task that is fundamentally centered on mothers’ bodies for as long as breastfeeding occurs, which may be weeks, months, one year, or much longer. In this article I argue that an enhanced and sustained research focus on the embodied dimensions of breastfeeding has the potential to raise questions and provide insights about breastfeeding initiation and duration, a major concern of policymakers and others. Three underexplored areas of research into the embodied aspects of breastfeeding include lactation activism (lactivism), the dyadic (mother-child/children) body work of breastfeeding, and the efforts and beliefs of the professionals who support mothers as they initiate and continue to breastfeed. Accomplishing reproductive justice for all women requires developing a deeper understanding of variations in the social and individual context for the embodied practice of breastfeeding and using this knowledge to create effective social policies.

Keywords:

• breastfeeding
• intensive mothering
• embodiment
• body work
• lactivism
• lactation consultants
• Women
• Infants
• Children (WIC)
• breastfeeding peer counselors
• reproductive justice