[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text title=”Breastmilk Isn’t Free: The hidden cost of human milk” css=”.vc_custom_1724336247678{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]August is Breastfeeding Awareness Month, or as I like to call it, Human Milk Month. In the birth world, most of us can rattle off the numerous benefits of bodyfeeding in our sleep. The probiotics, the antibodies, the bioengineered brain growing magic – the list goes on and on. In addition to the numerous health benefits, there are many practical incentives to feed human milk. Formula is exorbitantly expensive for lower-quality food. It’s easier to put a hungry baby directly to the breast in the middle of the night than it is to coordinate a sterile bottle mixed with sterile water while bleary-eyed. But we are way off base when we tell new and expectant parents that human milk is “free food”.
Singing the praises of lactation is tone-deaf to the fact that a need to return to work or school is the leading reason why new moms and birthers give up on nursing before 6 months. It takes a lot of privilege to produce on demand, unlimited food for another person for 6 months. Exclusively breastfeeding a newborn is a full-time job that doesn’t pay. It’s accessible to people who have the means to keep a roof over their heads and food for themselves in the fridge while absent from the workforce.
In Canada, we are fortunate to have the option to take maternity leave for up to 18 months. But there are several catches. Legally, your employer is required to reserve your job for up to 18 months. They are not required to compensate you during that time. If you are eligible for employment insurance (EI), the government will pay you 60% of your usual pay, up to a maximum. For most people who were working full time, this amounts to a significant loss of income. About 20% of employers in Canada will top up these EI payments to varying amounts and timeframes. The EI program makes payments for 12 months, therefore if you want to stay home for 18 months, the final 6 months are “self-funded” – i.e. you have zero income.
As for the many people who are not eligible for EI, unless they were in a position to set aside 18 months worth of savings or have spouses or other family members who are in a position to support them while they’re on leave, they will find surviving for even 6 months with no income quite difficult.
Unsurprisingly, racialized, Indigenous, low-income, and single birthers are more likely to need to return to work less than 6 months after they have their babies. During Indigenous Milk Medicine Week and Black Breastfeeding Week, we reflect on why breastfeeding rates continue to be lower for Black and Indigenous women than their white counterparts. This is a huge part of why. Until we address economic disparities, talking up the benefits of breastfeeding will not change outcomes.
We need to start framing the birthing person being home for at least 6 months as a human right for the baby and the birther. In the US, employers are only required to hold jobs for 6 weeks. This needs to be framed as a human rights violation, for mother and baby. So-called “breastfeeding friendly” workplaces do not cut it. Usually, this just means that there is somewhere other than a bathroom for lactating parents to express milk. This completely overlooks the logistical challenges of pumping and storing enough to keep a young baby fed during the workday and the emotional and psychological benefits of direct feeding.
We can look to examples in Europe, especially Nordic countries, for human 
rights models of lactation and new parenthood. In Sweden, new parents are entitled to be free from work and receive benefits for up to 18 months after their child is born. This entitlement can be shared by a couple or used by a single person. Unsurprisingly, Sweden and other Nordic countries have higher breastfeeding rates at 6 months than other high-income countries.
When my wife and I were born, mothers were entitled to 6 months’ leave. When I had my son 12 years ago, we were entitled to 12 months. Now people are entitled to 18 months. These are steps in the right direction that make sustained lactation and adequate bonding and recovery more feasible for many people. But there is still room for improvement, especially more support for working and working poor families. We need to see subsidizing the cost of human milk as an investment in a healthier future for children and families.
Keira Grant (she/her) Inclusion and Engagement Lead – Racialized Communities
Keira brings a wealth of experience to the Online Community Moderator role. She is a Queer, Black woman with a twenty-year track record in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) education, projects, and community building initiatives.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]