At first glance, this baby doll really disturbed me. Berjuan Toys, the company that has always supported the development of small children by producing interesting, engaging dolls, continues its tradition with the release of this innovative baby doll, The Breast Milk Baby. Then I watched this mom’s viewpoint (click here). She had some great points.
On the other hand, do I think that our 4 and 5 year old little girls need to have a $99.00 doll to practice with? I don’t think it is necessary, but is it wrong? I’d have to say that the flower nipples on the halter top the little girl wears is a bit creepy.
Man, and does it have people up in arms! Like any controversial topic, it has definitive conflicting views.
Some people say, “what about bottle tops that our babies practice with? They are shaped like a woman’s breast and nobody has a problem with that.”
A lot to think about.
The United States Health Resources and Services Administration has made it a national goal to have at least 75% of all mothers breastfeeding for at least six months by 2010. So is this just another marketing tool?
My thoughts…
1) I still don’t think I’ll ever purchase one of these dolls.
2) I think the little girl’s mommy is the best example of breastfeeding if she chooses to feed her child that way.
3) Yes, breastfeeding is natural. But what about women that struggle with it? Like me (read my story here).
4) Why not just stick with the bottle with little girls? For all we know, it could very well be “breast milk or formula” in the bottle..
5) Final thought… little girls are too young to breastfeed (in my opinion) if they have to put on a halter top with flower-shaped nipples. Let little girls be little girls! They already grow up too fast!
Okay, time to hear from you. What are your thoughts?
Mrs. Stam says
Ok here is my 2 cents
I have 3 daughters, all under 4, yes we breastfeed, so they have and are expose to it.
Now our first born will pick up a doll, a bear, a dog, a pillow and breastfeed it!!!! along with wrapping, rocking, kissing, putting it to bed (she is a little mama to her toys)
Our toys are no specialty toys, just doll passed on to us, some had little bottle with them other just a baby.
our daughter will put her “baby” near her belly button and say ” look mama, baby hungry, I give milk” I don’t have the courage to tell her that is not really where the milk is coming from LOL but to me that is what comes natural to her.
Little girls (and boys) will imitate what they do, and that does not need to cost any extra money.
So if the “breastfeeding mama movement” really want their daughters to learn the art of breastfeeding,no need to have a special doll, just let them be, they will figure it out all on their own!
bek.boyd says
oh my word…hilarious actually:) i’ve never needed a doll that actually sucks for my kids to pretend to breastfeed…that is creepy. it is innocent enough when my little ones watch me breastfeed and then they lift their shirts on their own and put their baby dolls to their chest. at this point i chuckle to myself and see that they are just coping their mommy. and its kind of funny, and my hubby and i roll our eyes but understand that their is nothing wrong with copying what they see. but to encourage it is a little much i think:) and creepy:) interesting post traci…and it made me laugh out loud at some of the things out there.
Traci Michele says
Mrs. Stam:
I couldn’t agree more with your 2 CENTS! 🙂 Yes, it is very normal for kids to immitate what they see. I think people are just making money off what children were already doing without the halter top with flower nipples! lol
Love,
Traci @ Ordinary Inspirations
Michelle G says
I too agree – most little girls who have been exposed to it will just mimic it naturally. I have to tell you though…I love the concept of these dolls (not the price however) Finally a baby doll that does not come with little plastic bottles 🙂
I had to laugh at the little flower top….but honestly I like that it’s not immoddist (sp!) and yet it encourages breast feeding! I too had MAJOR issues breast feeding…but I still hope that my grand-babies have the chance 🙂
I think our society has made girls bodies too sexual (even little girls are often encouraged to dress WAY inappropriately!)so I think that a reminder of what breasts can be used for is okay 🙂 Thanks for sharing – 🙂
Jennifer says
Agree with mrs.stam. All my boys knew babies
Nursed because they saw their siblings but I realized this week that my almost three year old always feeds her babies with a bottle because she hasn’t seen me nurse a baby…but that’s just one of those areas where I need to be intentional and pray that she grows up seeking the Lord and his best for her and her family. I am 100 percent a believer in nursing unless medically not able but it’s way more important to me that she be passionate about following Gods best for her and figure minute details like that will come from a heart seeking what’s best…Enjoy you blogs!
Kami says
I agree with Mrs. Stam – we don’t need anything extra to expose our children to breastfeeding. Little girls DO grow up too quickly. And like you, I wasn’t able to breastfeed, so I guess my standpoint is that children should learn by imitation (as so many have already said), and whatever they are seeing is “normal” to them, and we should let it be that way. They’ll grow up soon enough and learn all the other options out there, but just let them PLAY! 🙂
Anonymous says
Traci….I agree 100% with you. As a mother of 3 and grandmother of 3 grandblessings I think this doll is absolutely unappropiate. Let the little girls play with baby dolls and bottles!!! this is totally wrong!!!
Michelle says
I think kids that are exposed to breastfeeding will emulate it without the $99 price tag. And truthfully, the flower shaped nipples aren’t emulating anything except creepiness. Who would design that for a small child. Ick.
Anonymous says
I have 4 children under 6. I have breastfed all of them. I had different problems with each of my children, which I overcame with a lot of support from La Leche League. I believe that nearly all women can breastfeed. Go to a La Leche League meeting if you are having problems. They are IMMENSELY helpful and supportive. And don’t write off breastfeeding just because you had problems with your last baby. Breast tissue changes with each pregnancy. That said… My 2 oldest girls “breastfeed” their baby dolls. I do not think that it is inappropriate at all. I do not have a problem with this breastfeeding baby doll. BUT I would NEVER purchase it for my own children. (HELLO!? $100!?) Also, I think it takes the imagination away from their pretend play of “breastfeeding.” Let kids be kids and use their imaginations. We have too many toys these days that do the thinking for them.
Lisa Maria says
Traci.. I’m dumbfounded here! Firstly, I’ve been creeped out by the trends in toymaking for the past few years. I remember when I was pregnant with my 2nd baby and the christmas before she was born (1 month to go) a darling uncle gave my firstborn a doll that cried (and I mean CRIED!!) like a baby. I quickly took the batteries out.. I’d have enough of that to look forward to!
Personally, I don’t see why toys have to be so realistic… whatever happened to using your imagination? Children today are being deprived of that magical thing called ‘pretend’.
I agree with the others who’ve said that,while there’s nothing wrong with imitating mommy, its creepy to actually push this on little girls. The toy company’s statement about all little girls needing to know how to breast feed is mind-blowing. They’re little girls! They don’t need to know about that until they’re old enough to have babies.
With regard to the whole idea of breastfeeding I want to tell you my story too. I have four daughters, the first two.. my breastfeeding was awful. With the first, I supplemented with a bottle, but managed to go for a year. The second, my nipples busted up after a couple of weeks and after two days of trying to heal, my baby was on a bottle and didn’t want me back. I had greater success with my 3rd, who breastfed for two years and my last, for almost four (yeah I know crazy right?)
I just want to tell you that, even if it was bad with the others, there’s no reason you cant be successful with future babies. My nipples are flat and I have had serious issues with soreness and I have actually bled with all of them, but I persevered and got some good advice from a midwife at the place my 3rd daughter was born and that’s how I continued. One thing I learned is that its all about supply and demand. The more your baby nurses, the more milk you have. I learned that if I hadn’t supplemented with the bottle, my first may have been satisfied, but I was working back then and didn’t do well with a pump… never did actually (though being a homemaker after the 2nd one was born negated the need for it)
Bottom line… you do the best you can for your babies. If you try your hardest and it still isn’t working for you, that doesn’t make you a bad mommy. Loved the post you wrote on this last year. Good luck with this baby… you never know what God will do!
Love & Blessings
h. rae says
Wow! That is disturbing! I certainly wouldn’t buy one my my little girl (If I had one). Too strange. Like you said, a mom is the best and only example they need. There are some things a girl grows into, and breasts are one of them.
Too much, too soon.
Betsy says
I wouldn’t buy this doll. But,to be honest, bottles creep me out. I hate, hate, hate seeing a baby drink from a bottle. I know that’s weird, and I’d never admit it except on the internet. But bottles are gross. LOL. So, for every baby my children have, I stealthily throw away the bottles.
Crazy woman mama here. Obviously.
Jenifer says
Wow, I had not heard of or seen this doll before. I have mixed emotions about it. I am all for breastfeeding. It is natural and healthy. My kids were all exposed to breastfeeding and my daughters always pretended to breastfeed their baby dolls just because it is what we ‘did.’ But do I think they need an actual doll for it, no. And the little girl’s mommy shirt is a bit much. I just think we should have plain ole baby dolls and if the child chooses to stick a play bottle to it’s mouth or pretend to nurse, fine.
Kelly Howard says
Traci…my lordy! A hundred dollar doll is not needed for ANY little girl! Good examples and soft lovey dolls are all lil girls need! When my granddaughter tried to imitate her mommy, we took a baby blanket and tied her baby to her just like her mommy would do…that is ALL they need to be concerned with at a young age! Why, oh why, must they take everything good and G-dly and make it seem like an indecent, UGLY thing?! Thank the good L-rd that we can correct every wrong thing the world throws at our chillins while they are young…and may G-d give us infinite wisdom in doing so!
Lollie says
Wow! What will they think of next? LOL! Like most of the comments I think the doll is to expensive and my kids learned breastfeeding the old fashioned way, and followed suit shoving dolls and teddy bears up their shirts!
I don’t think there is anything wrong with the doll, just an unnecessary expense;)
Jay and Amy says
I don’t think you need a special doll for that. Any breastfeeding mother can tell a story about her daughter lifting up her shirt and pretending to breastfeed her baby doll. It’s a natural thing. My little girl tells me right now she has a baby in her tummy, just like her mommy. It’s just part of discovering the world that is hers.
I think it’s all for money. Because little girls will be mamas no matter which doll you give them. It’s how God made us.
Apple Granny says
I enjoyed reading the comments from your friends. I breast fed our children. It was natural and convenient and cost efficient. I did it in the privacy of family, close girlfriends, and with a modest “cover-up” when needing to create a private place on trips to town for groceries, doctor appts, etc. Our daughter held her baby doll close to her chest and murmured softly to it. Then, when her brother was weaned to a cup, she quit “nursing” her doll. I think it’s foolish for parents to think this new breast feeding doll is worth the money or the energy of defending the decision to buy it.
Kathryn says
I think that is crazy that they had to make something like that. Breastfeeding is for adults not children.
Sarah D says
Why don’t they just sell a doll without a bottle? I have finally succeeded at breastfeeding (5th baby) and it’s been wonderful to see my 3 and 4 year old just copy with their dolls, holding them to their chests, I don’t think I’d like to think of them wearing “nipples” but then maybe it’s just because it’s new and we have not seen it before?
Rachel @ The Cupcake Sprinkles In Life says
My daughters nursed their babies both ways. {breast and bottle} But we didn’t ever buy a special doll! {Especially one that comes with said nipple tank. That is more anatomically incorrect than anything!!! When I breastfed, I never put on a halter with nipples on it!}
Imaginative play is great for our littles- but maybe, some are just going a little overboard?!?
I’m no one to judge though. 🙂