Today we flipped on the radio for a bit of a dose of news. First thing we hear is about breastfeeding. The issue of the day was the Massachusetts Department of Public Health's approval of the "gift basket" with infant formula distributed to mothers in state maternity wards. Pro-breastfeeding groups had pushed for a ban on the distribution of free infant formula – before the Govnah stepped in and according to the Boston Globe " Romney objected to the ban, saying it deprived women of the right to decide whether they wanted to breast-feed their babies or give them formula." Wait. So Romney's pro-choice on breast feeding – but abstinence only for sex education? The result of the proposed prohibition was a Romney shake up of the Public Health Council (who oversees the Department of Public Health), removing several pro-formula-ban members.
We don't quite fully understand the political issues, or Mitt's morals behind the movement on this issue in Massachusetts – perhaps the liberals are feeling that Nestle is out to target new mothers in the Bay State rather than in developing countries. The State Department of Public Health does promote breastfeeding as best practice for the infant, even if the potential health fall out of improper bottle feeding is much less here than, say, Ethiopia. Oh, and, they'll continue to do so from the same office space they've inhabited since 1995 – 250 Washington St. They just re-upped their lease for another 10 years of the 120,000 square foot office space on floors two through 10 in the building. Final numbers haven't been disclosed but the rental is reported to run around $30/sq.ft. certainly better that you'll find in Back Bay.
Photo of real-life breastfeeding woman from Flickr user: seaniz
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