gisele bundchen breastfeeding

Bundchen, who welcomed son Benjamin with husband Tom Brady last December, has raised the ire of critics after remarking that there should be a “worldwide law” demanding that new mothers breastfeed for the first six months of their baby’s life.

The 30-year-old supermodel — the world’s highest-paid catwalker — prompted raised eyebrows after she spat contempt at mothers who give their newborns formula.

“Some people think they don’t have to breastfeed and I think, ‘Are you going to give chemical food to your child when they are so little?’ I think there should be a worldwide law that mothers should breastfeed their babies for six months,” she said.

After her comments became one of the most chatted about watercooler topics of the day, Gisele’s hit the blogosphere to sing a slightly different tune.
I wasn’t sitting in on that interview, so it’s hard to gauge how she said it, but the message in her words alone suggests a parenting decision fail for electing to use baby formula over breast milk. Many a woman, myself included, was turned off by such a hasty generalization and call for the government to tell mothers how to feed their children.

With my sons, I breast and formula fed for both medical and personal reasons. Do I think I’ve done any of my children a disservice by feeding them formula? Absolutely not. They’re healthy, well-fed, happy boys.

After giving it some thought, I don’t think Ms. Gisele meant to cause the stir that surrounded her interview. It may not have been the most well-thought-out comment in the world, but it came from a mother’s heart. I know I’ve stuck my foot in my mouth more than once, proclaiming, in all my mommy wisdom, how every family should do things. I wasn’t sincere, just caught in a moment. Fortunately, I’m not in a position where so many people have their ears pointed in my direction.
Bundchen had a natural birth at her home in Boston last December, after meditating throughout her eight-hour labor.

The model gave birth to son Benjamin Rein – the baby’s father is American football star Tom Brady – and got up the next morning to make pancakes. She was back at work modeling swimwear just six weeks later.

Bundchen credits meditating every day as having prepared her for giving birth.

“It prepared me mentally and physically. It’s called ‘labour’ not ‘holiday’ for a reason, and I knew that,” she said.

“You want to go into the most intense physical experience of your life unprepared? That doesn’t make any sense to me.
My intention in making a comment about the importance of breastfeeding has nothing to do with the law,” wrote the model, who is married to NFL star Tom Brady. “Becoming a new mom has brought a lot of questions, I feel like I am in a constant search for answers on what might be the best for my child.”

In the magazine article, Bundchen lent her opinion to the never-ending debate between the benefits of breastfeeding versus feeding a baby formula.

“I am sure if I would just be sitting talking about my experiences with other mothers, we would just be sharing opinions,” she wrote in the blog. “I understand that everyone has their own experience and opinions and I am not here to judge. I believe that bringing a life into this world is the single most important thing a person can undertake and it can also be the most challenging. I think as mothers we are all just trying our best.”