“Breast is Best, Donor Next”: Peer Breastmilk Sharing in Contemporary Western Motherhood

Peer breastmilk sharing—the unregulated gifting of human milk for the purpose of feeding a child—is a growing practice in Western societies despite official warnings against it. Milk sharing occurs in a context of breastfeeding promotion, and cultural expectations that mothers take individual respon...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological inquiry 2018-11, Vol.88 (4), p.673-695
Main Authors: Carter, Shannon K., Reyes‐Foster, Beatriz M., Carter, J. Scott
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Baby foods
Breastfeeding & lactation
Children
Children & youth
Consumerism
Maternal and infant welfare
Mothers
Neoliberalism
Parents & parenting
Peers
Responsibility
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Summary:Peer breastmilk sharing—the unregulated gifting of human milk for the purpose of feeding a child—is a growing practice in Western societies despite official warnings against it. Milk sharing occurs in a context of breastfeeding promotion, and cultural expectations that mothers take individual responsibility for their children's health, weigh expert recommendations on childrearing, and engage in responsible consumerism to minimize children's toxic exposure. This study analyzes the perspectives of parents who milk‐share within this broader context. Data consist of a survey asking 392 parents who milk‐share to evaluate the healthiness of mothers’ own milk, peer‐shared milk, and formula, and explain their evaluations. Participants rated mothers’ breastmilk as healthiest, followed closely by peer‐shared milk, and infant formula as least healthy. They drew on scientific discourses regarding the health benefits of breastmilk, and natural versus artificial dichotomies to construct formula as unhealthy based on its synthetic makeup. Engaging with scientific and neoliberal motherhood in their constructions, peer‐shared breastmilk emerged as a healthier option than formula when mothers’ own milk was unavailable.
ISSN:0038-0245
1475-682X
DOI:10.1111/soin.12227