Breastfeeding advocates are rejoicing and praising Beyonce after the pop star was spotted breastfeeding her 7-week-old daughter, Blue Ivy, while dining at NYC’s Sant Ambroeus restaurant Saturday with her husband, Jay-Z.
A megastar helps to take away the stigma of nursing in public, experts said. And role models are needed to help young women see the value and the beauty of breastfeeding, said Dr. Ruth Lawrence, professor of pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine.
“Beyonce appears as a beautiful, loving new mother,” said Lawrence. “She has dressed to carry and feed her baby when needed. She makes a model image.”
Beyonce’s public breastfeeding comes on the heels of a grassroots-organized “nurse-in” at Facebook offices around the world. The social network had flagged or disabled the accounts of some moms who had uploaded breastfeeding pictures, which sparked the February nurse-in where mothers went to Facebook offices around the world to protest.
“I think Beyonce has a huge impact on being able to re-normalize breastfeeding and give women confidence to do the same,” said Emma Kwasnica, a childbirth and breastfeeding educator who helped spearhead the Facebook nurse-in. “Images of pop stars and celebrities giving their babies nourishment will never harm our cause.”
A megastar helps to take away the stigma of nursing in public, experts said. And role models are needed to help young women see the value and the beauty of breastfeeding, said Dr. Ruth Lawrence, professor of pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine.
“Beyonce appears as a beautiful, loving new mother,” said Lawrence. “She has dressed to carry and feed her baby when needed. She makes a model image.”
Beyonce’s public breastfeeding comes on the heels of a grassroots-organized “nurse-in” at Facebook offices around the world. The social network had flagged or disabled the accounts of some moms who had uploaded breastfeeding pictures, which sparked the February nurse-in where mothers went to Facebook offices around the world to protest.
“I think Beyonce has a huge impact on being able to re-normalize breastfeeding and give women confidence to do the same,” said Emma Kwasnica, a childbirth and breastfeeding educator who helped spearhead the Facebook nurse-in. “Images of pop stars and celebrities giving their babies nourishment will never harm our cause.”
