In a proposal to promote gender-inclusive language, an organization of doctors called the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, ABM handed out new guidelines which suggested using terms such as “chestfeeding”, “human milk feeding”, and “parent’s milk”.
Debate storms, whether it is right to say those terms?
In a more and more gender-inclusive society, a debate is raging over whether it is right to say breast milk or human milk or chest milk, whereas several transitions are happening around the world.
The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine issued a declaration on “infant feeding and lactation-related language and gender”, which was co-authored by eight doctors, as reported by FoxNews.
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Use of gender-inclusive terminologies
It stated that the usage of de-sexed or gender-inclusive terminology is reasonable in many settings.
Further adds that, not all people who give birth and lactate are recognized as ‘female’ and that some of the individuals identified as neither female nor male.
The new guideline issued
The recent guidelines indicated the gender-inclusive terms for “breastfeeding” that comprise “chestfeeding”, “lactating”, “human milk feeding”, “expressing”, “pumping”.
Likewise, options for “breast milk” comprise “milk”, “human milk”, “mother’s milk”, “parent’s milk”, and “father’s milk”.
It is a notable medical fact that breastfeeding boosts a baby’s immune system and also aids in developing mother-child bonding that benefits the overall health of both mother and the newborn.
Regardless, the debate has now shifted from the goodness of breast milk to what would be an inclusive term to be used for breast milk. Likewise, there are new guidelines put by some health care specialists to change the term “breast milk” to “chest milk.”
