Sociological Theories and Breastfeeding: A Midwifery Essay

This midwifery essay discusses the impact of sociological theories, such as feminism and structural functionalism, on breastfeeding. It explores how these theories have influenced breastfeeding practices and improved the health of mothers and infants. The essay also highlights the role of midwives and other professionals in supporting breastfeeding and the importance of breastfeeding policies.

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Introduction
Sociological theories usually tend to explain as to for the relation of particular facts and
how these facts are normally related. The spectrum of the sociological theories is usually from a
brief description of a sole social process to models which can be used for scrutiny and
interpretation. Some of the theories in sociology are normally used to predict future events while
others can always be used to explain the characteristics of the societal world. Also, other
sociological theories normally serve the function of acting as broad perspectives which form the
basis for further analysis in sociology. Some of the theories in sociology include the feminism
theory and the structural functionalism theory. The structural functionalism usually tends to
explain the social structure whereas the feminist theory usually tends to put more focus on
gender and how it is related to power. In my paper, I intend to discuss the sociological issues and
inform the subject of breastfeeding. The main aim of the essay is to relate the effect of social
issues such as feminism and structural functionalism to the act of breastfeeding.
Sociological theories and research
As stated earlier, the theories in sociology usually tend to give an explanation as to why
some factors exist within our society (Smith 2010, p.45). They tend to give explanations and
even carry out analysis on certain events in our lives. Feminist theory is a theory in sociology
which tends to put more focuses on sexual orientation, race, nationality, and even the economic
status. It is mainly based on the thought of the women's oppression within the society and also
the tendency of men dominating society. This theory can always be grouped into three waves
namely the first wave, the second wave, and the third feminist wave. The first wave put much

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focus on the voting rights of the female gender. The second wave put much attention on women
education and political participation while the third wave was a continuation of the third wave
and it emphasizes on issues like globalization, post-colonialism, and post-modernism. The theory
was sparked via the existence of gender inequality. The women were restricted to the household
activities and majorly conducted duties like parenting and cooking for the family. Before the
onset of the three feminist waves, most of the women had little knowledge on the importance of
breastfeeding for the first half a year after the childbirth.
The feminist theory was seeking to change this situation (Nord 2014, p.67). The feminist
theory also put much focus on the acknowledgment of the health of women. It insisted that there
was a physical or the masculine difference between the males and the females must be
acknowledged; this led to the improvement of the health of most women particularly the mothers
and even nursing ones (Hyde and Roche-Reid, 2014.).
The structural functionalism, however, is a sociological theory that puts focus on the
framework of society. It usually puts much focus on ensuring that the different parts of society
work together to enhance stability and even solidarity. Apart from the social structure, the theory
usually also tend to explain the social functions of a society. It assumes that the society can be
viewed as organs just like in the body which must always work together to achieve the proper
bodily functions (Parry 2018, p.801). This would mean that for society to perform better, they
must consider factors such as cohesion. Cohesion means unity within society. It usually believes
that all the aspects of the society like family, media, and religion are correlated and that these
aspects are usually important towards ensuring that the society is stable and functioning as
expected of it. The theory usually attempts to interpret every part within society makes a

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contribution toward ensuring that the stability of the society. The functionalist theory also
believes that an institution would only exist as it provides a vital function within the society and
that once this particular institution has accomplished its purpose, the institution would die away
(Letherby 2013, p.56). The theory also usually put much emphasis on the order and harmony
within a particular society. From this, it can be seen that the failure of one part within a society
would lead to the creation of social problems as this would lead to failure in performance in
different other parts of the society. This would lead to a change in society. An example of the
interdependence of other different parts within a society is when the government invests heavily
on the education of the children within a particular society. The children would then benefit the
government later by payment of taxes to support the government (Bartlett 2012, p.345). Through
this theory, we can understand the mutual relationship that exists due to breast feeding. The bond
between the mother and the child that exist due to breastfeeding could be related to this theory.
Implications for midwifery practice
Breastfeeding is the act of feeding an infant with milk mainly from the mother’s breast.
The practice of breastfeeding within lactating mother and even its continuity is usually affected
by various factors among them are the factors like employment, embarrassment, and even some
social factors (Davis and Craven, 2011). It’s, however, an essential practice among the women it
usually ensures the healthy development of a child. Sociological theories have been of
importance to ensure that breastfeeding has improved and has contributed to helping the infants.
For example, a feminist theory advocated for the increased consideration of the health of women.
This aided in the improvement of the quality of the women's breast milk as they were healthier.
Before the three feminist waves, the health of most women was being ignored, and this resulted

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in the deterioration of the quality of breast milk. Normally it is important for a lactating mother
to visit a hospital frequently to ensure that the quality of the breast milk is at optimum. This in
turn aided to the improvement of the health of the children because disease transmissions were
limited (Van Teijlingen 2014 p.45).
The society normally sees breastfeeding as a tool which is enhance stronger ties between
the mother and the infant. It is also associated seen as the sole food for the child as it provides
the child with expected nutrients. It therefore increases the chances of survival of the child.
Breastfeeding policies usually allow the breastfeeding of a child within a federal property. Also
most states permit breast feeding in public locations or private areas.
NMC stands for Nursing Midwifery Council. The NMC code is a set of principles which
puts together the practices of all midwives and even nurses. It is a tool used to guide the practices
of midwives. The code supports professional development. According to NHS guidelines,
breastfeeding has numerous benefits. Firstly, it prevents the child against infectious diseases. It
also serves as a way of creating ties between the baby and the mother. According to NHC, breast
milk is usually easy for the baby to digest and is also widely available.
The feminist theory also advocated for the education of women. This contributed
positively to the breastfeeding practice as the women could as well educated on how to
breastfeed and also on the intervals of breastfeeding. This also ensured that the women knew
well on the importance of breastfeeding and even the correct time for a lactating mother to
terminate breastfeeding and resort to weaning of the infant (Vannini 2016, p.32).

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The contribution of the functionalist theory is seen when society comes together to aid
the lactating mother. This is seen when there is the integration of different professions in society
to provide the help that is needed by the lactating mother. For example, the doctors of society
would always serve the purpose of ensuring that the mother is in good condition to breastfeed a
child. Likewise, they always tend to provide the mother with relevant advice to the mother
addressing her as to how she could ensure that she remains healthy until she terminates her
breastfeeding the newborn child. The doctor would also advise the mother on the most
appropriate foods to take during the period of lactation. Therefore, the doctor is a very important
individual in the lactating mother. Also, the teachers who educate the mother on the importance
of breastfeeding also tend to be very important to the mother during the lactation period
(Covaleski, Dirsmith and Samuel 2016.). They provide important information to the mother
regarding as to how to perform the lactation and also, the importance of termination of
breastfeeding after the child has attained some age.
Conclusion
Sociological theories have proved to be of great importance to the mothers and
particularly in the midwifery. The theories have aided in the transformation of breastfeeding
practice. The practice has particularly changed from the time of existence of the three waves of
feminism. It can thus be said breastfeeding in the current society can never be compared to
breastfeeding practice before the existence of the three feminist waves. There has been an
improvement of the health of both the mothers and the infant ever since the onset of the
sociological theories like feminist theories (Turner and Stets 2016). Therefore, this has also aided
in the saving of the lives of many mothers and that of the lactating children. Before, especially

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when the health of the women was being ignored, the practice of breastfeeding was mostly
carried out in a way that was not beneficial to the child.

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References
Turner, J.H. and Stets, J.E., 2016. Sociological theories of human emotions. Annu. Rev. Sociol.,
32, pp.25-52.
Covaleski, M.A., Dirsmith, M.W. and Samuel, S., 2016. Managerial accounting research: the
contributions of organizational and sociological theories. Journal of management accounting
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Vannini, P., 2016. Body/embodiment: Symbolic interaction and the sociology of the
body,5(34),67-89.
Van Teijlingen, E.R., 2014. Midwifery and the medicalization of childbirth: Comparative
perspectives 7th edition. Nova Publishers Paris.
Grande, G., Stajduhar, K., Aoun, S., Toye, C., Funk, L., Addington-Hall, J., Payne, S. and Todd,
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Bartlett, A., 2012, May. Breastfeeding as headwork: Corporeal feminism and meanings for
breastfeeding. In Women's Studies International Forum (Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 373-382.
Letherby, G., 2013. Feminist research in theory and practice 6th edition. McGraw-Hill Education
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Davis, D.A. and Craven, C., 2011. Revisiting feminist ethnography: Methods and activism at the
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Parry, D.C., 2018. “We wanted a birth experience, not a medical experience”: exploring
Canadian women's use of midwifery. Health care for women international, 29(8-9), pp.784-806.

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Hyde, A. and Roche-Reid, B., 2014. Midwifery practice and the crisis of modernity: implications
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Smith, A.D., 2010. The Concept of Social Change (Routledge Revivals): A Critique of the
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Nord, C., 2014. Translating as a purposeful activity: Functionalist approaches explained, 8(7),
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