Cafe mums just can't wait to get their boobs out!

nlnews@archant.co.uk
19 May 2005

THEY are doing it at Mr Espresso and they are doing it at Monkey Nuts - mums just can't stop getting their boobs out in Crouch End.

Cafes and restaurants in the neighbourhood have proved to be bosom friendly in Breastfeeding Awareness Week and have welcomed mums and their hungry babies.

Mum Angela Cook said: "You cannot move in Crouch End for mothers and we are really lucky - it is fantastically easy to breastfeed here. We can do it in Mr Espresso, Monkey Nuts... everyone is doing it. Breastfeeding is just not a problem in Crouch End.

"Everyone thinks that breastfeeding is going to be really easy, and when it doesn't happen straightaway you feel absolutely freaky and potty.

"People don't realise that help is there - and a lot of people call out for it."

"I had a flight booked on Ryanair and I phoned up to check if it was OK to breastfeed. The man said 'not really, but you could go and do it in the toilet.' I should have said to him 'would you eat in the toilet?'"

Mattea Joffe, 23, duty manageress at Monkey Nuts in Crouch End, said: "We do have a lot of mums getting their boobs out in here! We have a nice big no smoking space at the back where they can all sit with their children.

"If anyone complains, we can give them a seat at the front of the restaurant where they can't see anything.

"We are one of the few places in Crouch End which has the room for all the prams. Mums are very welcome here."

Although many Crouch End mums have an easy time of breastfeeding, National Breastfeeding Week wants to highlight the fact that it's a technique which does not come easy to all - and that help is at hand for struggling mothers.

Rosie Dodds, a breastfeeding counsellor for the National Childbirth Trust (NCT), said: "The most frequent problems are sore breasts and nipples, which is usually caused by the baby being in a bad position. Normally they don't get a big enough mouthful.

"It is very unlikely that mothers will not have enough milk to feed their baby - a baby's stomach is the size of a walnut.

"Of course, mothers can get upset and feel guilty if it is not going well. Seven out of 10 mothers start breastfeeding - but a third of women stop which is a real shame."

The NCT helpline is 0870 4448708.