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The nipple debate rises from breasts of liquid gold
A few months ago, businessman Chen Shunqiang thought he had struck liquid gold by reviving the ancient practice of renting out wet nurses to suckle clients' babies and was thanking his lucky stars for sweet, nurturing mother's milk.
When it comes to feeding infants, "breast is best" doctors say. Human milk bolsters a child's immune system, provides unique proteins and enzymes, reduces the risk of allergies and infections and promotes brain development. But what about all the women who cannot or will not breastfeed their own children; could they be provided with a service? Chen, for one, thought so. The 43-year-old, laid off shoe factory worker from Yangzhou in eastern Jiangsu province started researching the matter last year and found several people were already using wet nurses, or naimas, through personal contacts. Zhu Tingrong, office manager in Chen's company Bang Bang, said they found that more than 8 percent of women in the city either said they were not able to breastfeed or did not want to. Some said they did not produce milk after birth (the relatively recent popularity of breast augmentation, which can impair a woman's ability to breastfeed, is believed to have led to an increase in women who are unable to lactate), while others are career women who cannot afford to stay at home for months. Wet nursing was a necessary service for almost three decades into the twentieth century in the West; the women were used by hospitals and as live-in servants for wealthy families. Many society women who took in wet nurses viewed them as poor, dirty, uneducated and desperate, which further fueled the debate over the necessity and morality of hiring wet nurses. This sentiment - that breast milk was essential to an infant's health but was so volatile that many believed milk from an unsavory wet nurse might harm an infant - explains, in part, the move from breast to bottle. Brest pumps and high-quality baby formula then took over as popular and healthy ways to feed an infant. But in China, milk formula is out of favor for many following the scandal last year when hundreds of babies were severely malnourished and at least 13 died after parents unwittingly fed them fake milk powder that contained only a tiny fraction of the nutrition needed for a growing infant. In addition, cow milk is such a distant substitute for human milk, that most doctors do not even consider it a viable option. One client, who asked not to be named, said she had been unable to produce milk after her son was born. "I fed him cow's milk but he was really unhealthy. He had a bad flu twice before he was even a month old. After the naima started coming I could see his health improve almost straight away." Less women are willing or able to breast feed their own children, baby formula in China is shaky and cow milk isn't healthy for infants; for Bang Bang this all equaled opportunity and the company set about recruiting 20 young women to offer the breastfeeding service. "Hundreds of women wanted to join our company but we had very strict guidelines," Zhu said. The women were all good-looking, aged between 25 and 30, had passed rigorous health tests and were educated to at least secondary school level, he said. "And we employed a special chef to feed them the best of food to ensure their milk was highly nutritious," added Zhu. The company permitted the women to breastfeed a client's child only while they were still breastfeeding their own child, with each woman only allowed to take on one child. The service cost up to 3,000 yuan a month, with the agency taking a 10-20 percent cut. Through advertising on the Internet late last year, the wet nurses were
snapped up. Zhu said many other clients were career women in the prosperous
coastal Offering more money in a month than many of the women would otherwise earn in a year, they had no problems recruiting. "More than 40 percent of the women we spoke to [from various rural areas in the province] wanted to join us." Within weeks, Bang Bang set up shop with four branches in the province and had agreements with agencies in Shanghai and Beijing. Copycat agencies started sprouting up in other coastal provinces, and reports indicated that a growing number of people were finding naimas through family-and-friend networks across the country. As the year came to a close, glasses were clinking and the Bang Bang crew was relishing the prospect of a prosperous 2005. But suddenly things began to turn. A newspaper in nearby Nanjing carried a report on the new service and the local populace did not take kindly to the fact that wet nursing had been revived on their doorstep. "We couldn't believe it. So many people telephoned to complain," Zhu said. "Many others came into our office. They were all strongly against it. They were mostly women. Some were really, really angry. It was terrible." Then the local women's federation entered the fray with a rare public statement, saying the practice belonged to the feudal past. "The group called on women to boycott the service as they should not allow their breasts to be sold as commodities," Zhu said. "Breastfeeding could help build a bond between mothers and their children [the federation said] and it was not appropriate to use wet nurses." According to Zhu, at least 90 percent of people in Yangzhou seemed to agree
with the women's group. "But it was not breaking any law and the few who did
agree with it seemed to be prepared to pay for the service. So we kept it going
for a while." The law, it seems, makes no reference to the trading of mother's milk but the officials suggested that it was probably in breach of some regulation - they just did not know which one. With the angry calls continuing and customers of Bang Bang's other services threatening to boycott the firm, the heat got too much and the service was suspended just before the New Year holiday due to "social pressure." The naimas were sent home and put strictly off-limits to the media. While China is no stranger to wet nurses - it is said that the Tianqi emperor (1605-27) clung to his wet nurse Madame Ke because she indulged his desires and extended a parent-like protection over him; and more recently, the last emporer, Pu Yi, kept the company of his wet nurse into his teens - questions of women's rights turns modern day naimas into a tricky issue. "Things are changing in China," Zhu said. "Years ago people would think this was a great new way to make money, but now everyone is talking about women's rights and so on." And it is this aspect of the whole affair that heartens people like Huang Lin, a Beijing-based academic who specializes in women's rights. Regardless of your stance on the issue, "it is good to see that people are talking out more about these topics now. The society is becoming more vocal and people are thinking about wider issues," said Huang. "It will take time but it will have an affect. In former years no one spoke of issues such as domestic violence and sexual harassment. But then that changed, people started speaking out." The Chinese women's movement is now more vocal on legislation protecting women's rights and see the renting of wet nurses as a step back in the push for sexual equality. . Whatever it is, it is confusing the people at Bang Bang. The phone rings and a prospective customer looking for a naima is told by a staff member that the company is not permitted to treat human milk as a commodity. It sounds as if he is reciting the women's federation statement. When the caller persists and speaks of a dire need for the service, he drops his voice and whispers: "I can't do anything for you now. Call me back in a month or two." A few minutes later the phone rings again. It is a national women's magazine. Would Zhu be prepared to let his 20 charges pose topless for a cover photo? The terms, he is told, would be generous. He hangs up, promising to discuss it with the boss and call back. He shuffles around the pokey office rubbing his hands together in glee. "Ha! Brilliant! We could make a lot of money out of this," he says. But then the smile slides off his face; he sighs, shakes his head and slumps back into the chair. "Or maybe not. I think we're in enough trouble as it
is."
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But for all his planning and street wise business savvy, Chen had
failed to factor in a rapidly changing China - a China that many say is showing
an ever-increasing awareness of women's rights - and has unwittingly sparked a
debate with the women's movement over whether or not renting one's breasts has a
legitimate place in modern day society.
