Breastfeeding Doll: A Step Forward, Or Just Plain Creepy?
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Little girls love to play mommy to their baby dolls. We all did it: changed their fake dirty diapers, feed them fake baby food, gave them their fake bottle when they fake cried. But fake breastfeeding?
Now, Spanish toy manufacturer, Berjuan, has introduced the Bebe Gloton. The first-ever breastfeeding doll for children, complete with a nursing halter top for the doll’s owner to wear. When placed near one of the two daisies on the halter (yes, they are strategically placed where nipples would be), the doll starts making sucking sounds. To see how the whole process works, watch the video below.
For those people who find themselves upset at the “pro-bottle” baby doll market, they will most likely find this doll as a giant leap forward. However, some parents are finding it a bit, err, creepy.
What do you think about this new doll? A good idea or just plain creepy? Leave your comments below.
What a great gift idea for a mom-to-be. Pregnancy Countdown Hand Painted Magnetic Chalkboard $28.00 
Comment by Amanda on Aug 05 2009 07:25:33:
Im a breastfeeding mother and I encourage it. but Im in favor of encouraging MOTHERS not CHILDREN! my vote is for CREEPY! i find this toy very inappropriate. They will learn about this when they are older and become parents. Let kids BE kids!
Comment by Heather on Aug 05 2009 08:13:51:
I, too, breastfed (until my daughter was 25mos). I agree with Amanda. This is creepy.
1) The sounds are that of a very ill baby, not a nursing baby.
2) Why is the outfit necessary?
3) I can’t get over how creepy this doll is.
My 2 1/2 yr old play-nurses her dolls (she has no idea what to make of the bottles they come with). She just holds the dolls up to her chest or belly, then burps them when she says they’re full. No big deal. There is no reason to go to such lengths with a doll. Kids should use their imagination with their toys. This rips the imagination away from them.
Children mimic adult behavior. My toddler never had a bottle, so it’s normal & natural to play-nurse.
But this doll took normal behavior and made it SUPER-CREEPY!
Comment by May May on Aug 05 2009 08:25:29:
This doll is CREEPY!!! I breastfed my daughter, but would not expect her nor allow to play with this doll ~~~
Comment by Dawn on Aug 05 2009 08:26:10:
CREEPY! I have breastfed all of my children, but breasts are required for this. Adults, not children are capable of doing this.
Comment by Jen on Aug 05 2009 08:34:39:
Totally creepy!
Comment by Lindsay Johnson on Aug 05 2009 08:36:39:
I like the idea; I don’t think it is creepy. I think it does try to normalize breastfeeding. The sounds are not super realistic, but which doll ones are??
Comment by Scott on Aug 05 2009 08:37:47:
I’m all in favor of a MOM Breastfeeding but NOT children. That doll is Just plain Creepy
Comment by Alyssa on Aug 05 2009 08:39:51:
Hey I think this doll is pretty cool! I just had a baby boy 2 months ago BUT I know that if I had a little girl I absolutely would not buy this doll for her. Kids are to young to understand this concept, it might lead to something else. I agree with Amanda & Heather, they pretty much summed it up… So ya I vote for creepy…
Comment by Amber on Aug 05 2009 08:56:09:
I think the idea is GREAT! Everyone may not agree or want their children to play with this doll BUT that just means you wouldn’t buy it. I think a doll like this should definetly be marketed. It may not be for everyone but its an awesome addition to the babydoll aisle in my opinion! Expose children early to breastfeeding that way they will think its normal and that thats what breasts are for!
Comment by Heather on Aug 05 2009 09:04:28:
This doll is totally creepy! There is no reason a child young enough to play with dolls should be learning about breastfeeding with a baby doll. I feel like if the child has a parent who is breastfeeding a sibling, then the parent should explain it as best they can… not encourage them to do it. I have a 2 year old daughter who loves dolls and I will not expose her to a doll like this.
Comment by Shamona on Aug 05 2009 09:18:38:
I’ve breastfed all 3 of my children, and my 7 year old daughter and 4 year old son know all about the process from being told of it when they were younger and watching me with the 7 month old. I think the doll is good as a teaching tool with other mothers…but not children. It’s great to inform children, but to allow a little girl to enact breastfeeding…I don’t think so…let her be knowledgeable, but NOT through demonstration with a doll. I can see it now..a group of children playing and out comes a little one with the doll announcing, “Look at my new doll! Let me show you all how to breastfeed!”…I most certainly don’t want my child to learn something of that nature from another child. I want to be the one to teach my child. I’ve informed my children that it is not for them to educate their peers on certain things.
Comment by MOM on Aug 05 2009 09:47:19:
This is going way too far. Young girls and children are growing uptoo fast as it is. Keep that over the pond plz.
Comment by Jessi on Aug 05 2009 09:58:47:
I appreciate the idea behind the doll, but the doll itself is a little wierd. I don’t like any dolls that make sounds, etc. They’re all creepy!
Comment by Amy on Aug 05 2009 10:04:53:
Creepy – and I’m a big breastfeeding advocate. It’s perfectly natural and fine for children who watch their moms breastfeed to pretend to feed their own dolls the same way. My daughter even pretends to pump, which is hilarious. I would not buy a doll like this though!
Comment by jen on Aug 05 2009 10:48:38:
The idea that this sort of doll pushes them to grow up to fast is a reflection of OUR OWN lack of innocence and has nothing to do with them. For most young children breasts have no sexual connatations. Those are things they pick up through adult conversations and televesion. We do not have television for that very reason. At this tender age I never want my daughters to think breastfeeding is “creepy” or naughty.
Most of you probably don’t want to let your kids play with my kid. I’m still going to have to go with hysterical. We don’t need one because every doll and stuffed animal in our house is a breastfeeding doll. It is not something I taught either of my girls but something they picked up on from having a breastfeeding mommy.
Comment by D.S.J. on Aug 05 2009 10:53:17:
I think the doll is kind of weird. I am very surprised to see a doll like that. The doll isn’t necessary. why would a child need to or even want to pretend to breastfeed. It’s nice for the kids to pretend and play make believe, but the line truly needs to be drawn and I think it should be drawn with this new doll. Sort of sounds like motherhood is being promoted at an early age with all these advancements on dolls. Technological advancements are nice, but where do some of the dolls out there leave the child to imagine?
Comment by Linsi on Aug 05 2009 11:33:28:
Hmmm….this doll is weird (like any other dolls which make sounds). I don’t think this doll is creepy at all. If you all think that this doll is pushing kids to grow up, then all the other “bottle” feeding dolls are doing the same job as this one. I think toy companies should stop promoting the ideas or sending out subliminal messages that girls have to clean, cook or take care of kids. So even I do not like dolls, I would let my daughter play with it if she wants it….after all, kids need to be exposed to different things and it is very important to teach them to be open minded and tolerant to different things ( of course within limits). But a toy is a toy and I do not see anything wrong with it if you all are innocent minded.
Comment by Claudia on Aug 05 2009 11:38:29:
This is totally not ‘normal’ this is creepy……
Comment by teresa on Aug 06 2009 12:16:20:
creepy but sick they are kids not realy mothers i would never get something like that for my daughter.
Comment by tanyamaries on Aug 06 2009 12:42:37:
I breastfeed both my girls but this doll is just way too creepy!
Comment by Brooke on Aug 06 2009 01:55:30:
I too breastfed, but for children this is very creepy! I would never imagine to buy this for my children and can’t believe that someone is actually trying to sell it!
Comment by Melina on Aug 06 2009 02:19:35:
I think this toy-doll is literally CREEPY!!!
I just had a baby girl and absolutely will not wanna see my daughter playing with something like that!!!
I Breastfeed her and i think the encouragement of breastfeeding
is for a mature woman, not a little girl, this toy should be banned in the United States, I don’t agree with this!!
Comment by sunshine on Aug 06 2009 04:00:14:
OMG….what are they thinking teaching lil girls to breastfeed…that doll needs to be taken off the shelves….i can’t bring to words what i’m thinking but it’s not good…it’s too creepy…once again OMG!!!!!!
Comment by geena on Aug 06 2009 05:57:08:
this doll may be creepy but it is what it is.. girls these days are having babies very young. Im a teen parent myself. breastfeeding is best for the baby, but what I have noticed is that alot of teen parents dont breastfeed. I tried, but i didnt. i dont know if i think this is creepy and if we should be making a doll to prevent young kids from having children or if this doll is smart and is thinking logically for this day and age. the statistic for the girls coming from middle school to my old high school was for about every 70 girls, one will get pregnant in thier years of high school. a third of those girls will drop out. in all fairness, i dont know what i think it is. knowing how hard it is to be a child and have a child, i wouldnt promote having a baby to my little one.
Comment by Sarah on Aug 06 2009 10:28:41:
Not creepy at all.
To all the mothers saying not suitable for children, how is a bottle fed baby suitable for a child?
If you don’t want your little girls to “grow up too fast” then you shouldn’t let them play “mummy” to any baby dolls, since children obviously shouldn’t have kids.
You shouldn’t let them play “dress up” or with “play make-up” either! Just don’t let them have any type of imagination…
Comment by Theresa on Aug 06 2009 04:58:40:
I think this doll is CREEPY. There is no need for children to learn the concept of breast feeding a doll. I understand that they learn from there elders which is fine the can but there is no need for a realistic doll like that.
Amanda having children play dress up and house and all things like that are fine there is nothing wrong with that at all. When children pretend to breastfeed that is fine but there is no need for a doll that will make it more realistic. Plus it just sounds creepy. It doesnt not sound anything like the real thing.
Letting your childgren have an imagination is a good thing. But let them have there own imagination. Dont by them the doll that will make there imagination that. Let them play how they want to.
I have a 2 month old girl and i will not by here that doll.
It is creepy.
Comment by Amy on Aug 06 2009 04:59:31:
I vote Creepy just for the fact that baby is sucking on something that looks like daisy’s. I understand that breastfeeding is a natural thing, but those flowers are not.
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Comment by Melody on Aug 06 2009 07:46:27:
I think this is down right sick. Children are already growing up a faster rate. Many children not being allowed to be kids because they have to take on adult responsibilities before their time. Lets not forget we already have a crisis with teenage pregnancy. What are they looking for kids to be having kids. I would not let my daughter have this toy.
Comment by jill on Aug 07 2009 12:38:01:
There is a reason this doll is not made in the USA. European countries give new mothers paid maternity leave and endorse breastfeeding. Nursing is not offensive to them. Most Americans are disgusted if they see a woman nursing a baby in public. I would not buy this doll, my daughter ‘nurses’ Elmo… no special items necessary. Playing with dolls is what little girls do. How does pretending to feed one make them grow up to fast?
Comment by Amanda on Aug 07 2009 02:40:54:
Hmm…I like that this company is trying to promote breastfeeding…It would be wonderful one day for my daughter to be able to sit and nurse her baby in public without the looks of disgust that I get now as I’m nursing her discreetly in public…Because of the rise in bottle feeding in this past generation, every one seems to be breast-phobic…I hope by the time she has children it’s more the norm…Hopefully all of us breastfeeding moms are changing the next generation…
I feel that the doll itself is creepy in that it makes a sucking motion at a child’s chest…but some children may find that really cool…that the baby seems so real…I guess if we sell babies that suck at bottles we could sell ones that do this too…I guess the problem lies in our ability to separate the functionality and the sexuality of breasts…It’s only creepy because of what it implies in our society…
Comment by Lauren on Aug 07 2009 02:41:20:
that doll is sick..get rid of it
Comment by Heather on Aug 07 2009 03:00:23:
The fact that so many people are creeped out by a girl play-nursing a doll is because breasts are so hypersexualized in our culture. It’s the same reason so many throw a fit when a mother nurses in public (with or without a blanket, so it has nothing to do with nudity). Too many adults CANNOT under any circumstance separate breasts from sex, and so that is why they say “let kids be kids”. KIDS ARE BEING KIDS BY MIMICKING ADULTS. ARe kids not kids because they change baby’s diaper or because they rock baby? Heck, they’re pretending they are the doll’s mom in the first place so using that logic maybe girls shouldnt have dolls at all… The whole point of dolls is because girls like to mimic what grown up women do and “play house” and such. And for mothers who breastfeed, nursing is a HUGE part of the parenting role, and there’s no way a kid who sees it isn’t going to repeat it. There are “anatomically correct” baby dolls on the market, dolls that literally pee and poop….So it’s okay to give my girl a doll complete with testes and penis, but not okay to give her a doll that she holds up to her chest to feed, which is what we as mammals were DESIGNED TO DO?
This doll won’t take away a kid’s innocence; it is simply a reflection of our LACK of innocence that so many adults are creeped out by it.
Comment by dr on Aug 07 2009 12:51:25:
This one goes too far. (And I’m breastfeeding at the moment.)
Comment by Amanda R on Aug 07 2009 02:02:42:
I think the doll is GOOD — it’s some of the comments on here that are CREEPY. Considering the way this society treats normal, natural body issues, it’s no wonder we have so many screwed-up individuals.
The only problem I have with it, and most other toys in general, is that it has such specific functions — supressing the child’s imagination.
Comment by Jen H on Aug 07 2009 02:43:04:
A little odd, but NOT CREEPY! i am so glad someone had the balls to do this. i would much prefer my child to pretend nurse their baby then feed it a fake bottle. cmon people, a bottle is intended to mimick a breast nipple, and formula (which i think is pure crap) is intended to mimick breastmilk, so why cant we teach our daughters the RIGHT WAY to feed their babies???
i wish people werent so “creeped out” by the idea of breastfeed. since when did nature become the odd man out? and if you are a breastfeeder or a breastfeeding supporter and you still call this doll creepy, you have some problems.
Comment by Jessica on Aug 07 2009 09:09:53:
This idea is wrong for children. However, maybe teens could use it in their child prep classes.
Comment by Sarah on Aug 08 2009 02:59:23:
I am all for breastfeeding but this doll is really creepy! I do not agree with it at all! Breastfeeding is natural but not for little girls!
Comment by Rosario on Aug 08 2009 03:16:28:
I think it’s an alright toy, i have a son i don’t think he will play breast feed his teddy bears but my niece (5) who was bottle fed, always play nursed her dolls after she saw me nursing her cousin, she even insist that that how her mother feed her. she understands that how babies are fed. If she wanted this doll i would by it for her if my daughter wanted it, i would let her play with it, Breastfeeding is natural, not creepy. anddolls who make popping noises are gross and creepy
Comment by Becca on Aug 08 2009 08:07:56:
I personally think its creepy!Yes, children need to be educated about these things but at the appropriate age! I think when girls are 11 or 12 they can learn about breast feeding and the importance of it since they are going through puberty anyway! Children under 10 just don’t have the ability to understand things of that nature! For me its not appropriate and should be up to the parent to explain things of that nature and not some toy company!
Comment by Liz on Aug 09 2009 03:34:45:
Okay, I find the mouth movements a wee bit creepy but otherwise I think this a cute toy. I think any toy that encourages kids to view bonding with and feeding a baby the way nature intended is great. Kids form opinions about parenting really early — waiting until they are 11 or 12 to introduce the concept of nursing is ridiculous, especially when you consider the countless examples of bottlefeeding they will have been bombarded with by that age. This is breastfeeding, people! Not sex ed! And to those who say that they’re just kids who should be playing like kids, duh — that’s what playing Mommy is all about! Pretending to be a grown-up! At least this way they’ll be pretending to be a loving, nurturing grown-up.
Comment by meyli on Aug 11 2009 02:25:23:
I think the concept is not bad, and present the breastfedding as somathing normal, but i don’t think that is the way, it really looks weird
Comment by Tracey on Aug 11 2009 12:34:01:
Not creepy. It’s what most children with breastfeeding moms do anyway. I don’t think a special doll is required, but it’s just another bell and whistle.
Comment by Patrice on Aug 22 2009 02:40:16:
It’s weird. For me, breastfeeding is good only for mothers and not for kids. I am just worried that young as they are or during their teenage years, they will tend into an early marriage.
Comment by Katie on Sep 12 2009 09:35:43:
I think it’s a good idea for like a La Masse class or something but not for little girls to play with.
Comment by Taryn on Dec 12 2009 05:42:31:
i dont think this is “creepy” because there is nothing creepy about breastfeeding. but the sound is just annoying. i dont think this doll should be given to you girls, especially when they are not fully developed. the doll is just stupid.
Comment by Erin on Apr 01 2010 01:19:10:
I don’t like this doll. Why does there have to be a special doll for a child to pretend she’s nursing a doll. If a child wants to nurse her baby doll like mommy nurses her sibiling, couldn’t she pretend that she’s nursing a doll without having to wear a special halter top? Actually, I don’t really think any doll that makes baby noises is necessary unless it’s for high schoolers in a Family Sciences class. I think the halter top is the creepy part of this. I don’t think we need a toy that draws attention, even if just with strategically placed flowers, to a young girls nipples. I don’t necessarily think there is anything creepy about a girl pretending to nurse a doll, but this whole thing … I vote creepy!