A hospital trust reportedly said breast milk produced by people born male who identify as transgender is “comparable” to breast milk naturally produced by women after giving birth.
The University of Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust (USHT) sent a letter to campaigners stating that transgender breast milk is “comparable to that produced following the birth of a baby,” The Telegraph reported.
There are two case studies trans activists cite when they advocate for men to “chestfeed.” One is of a man who was unable to secrete enough fluid to nourish a newborn. The subject was given an illegal drug (domperidone) and the composition of his secretions still had… pic.twitter.com/W7sjge4SkY
— Two Genders One Truth (@2genders1truth) February 18, 2024
Lottie Moore of Policy Exchange criticized USHT for its letter supporting transgender “chestfeeding,” The Telegraph reported. She reportedly said USHT “is unbalanced and naïve in its assertion that the secretions produced by a male on hormones can nourish an infant in the way a mother’s breast milk can.”
The British hospital trust has since erased the guidelines from its website, replacing them with an external website, La Leche League, which states it “supports everyone who wants to breastfeed or chestfeed in reaching their goals,” according to the outlet.
The hospital trust was the first in Britain to use the term “chestfeeding” to replace the word “breastfeeding,” the outlet reported. Reportedly concerned with tailoring speech to be “more inclusive,” in 2021 USHT created Britain’s “first clinical and language guidelines supporting trans and non-binary birthing people.”
Statements supporting the ability of people born male who identify as transgender to produce milk to feed infants were found within USHT’s guidelines, The Telegraph reported. The hospital trust reportedly runs major hospitals including Royal Sussex County Hospital, Worthing Hospital and Royal Alexandria Children’s Hospital.
Transgender males looking to “chestfeed” babies are given a drug to lactate, the outlet reported. Domperidone, usually prescribed to women facing difficulties in breastfeeding, is reportedly one. The drug encourages the production of prolactin, the hormone that fosters milk production in the body, according to the outlet. (RELATED: Ana Kasparian Says She’ll ‘Never Apologize’ For Slamming Terms Like ‘Birthing Persons’)
One study conducted in 2022 of transgender “chestfeeding” found “milk testosterone concentrations” were less than one percent, according to The Telegraph. The study, which reportedly had a five-month duration, concluded that there were “no observable side effects” in the infants tested. However, it secured no long-term data, the outlet reported
“For a chief executive and medical director of an NHS trust to prioritize trans identities over what is best for mothers and their babies is deeply disturbing,” Sex Matters’ Director Maya Forstate reportedly stated.