US mother who breastfeeds her son AND a friend's child sparks furious debate - but insists they all share a 'special bond'

A mother has posted a controversial photo of her nursing a friend's child

Jessica Anne Colletti posted the snap for National Breastfeeding Week

The photo shows Mrs Colletti feeding both her own son and a friend's

The Pennsylvanian mother called the children 'milk siblings' 

She has been breastfeeding the 18-month-old since he was five months 

Mrs Colletti told Daily Mail Australia her friend is 'very much on board'

She says it just 'made sense' to nourish him in the same way as her son 

 
She has received a flood of support and criticism following the post

Mrs Colletti said she has also been inundated with male friend requests


'Special bond': Jessica Anne Colletti has sparked criticism after posting a photo of herself breastfeeding both her own 16 month old son (right) and her friend's 18 month old son (left) on Facebook

'Milk siblings': Mrs Colletti posted the photo to celebrate the conclusion of National Breastfeeding Week

'Happy World Breastfeeding Week!' Mrs Colletti wrote.

'I watch her son while she works and have been feeding them both for a year! So much love between these milk siblings, it's a special bond between us all.'



'It just made sense to nourish him in the same way': She has been feeding her friend's son for over a year



'A lot of people are misinformed': Mrs Colletti says most people don't understand 'breastfeeding relationships'

Mrs Colletti says her friend is 100 per cent happy with it.

'My friend and her son live with me and my husband. She knows everything about me and trusts me with the care of her child,' Mrs Colletti said.

'She knows I want nothing but the best four our boys, which is why she supports me breastfeeding our babies.'

The post, which has since been liked more than 500 times, received a mix of positive and less supportive responses from users.



Support and criticism: Mrs Colletti has received both a flood of support and comments criticising her choice

'I wish that I could like this a million times!' One user wrote.

'Wet nurses saved many lives years ago,' another said.

WHAT IS A MILK SIBLING?

Milk siblings are non-related infants who are breastfed by the same wet nurse.

'Milk kinship' was the practice of forging relationships or bonds between two infants nursed by the same non-biological mother within communities.

Others were less impressed.

'I'm sure she [the friend] is definitely NOT okay with it,' one person wrote.

'Sorry but that's strange,' another commented.

Mrs Colletti says the criticism doesn't come as a surprise.

'I'm glad to get so much support from breastfeeding advocates and am not surprised by critics - a lot of people are misinformed about breastfeeding relationships,' Mrs Colletti said.

'The sexualisation of breasts and the belief that breast milk is gross because it is a bodily fluid has been ingrained in us through society, media and lack of breastfeeding in our daily life.'

Mrs Colletti has since considered removing the post altogether due to the negative feedback and other users hassling her.

Salma Hayek breastfeeds a baby in Sierra Leone (archive)



Second best alternative: The World Health Organisation says milk from a healthy wet nurse is the second best alternative to expressed milk from a child's own mother - when direct breastfeeding isn't an option

'May have to delete this post': Mrs Colletti revealed she is getting a lot of male friend requests as a result