Midwives in Lincoln are urging anyone with a pair of knitting needles to start work on creating a pair of woolly breasts.
The fuzzy boobs will be used to help young mums-to-be learn how to breastfeed.
Dawn Thomas, community midwife manager for United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust, is calling for knitting enthusiasts to follow a basic pattern and create artificial breasts, which would be used in feeding demonstrations.
She said: “We want to find the best way for midwife staff to explain breast feeding to new mums.
“Breastfeeding co-ordinators have produced dolls and knitted breasts and we’ve found it to be an excellent way to show young mums what to do – and a much easier way to demonstrate the correct way to go about things.
“If a mother is being shown how to breastfeed on her own body, then when she looks down she can’t see if the baby is attached properly.
“If someone is sitting showing the mother with a doll and a fake boob, then they can show the action the baby is going to take and the correct way to hold the baby.
“The plastic, artificial ones have almost got a sticky sensation to them, and the realism can be off-putting.
“The knitted ones are a lot more fun and a great way to break the ice. You can knit them in a whole range of different colours to try and make future mums smile.”
Mrs Thomas said breastfeeding was highly beneficial to mum and baby.
She said: “Breastfeeding can help the baby in so many ways.
“The nutrients and antibodies help in a range of ways, such as preventing obesity, aiding in better mouth formation and straighter teeth and preventing the risk of diabetes.
“Breastfeeding has even been known to cut cot death rates by up to 50 per cent.
“For the mother, it helps cut the risk of pre and post-menopausal breast cancer, as well as ovarian cancer.”
Fashion designer and knitting aficionado Angela Couple said the pattern for the knitted breast was relatively simple and anyone with a basic knowledge of knitting should be able to pick it up.
She said: “When looking over the knitting pattern, it all seems pretty simple.
“It uses the stocking stitch, which is a basic, easy stitch. Someone with basic knitting knowledge should be able to make a pair up quite easy and have good fun doing it too.
“As a mother-of-two, I know how difficult breastfeeding can be to young mothers. I think this is a really fun idea and will help make young mums feel more relaxed.”
For more information on how to help Mrs Thomas, call (01522) 512512.
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