Candice Swanepoel speaks out after being shamed for breastfeeding

Dec 20 2016 at 2:15 PM

PROUD CELEBRITY BREASTFEEDING MUMS Victoria's Secret angel Candice Swanepoel has shared photos of her breastfeeding her son Anaca.
Liv Tyler shared a photo of her breastfeeding newborn daughter Lula on July 25. "Sunday morning snuggles with my baby girl. So grateful for this precious gift," she wrote. Photo: Instagram
Thandie Newton posted a photo of her breastfeeding her son Booker, 2, at a music festival on July 16. "Perfect happiness ... This is what my body is made for. And the rest is my choice #freedom," she captioned the pic. Photo: Instagram
Tess Holliday has been sharing photo so her breastfeeding journey wirh son Bowie, posting this image on June 29. "I had to capture this moment because today was the first time I was successful at feeding lil Bowie laying down," she wrote. Photo: Instagram
Two weeks later, Tess Holliday posted this pic with the caption, "@nickhollidayco captured this photo of me getting ready yesterday to shoot ... it reminded me of @gisele's iconic photo breastfeeding on set💅🏻Working moms come in all shapes, sizes, colors & creeds." Photo: Instagram
Alyssa Milano shared a photo of her in the hair and make-up chair while breastfeeding daughter Elizabella, eight weeks, on November 8.
She was best known for having a six pack throughout her pregnancy (above right shows the model days before birth), but lingerie model Sarah Stage is now using her Instagram account to share photos of her with her son, 1-month-old James Hunter. Hitting back at complaints about photos of her breastfeeding her baby, the 30-year-old recently shared the above photo with the caption, "If you don't like this pic, just unfollow me. No need to hate on a beautiful moment with my son #normalizebreastfeeding."
Nicole Trunfio was photographed breastfeeding her son Zion, 4 months, for a shoot for Elle Australia. "When I saw the cover of me breastfeeding, which was unplanned and just natural, I teared up and thought, 'Wow this is such a special moment where my worlds have collided'," she said.
Doutzen Kroes shared a photo of her breastfeeding 5-month-old daughter Myllena alongside husband DJ Sunnery James and 4-year-old son Phyllon, taken for a Vogue shoot. The Victoria's Secret model wrote, "Our mornings ? thank you @nlvogue @paulbellaart ... and of course my loves @sunneryjames Phyllon and Myllena!"
Alyssa Milano shared a photo of her feeding her daughter Elizabella, 6 weeks, on Instagram on October 28. She captioned it with a quote from Czech author Milan Kundera: "Ah, the joy of suckling! She lovingly watched the fishlike motions of the toothless mouth and she imagined that with her milk there flowed into her little son her deepest thoughts, concepts, and dreams."
Olivia Wilde posed with four-month-old son Otis for Glamour in July 2014. She told the magazine, "Breastfeeding is the most natural thing. I don't know, now it feels like Otis should always be on my breast. [But] I mean, I certainly don't really look like that when I'm [typically] breastfeeding. And there's usually a diaper involved." Read more and see more photos here. Photo: Glamour
Alanis Morissette posted an old photo of her with son Ever in for World Breastfeeding Week in 2014. "Family on tour ;) europe 2012 #worldbreastfeedingweek #isupportyou #everlovedhischakraglasses," she captioned it.
Gwen Stefani breastfed son Apollo in the Swiss Alps in 2014, sharing the sweet pic on Instagram.
Billie Piper was spotted breastfeeding baby Winston in public while enjoying a holiday on Miami Beach in 2009. "My nipples are enormous anyway, but they became grotesque [while breastfeeding] – he couldn't not go for them. But the state of my boobs, it was laughable; I was amazed they could get that big!" she told The Guardian in 2010.
Doutzen Kroes shared a photo of her breastfeeding son Phyllon behind the scenes at a photo shoot in 2009. “Working mom ;) feeding my precious baby between pictures,” she wrote on Twitter.
Kourtney Kardashian has spoken about being an attachment parent and breastfeeding her children Mason and Penelope. She said that when her son self-weaned at 15 months it was "traumatising", saying, "He just stopped asking. It's really sad, but it's natural."
Jaime King and her son James, then eight months, snuggled up for a feed in this photo, shared in July 2014. She wrote: "These are the moments a mother lives for. Breastfeeding should not be taboo - and bottle feeding should not be judged - it's ALL fun for the whole family:)"
Lucy Lawless posed for a World Breastfeeding Week campaign photo with son Judah Miro in 2002.
Hilary Duff has said she loved breastfeeding her son Luca. "We’ve bonded a lot during feeding,” she told Life & Style. “It’s very, very special.”
Alyssa Milano has spoken about how she was "lucky to have a baby who ... was a pro at latching on". "Between Milo and a wonderful lactation consultant from the hospital I was in such good hands. I think the thing I like best about breastfeeding is the closeness I feel to Milo and knowing that he’s getting the best of me. The biggest surprise was how something that is so natural can be so awkward in the beginning."
Actress Maggie Gyllenhaal breastfed daughters Ramona and Gloria. The actress once told Babble.com, "You can't tell another person when it's right to stop breastfeeding, or how to put your kid to sleep. Every child is different."
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Model Natalia Vodianova posted this nude photo of herself breastfeeding newborn so Maxim on Instagram on May 4. Photo: Paolo Roversi/natasupernova
Gisele Bundchen showed the true life of a supermodel when she posted this picture on Instagram, along with the caption, "What would I do without this beauty squad after the 15 hours flying and only 3 hours of sleep #multitasking #gettingready."
Penelope Cruz has said she loves breastfeeding her children, telling Allure, “I think I’m very lucky that I can breastfeed my children because sometimes even if a woman wants to, she can’t. I was breastfeeding my son 13 months, and I plan to do the same with my daughter. [Nursing] is addictive. It's hard when the day comes when you have to stop."
Pink tweeted this photo of her breastfeeding her year-old daughter Willow in June 2012. The singer has said, "I support attachment parenting 100% … And have a very happy and healthy little girl to show for it. It’s time we support what’s healthy (breastfeeding) instead of judging it.”
Kristen Bell shared a photo of her breast pump kit from behind the scenes at the Country Music Awards in 2013. She later commented on the people who get upset about women breastfeeding in public, saying, "They’re just boobs! Calm down. They’re under our shirt whether you’re looking at them or not."
Miranda Kerr shared this photo of her breastfeeding son Flynn when he was three months old. "When I'm working, because I'm breastfeeding I pump and then I put the bottles in the freezer and [Orlando] feeds the baby, and that way he has a good bonding experience, too." Photo: Kora Organics blog
Photographer Annie Liebowitz reinterpreted the image of Madonna and child with this 1999 Vanity Fair shot of Jerry Hall breastfeeding son Gabriel.
Salma Hayak earned praise around the world when breastfeeding a hungry baby while on an African aid mission. As she told Nightline, 'I’m in Africa, in Sierra Leone, and I was able to feed an ill baby that was very hungry. I thought about it: am I being disloyal to my child by giving her milk away? And I actually think that my baby would be very proud to be able to share her milk. When she grows up I’m going to make sure that she continues to be a generous, caring person, and I think that’s the best thing I can give her as a mother.”
Mayim Bialik shared a photo of her breastfeeding her then-three-year-old on the subway in 2011; her son wasn't officially weaned until he was four.
According to Hello! magazine, Angelina Jolie tandem-fed her twins Vivienne and Knox on a three hour schedule. She also appeared on the cover of W magazine breastfeeding one of the twins in a photo taken by partner Brad Pitt.
Modern Family's Julie Bowen caused a stir when she showed this photo of her breastfeeding her twin sons, John and Gus, on Lopez Tonight in 2010. "They call it the ‘double football hold.’ You hold one here and here [gesturing to her breasts], like two footballs … They’re doing God’s work right there, helping me return to my [pre-birth] weight.”
Miranda Kerr posted this photo of her breastfeeding after giving birth to son Flynn on January 11 2011. “I intend to breastfeed for as long as I can,” she said. “My breast milk will give our little Flynn the nutrition he needs for his continued healthy development and to all mums out there I am sure you will make the right choice for you and your baby.”

Candice Swanepoel has hit back at critics who judge her parenting choices.

The Victoria's Secret model and her fiance Hermann Nicoli welcomed their first child together in October, a son named Anaca.

Now, Swanepoel has penned a statement on her Instagram page, sharing a black and white photo of herself breastfeeding her baby while slamming those who shame mothers for feeding in public.

"Many women today are shamed for breastfeeding in public, or even kicked out of public places for feeding their children," she wrote. "I have been made to feel the need to cover up and somewhat shy to feed my baby in public places."

The South African mum went on to address what she sees as a double standard, in that people have taken issue with her breastfeeding her son, yet have no problem with her posing for topless pictures that are "done in the name of art".

Many women today are shamed for breastfeeding in public, or even kicked out of public places for feeding their children. I have been made to feel the need to cover up and somewhat shy to feed my baby in public places but strangely feel nothing for the topless editorials I've done in the name of art..? The world has been desensitized to the sexualization of the breast and to violence on tv...why should it be different when it comes to breastfeeding? -Breastfeeding is not sexual it's natural- Those who feel it is wrong to feed your child in public need to get educated on the benefits breastfeeding has on mother and child and intern on society as a whole. 💪🏼💙 👫👭 #mothernature

A photo posted by Candice Swanepoel (@angelcandices) on Dec 18, 2016 at 4:02pm PST

Swanepoel adds that she feels people have become "desensitised" to the "sexualisation" of the breast, ultimately calling on her critics to educate themselves about the issue.

"Breastfeeding is not sexual it's natural - Those who feel it is wrong to feed your child in public need to get educated on the benefits breastfeeding has on mother and child and in (turn) on society as a whole," she stated.

Swanepoel, 28, is the latest star to advocate for the normalisation of breastfeeding. She joins an army of other celebrities who support the practice, including her fellow Victoria's Secret models Doutzen Kroes and Miranda Kerr, as well as model Nicole Trunfio, who made headlines last summer when she was pictured breastfeeding her infant son on the cover of Elle Australia.