Breastfeeding selfies will be one of 2015’s biggest trends, according to the UK parenting site Netmums. Jaine Blackman takes a look at the rise of ‘brelfies’ and why many new mums are still nervous of breastfeeding in public

Forget selfies, the latest trend for new mums is the brelfie... pictures of themselves breastfeeding.

Celebrity mums including models Miranda Kerr and Giselle Bundchen, and singers Pink and Gwen Stefani have posted their pictures online and, nationally one in five breastfeeding mums (19 per cent) have already taken their own brelfie, with a further six per cent planning to, according to parenting website Netmums.

In Oxfordshire, the survey found that 13 per cent had taken pictures, but were less keen on sharing them.

“While the number of mums breastfeeding in Oxfordshire is consistently above the national average, the brelfie trend has been a little slower to catch on than in other areas,” says Rachel Burrows, editor of Netmums.

“Nationally, the trend is most pronounced with young mums in their 20s taking the snaps to post on social media. But with many Oxfordshire mums waiting until their 30s to have children, they may be a little less keen to share the images.”

However, nine in ten women in the county who took part in the survey backed the right to post the snaps online.

It’s causing quite a stir – Henley mum-of-two Emma Taylor went on This Morning on ITV to talk about it and was told it smacked of “naked exhibitionism” by broadcaster and columnist Angela Epstein, who is pro-breastfeeding, but anti-brelfie.

Burrows says the brelfie will help make images of breastfeeding a normal and positive part of everyday life, and it seems that the message is needed.

New research reveals a third (32 per cent) of nursing mums have been told to stop or move out of view.

Such requests are now against the law – the 2010 Equality Act makes it unlawful for a business to discriminate against a breastfeeding woman – yet there’s no doubt it still happens.

After a mother was asked to cover up with a napkin while feeding her baby at the London hotel Claridges in December, the UKIP leader Nigel Farage was criticised for saying it was up to venues to decide their rules on public breastfeeding, pointing out that some people were uncomfortable with “ostentatious” breastfeeding.

A recent survey by Freida’s Feeding Food found that 11 per cent of mums had been told to feed their baby in a toilet, 14 per cent told to sit in the corner, and seven per cent were asked to stop altogether.

The study also found that two thirds of mums don’t feel UK society supports breastfeeding, and only 26 per cent are comfortable feeding in public.

The fear of breastfeeding in public is thought to be one of the issues that contributes to most women stopping breastfeeding before the recommended six months, coupled with difficulties in latching the baby on to the breast, worries about milk supply, and sore nipples and breasts.

Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust was recently given a Certificate of Commitment as part of the global Baby Friendly Initiative, set up by Unicef and the World Health Organisation to improve care for mothers.

Trust director of nursing Ros Alstead said: “Breastfeeding protects babies against a wide range of serious illnesses, including gastroenteritis and respiratory infections in infancy as well as cardiovascular disease, asthma and diabetes later in life.

“We know breastfeeding reduces the mother’s risk of some cancers. It’s also free, readily available and promotes bonding between mother and child.”

Initiative director Sue Ashmore said: “Surveys show us most mothers want to breast feed but don’t always get the support they need.”

Charity Best Beginnings is aiming to give mothers more confidence with a free app, Baby Buddy, to help support women through pregnancy and for the first six months of their child’s life, and it features a film about a mother who overcomes her fears about breastfeeding in public. The app also includes information about local breastfeeding support groups.

“It’s very important that women know it’s their legal right to breastfeed their baby wherever they are, and for the owners of cafes, restaurants and other places to understand their responsibility as well,” says Alison Baum, chief executive of the charity.

“Women do have experiences when they’re breastfeeding out and about which are far from perfect, because our culture isn’t as supportive of breastfeeding as many other Western countries. But breastfeeding is natural and normal, and mothers should be allowed to feed their babies wherever they want.”

She points out that “the vast majority of breastfeeding mums show considerably less breast than many teenagers do when they’re out on a Saturday night”.

And take considerably fewer selfies!