In ancient times, women could have fed themselves, why did large nobles prefer to invite nurses?Why?

In ancient times, women could have fed themselves, why did large nobles prefer to invite nurses?Why?

In ancient times, nurses were women who specialized in providing breast milk to strangers' children, and they were usually poor women who had to leave their children behind to work as nurses for the children of wealthy families in order to earn a living.

The profession of breastfeeding has a long tradition in Chinese history. As early as the Western Zhou Dynasty, there was a system of nursing mothers teaching children, and in the Ming and Qing dynasties, princes, nobles, and eunuchs would hire nurses to feed their children.

Why did large families in the past hire nursing nurses?Why?That's what we're going to talk about today.

One important reason is that there were no milk powder or other alternatives in the past. Breast milk is the best food for infant growth because it provides nutrients and immunity. If the mother who gives birth has no breast milk or cannot breastfeed, it is necessary to find someone to feed the baby, otherwise the baby will be malnourished or die early.

In the past, medical conditions were not very good and infant mortality was high, so the presence of a guardian was essential for the survival and health of the child.

The second objective reason is that hiring a nursing mother buys time for the birth of a child, and the race to produce offspring will continue. Ancient society was male-centric, and the status and power of men were much higher than that of women, and men could have multiple concubines, while women could only have one husband.

The value of women depends to a large extent on their ability to bring honor and opportunity to the family, as well as their ability to produce sons who are able to inherit family property and wealth.

If a woman breastfeeds her child after childbirth, she is usually less likely to become pregnant again, delaying the birth of other children and lowering her status in the family.

In order to strengthen their marriages and families, many women choose to hire lactation promoters to feed their children and at the same time regain their health and strength in order to get pregnant again and have more children as soon as possible.

The second subjective reason is that asking a wet nurse can not only show your identity and status, but also win the heart of your lover. In ancient times, wealthy and powerful people often took pride in imitating and learning Xi royal Xi customs and the royal nanny system.

The number, morality, and skill of nannies are symbols of honor and status, and the higher the status of the eunuchs, the more nannies will be hired. Hiring a housekeeper is also a symbol of wealth and power. With money and free time, you can enjoy more freedom and leisure without having to struggle to take care of your own children.

There are also some women who, in order to maintain their beauty and brilliance, do not want to affect their figure and **, and do not want their husbands to see their aging and exhaustion, so they recruit lactating mothers to take on this role, in order to attract and retain the heart of their lover.

The last specific reason was that the imperial family introduced a temporary nursing mother system in order to prevent the birth mother of the emperor's son from interfering in politics. In the royal family of the Ming and Qing dynasties, the prince was immediately handed over to the care of the wet nurse immediately after birth, and the biological mother was not allowed to be too close to the child to prevent the biological mother from interfering in politics in the future.

This practice greatly alienated the relationship between the prince and his biological mother, and eliminated the risk of interference by relatives.

However, this has also led to a deepening of the relationship between the children of the royal family and their birth mothers, and some of the children of the royal family even regard their birth mothers as their biological mothers, or have an improper relationship with their birth mothers, leading to some historical anecdotes and tragedies.

In short, why did large families hire nannies in ancient times is a complex and interesting topic, involving many factors such as ancient society, culture, politics, and economy, and also reflecting the emotions and customs Xi ancient people.

Although the profession of nannies no longer exists due to the changes of the times, their stories and influences are still worth thinking about. What are your different thoughts on this?