Emma Woodhams hits back at critics with breastfeeding pic after being told it was 'disgusting'

She welcomed her first son in January

Nappy baby

Love Island star Emma Woodhams has confronted critics who slammed her for posting a picture of her breastfeeding her son, which they claimed was 'disgusting'.

The 20-year-old mum opened up about the nasty comments she had received since sharing a candid picture on her Instagram of her breastfeeding.

Despite many of her followers praising the intimate picture, Emma was accused of making the photo too sexualised, and some even branded it 'disgusting'.

Emma wrote: 'Breastfeeding is the most magical thing to me. As a society I do not believe we should ever pressure women to breastfeed if they don't feel able/want to, in the same way we have no right or real reason to discriminate or judge a mother for breastfeeding wherever she needs to.'

A photo posted by on

Explaining why she wanted to share the intimate picture, she said: 'I use this photo for one reason, we were simply taking a bath and he just latched on without prompt or guidance because it is natures way, he instinctively knows how to survive.

'How can that be in any way sexualised or disgusting? I have been victim to nasty comments or looks when I have been feeding Alfie publicly (always discretely) as I think most women have, I had no idea how many people disapprove of it until experiencing the backlash first hand 😫.'

Emma continued: 'Society open your god damn mind! #normalizebreastfeeding #firsttimemum #mumlife #unconditional'.

A photo posted by on

Several of her 321,000 followers flooded the picture with comments of support and shared their own experiences of being shamed for breastfeeding.

One wrote: 'So true, breastfeeding is so hard in public!' Another said: 'Beautiful photo @emmajwoodhams and very well said. Boobs are made for feeding end of!! I am currently breast feeding my 6 week old little boy and nobody is going to make me feel bad for doing it xx'.

Emma gave birth to baby Alfie in January, a few months after splitting from the his dad, Terry Walsh. She's previously spoken about her gruelling 52 hour long labour, which she later described the day as the 'best moment' of her life.

Jessica Ransom
Senior Food Writer

Jessica is a freelance food writer, stylist and recipe tester. She previously worked as Senior Food Writer at Future. While at Future Jessica wrote food and drink-related news stories and features, curated product pages, reviewed equipment, and developed recipes that she then styled on food shoots. She is an enthusiastic, self-taught cook who adores eating out and sharing great food and drink with friends and family. She has completed the Level 1 Associate course at the Academy of Cheese and is continually building on her knowledge of beers, wines, and spirits.