Tamara Ecclestone shares 'brelfie': Breastfeeding celebrity mothers who have faced backlash

Tamara Ecclestone seems to be taking no notice of the haters that told her she was "oversharing" and those of her followers that insisted what she was doing was purely "a private thing" when she posted an image of herself breastfeeding her daughter last month, as yesterday (21 July), she shared another smiley image doing the same thing.

The Formula One heiress captioned the photograph of herself, husband Jay Rutland, and baby Sophia, with the phrase: "Homeward bound," as they made their way back to London after holidaying in Mykonos, Greece.

The recent trend in women taking breastfeeding selfies (or "brelfies" as they've been nicknamed in the media), has created an online backlash that has seen mothers confessing that they feel "judged" by the images and the celebrity endorsement the fad seems to be earning itself.

Speaking to Sky News in May about the campaign against the selfies, mother Jen Townsend who faced difficulties breastfeeding her son stated: "Breastfeeding shouldn't be rammed down everyone's throat at the cost of everything else. In a Western society I have never come across anything which is so dogmatic and not pro-choice. I think the problem lies in the fact that women who choose to bottle-feed are feeling victimised, for whatever reason, and 'brelfies' can be just another reminder."

Sophia Freegard, co-founder of website Netmums also said: "Putting new mums under 'bressure' benefits no-one and swapping abusing mums who breastfeed in public for mums who bottle-feed isn't progress.

"Most mothers desperately want to breastfeed - but not all can. What should be a personal choice is being turned into a political issue with mums feeling judged at every turn. Those mums who do choose to bottle-feed - for whatever reason - must not be made to feel second class citizens."

Whilst she might be the most recent famous face to do so, Ecclestone is certainly not the first celebrity mother who has taken to social media to share the more intimate moments in their family life, and those who do have come to be labelled "lactivists".

Gwen Stefani

In 2014, singer Gwen Stefani shared a photograph of herself feeding her then 5-month-old son, Apollo Bowie Flynn whilst enjoying her mountainous surroundings in Switzerland. The mother-of-three has also been spotted many times publicly breast-feeding in the past.

Alyssa Milano

Charmed star Alyssa Milano has been known to take multiple brelfies since it became a bit of an internet sensation, but she first shared an up-close photograph of herself feeding baby Elizabella in December 2014 for which she received some criticism for in the comments.

"I was [surprised by the backlash] and I got really sad about it," she said in an interview on The Talk that same month. "Who are we that now we get upset as human beings if we see a woman feeding her baby? It's crazy to me. Crazy, crazy, crazy."

Blake Lively

Blake Lively chose to take a less obvious brelfie just last week when she shared an image of herself breastfeeding her daughter with Ryan Reynolds, James. Lively is currently shooting for an upcoming project in Thailand and sarcastically joked about having to nurse James by captioning the snap: "The PERKS of breastfeeding."

Alanis Morrisette

Alanis Morrisette shared an image of herself feeding baby Ever Morisette-Treadway from 2012 just under a year ago, with the humourous caption: "family on tour ;)" accompanied with hashtags that read #worldbreastfeedingweek and #isupportyou.

Olivia Wilde

House star Olivia Wilde took it one step further than a simple social media selfie when she took part in a photoshoot with Glamour magazine which saw her breastfeeding her and Jason Sudeikis' son Otis in the middle of a diner.

Jaime King

When Jaime King posted this image of her breastfeeding her son James, she received comments saying that it was "gross" and "weird," but the actress seemed to take no notice. King proudly captioned the image: "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."

Other female celebrities that have photographed themselves in the past being active advocates of breastfeeding include Modern Family's Julie Bowen, models Gizelle, Miranda Kerr, and Doutzen Kroes, singer Pink, and Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie.