The sooner we stop viewing women as sex objects, the sooner we can get on with it. What's wrong with me sitting on a bench in the high street at lunchtime and eating my sarnie? Nothing, I hope. I think it's the same for the four-month old; she was just having her lunch! And if I as a mother decide to get over my own embarrassment and breast-feed in public, then I should be applauded, not reprimanded, thank you. Name and address withheld

Come on Britain, grow up! Breast feeding is a normal, healthy, and even uplifting activity - a mother passing on the gift of life to her child. Only the prudish could take offence at this most natural of events. Bill Currie, Curitiba, Brazil

There are a lot of things a person can do to embarrass others in public other than breast-feeding, such as men in cars honking at women (or indeed vice versa), passionate kisses being exchanged in a train during rush hour or (my favourite) men and women relieving themselves on the streets when nature calls after a night out and 100 pints of lager. I personally find people with body odour more offensive than women who breast-feed in public. On the other hand, women breast-feeding in public can be compared to women wearing low-cut or see-through tops - you can't expect to be able to do it without attracting some sort of attention. There's a time and a place for everything, though I find it amusing that the police felt that a restaurant would be a more appropriate place to breast-feed than a busy high street where most people wouldn't even have noticed. To be honest, I'm a bit concerned that the police could find the time to go out of their way to make a woman feel like a "criminal" when Britain's crime rate doesn't seem to be improving. So when we ask ourselves "Where are the police when we need them?" Now we know. Ola Mark, Paris

It is perfectly natural for a mother to breast-feed her child in public. The attitude of the complainant is foolish and small-minded but what is perhaps more surprising is that the police officers concerned felt compelled even to speak to her about it. We seem to exist in a society where any complaint is given merit out of fear of complaints being made about inaction. Sally Fryer, Bristol

Having successfully breast-fed my three children, I feel strongly that discreet breast-feeding cannot be offensive to anyone. When done confidently, there is nothing to see. The problem is that breast-feeding is a skill and mothers take a while to learn how to be discreet. Once both mother and child are confident then I see no reason why breast-feeding cannot be done any place and any time. Surely that is less upsetting than seeing a crying baby and a distressed mother. What could be more natural? Also, facilities for mothers and babies vary greatly. It can be very unpleasant to sit in a small over-heated room next to an overflowing nappy bin. Fresh air is preferable in every way. If breast-feeding does offend so much, then why not look away as people often do when much more antisocial behaviour is going on (loud swearing, smoking, heavy drinking, etc). Leave mothers alone, they have a difficult enough time as it is. Deborah East, Norwich

Breast-feeding in public is not abnormal; it does not need to be challenged in this way - society's view of breasts as quasi-genitals does. The right of my child to be breast-fed surpasses the sensibility of any passer-by who may see a centimetre square of flesh should they be staring. I've fed my child hundreds of times in public without so much as a comment. It's a sad legacy of the bottle generation that many people simply don't realise a child being held at that angle across my lap is most likely being fed. Let's make sure our children know different. Jane Hamilton, Winnipeg, Canada

As a society we should make it as easy as possible for women to breast-feed because of the health benefits it gives to babies. Their welfare is more important than people's hang-ups. Mature adults should be able to accept a woman breast-feeding in public, after all, feeding babies is what breasts are for. Breast feeding in private often means using a toilet - we would not expect adults to have their dinner in the Ladies. S. Taylor, Cheltenham

I am currently breast-feeding our 6th child. I have fed him and all the others all over the place - in parked cars, restaurants, planes and trains, even while teaching a group of teenage boys. I have always been discreet, not exposing anything which is normally covered. I have never once had a complaint - nor would I expect any. Breast-feeding a baby is the most natural thing in the world. Obviously it is inappropriate to display all in public in the same way as topless sunbathing is only acceptable on certain beaches. But other than that, if anyone who has a problem with it, it's their problem, not mine! Vicki Belovski, London

I find it ridiculous that we live in a country where naked breasts are on display in daily newspapers and on the front covers of magazines, yet breast-feeding is still viewed as somehow exhibitionist. I have been breast-feeding my daughter for over two years, I have fed her whenever and wherever she has needed it, and never have I indecently exposed myself. Being a mother of a new baby can be daunting and isolating; to make women feel that they should have to hide away to breast-feed is unreasonable and unsupportive. Scottish women are protected by law and have the right to breast-feed anywhere it is acceptable to take a baby. It is time we had this same protection here in England, not to mention a police force that doesn't waste time persecuting women for simply caring for and feeding their babies the way that nature intended. Jenny Allen, Neston

I had my second child in the Netherlands where breast-feeding in public is much more acceptable; it certainly encouraged me to feed my son myself until he was almost a year old. If it is acceptable to bottle-feed a baby in public, it should also be acceptable to breast-feed. Tracey Berry, Birmingham

While I can imagine, sadly, that certain members of the community are offended by breast-feeding and would actually bother to take the time to complain, I am astonished that the police officer in question felt it necessary to inform the mother. She was neither breaking the law nor causing a public disturbance, and however politely tackled, one must surely appreciate how embarrassing this must have been for her. Regretfully, breast-feeding in a pub or restaurant would have probably resulted in the same way. It's a shame the police officer didn't suggest to the older member of the community to merely look the other way. Sonia Ramos, Geneva, Switzerland

It's a beautiful sight; far more attractive than the beer-bellied slobs who parade shirtless with 27 layers of fat bobbing around and pants slung so low you can see the cracks of their bums. YUK. Keep the breast-feeding, ban the slobs. Sally Holmes-Mackay, Vancouver, Canada

I don`t like it when mothers breast-feed their babies in the high street. It is not good - or polite. Jose Moreno, Lima, Peru