The headline reads, “Are You Mom enough?” But if that wasn’t enough to fan the flames of the Mommy Wars, there’s the photo that goes with it: A pretty young woman wearing skinny jeans and a tank top, nursing her nearly 4-year-old son.

It’s meant to illustrate a story about Dr. William Sears and attachment parenting but, given that there’s more to that movement than extended breastfeeding, it seems as if Time magazine was going for sensationalism and shock value. It’s working.

“As a pediatrician, I believe that every mother should breastfeed her child for at least six months, preferably a year (even longer if they like),” KP.MD commented. “This, however, is extreme. And the photograph — everything about its composition – sends a message that I find tasteless and more than a little disturbing.”

Photographer Martin Schoeller says that the photo, as well as the portraits he shot of other attachment parenting moms nursing their kids, was inspired by the iconic religious image of the Madonna and Child. The boy on the cover is standing on a chair, which makes him look both taller and older — a technique that Schoeller says he used to underscore how unusual extended breastfeeding can seem. Though plenty of people seem to think that Time has gone to far – The Atlantic Wire called the cover “PG-13″ and The Right Scoop describes it as “seriously NSFW” and “soft porn” — to others, the photo wasn’t the most offensive part.

“While this picture is gawk-tastic, I’m more disturbed by the title of the article. ‘Are You Mom Enough?’” Yahoo! reader Chrissy from Conroe, Texas, commented. “I’m sorry…’Mom Enough?’ So this woman is deemed more of a ‘mom’ simply because she chose to breastfeed her child until he was damn near as tall as she is?”

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Source & Image: Yahoo News