Time Magazine Cover: Breastfeeding

I like the basic idea of attachment parenting but I think some people take it a little further than necessary

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it becomes a bit odd when the child gets past 18 months

Freesia, I have to say I disagree. It is totally natural to continue breastfeeding for four years or more, and has been proven again and again to bring wonderful, life long health benefits to the child. And I'm not just talking about children in the developing world but all children everywhere.

Interestingly, there are studies of primate weaning which show that generally, apes self-wean at around the time they get their permanent molars, which in human children would be about 6 years old.

Also, you know they don't use their teeth when they breastfeed! my daughter got teeth at 1 year old and never once bit me while feeding. If you seriously think children should be weaned from breastmilk as soon as they begin getting any teeth through, you would be depriving them of precious antibodies and nutrition that really can't be paralleled by any other type of milk. most children start teething before 1 year old, many at only a few months old. you don't seriously think they are too old for breastmilk at that age?

I breastfed my daughter for 2 and a half years and she is now five and has never had a single stomach bug or diarrhoea in her life. I used to be embarrassed by this because of people's reactions (especially my mother! who was disgusted) but now I am really proud of the fact that she is so strong and healthy.

As a society we really need to get realistic about so called 'extended' breastfeeding (i.e. natural term breastfeeding) and GET OVER IT! and on a board like this I think we should be open minded about the many health benefits of feeding young children naturally.

ok lets criticize moms who care about their kids....

stuff like this bothers me a lot. there are hundreds of moms out there that are horrible parents, that neglect their children, abuse them, starve them and much worse. why criticize moms who are trying to do the best they can to take care of their children?

Not in this culture! I feel bad for that kid-I thought the naked toddler in the bathtub were embarrassing enough.
On an objective POV however, it is better than cows milk.

I think when you're old enough to remember breastfeeding and if you're old enough to talk and request it you're probably old enough to be weaned. I developed memories pretty early (first hazy memories around 2 or 3 years old) and I'm pretty grateful I don't remember sucking on my mom's boob

I think when you become a mother, your single greatest priority becomes your child's health and you surprise yourself by how far you are willing to go to protect them and give them the best start.

My husband has crohn's disease and when I learned that I can greatly reduce the chances of our daughter developing Crohn's if I breastfed her for a minimum of two years, I knew what I had to do.

A few generations ago it was actually normal to breastfeed children to age 4 and over, and many people would have grown up with conscious memories of being at their mothers' breast. You don't need to worry that it would screw up your sexuality or something!

Breastfeeding was really, really hard at times. I had double mastitis (I know how those poor dairy cows feel ... ), cracked nips, the works. But I persevered and I am so glad I did. Mostly the problems I had were from narrow minded people who just see breasts as sexual objects and accused me of making my daughter dependent on me, 'making a point' and generally being a freak.

if you are in any doubt about the health benefits of breastfeeding beyond 1 year of age, just google it. the evidence is overwhelming.

and - one more thing! - I am not convinced why there should be any inherent 'differences' between the way young children are fed in tribal societies and ours. We are the same species with the same needs. You can breastfeed beyond one year as a hippyish attachment parent or you can do it as an old-fashioned disciplinarian. No reason why you can't choose to breastfeed on a strict schedule or as and when the kid wants it.

I would have breastfed my son longer (but not that long..) if I could. There's no negative health effects to extended breastfeeding. I honestly don't think it's a big deal, but a lot of moms treat the length of breast feeding as a competition. Not much unlike the 'more vegan than you' debates that sometimes happen..

Me too, I know how you feel. I cried ever time I had to breastfeed because it was so painful. But I managed to tough it out for 7 months

I was just reminded of this Youtube clip I watched ages ago, takes all kinds:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxv6R9fUO74

don't these kids past 2 want to be breastfed? are the moms forcing them to do it?

i highly doubt any of these kids are being forced to breastfeed and probably really want to.

this has a lot involved in it, from how afraid Western culture is of bare breasts and breasts in general is big one!

also we all have different personalities, for some kids maybe breastfeeding over 2 or 4 years old might be the best thing for them.

just to be clear, breastfeeding kids older than 1-2 is not solely about nutrition, it does have added health benefits but this is not how these kids are getting most of their calories, they eat food too. breastfeeding with older kids is more about time with mom.

yoooooooo!

well this thread's really taken off hasn't it?

If they are old enough to ask or serve themselves, it's time to stop.

why?

Cause it's creepy.

Seriously to each their own but my personal comfort level ends when the kids are old enough to ask.

I'd be worried that if I breast fed for too long my kid would become like this guy:

Attachment 18419
"Hey brother"

Well said.

The US surgeon general stated that babies should be optimally breastfed for at least a year, and it was the lucky child who breastfed till age 2 or beyond.

Don't fall for the formula companies' bull****ting you that breastfeeding is only for tiny babies with no teeth. Older toddlers nurse for comfort more than food, and when they are sick or fighting off a germ, it is the best (and sometimes only) thing they can tolerate. Mothers can often also nurse through pregnancy and tandem nurse their older toddler and the new baby.

Working as a lactation consultant, I dealt with lots of different situations. Relactation because of a 2-year old going through chemo not tolerating food? Yup it can be done.

I don't think we should be judgy of other women's parenting choices. Breastfeeding is wonderful health wise with lifetime benefits for both mother and child, but when my patients want to bottle feed, I don't judge or preach. Every family is different, every baby's needs different.

A great book is The Politics of Breastfeeding, old but a real eye opener. The part about the dairy companies wanting something to do with leftover whey and deciding babies were their new customers is pretty revolting. And I'm sure the whole nestles boycott over sending expired formula to SELL in underdeveloped countries to women with no access to clean water with which to mix it, spending half the family income on the milk powder, umm sorry OK I will /end rant. Pet peeve.

I think putting this in the general "you" is very incorrect. There are plenty of parents who do not make their children's health and protection a priority.

But if someone wants to do extended BFing, more power to them.

Okay why is it breastfeed breastmilk or give none at all? It's called pump the breastmilk if you want to give it your kid, it's not necessary to have your kid sucking on you boob at 3 or 4 years old, i definitely wouldn't want to remember that, maybe it's just me but i honestly think it would have caused a huge aversion to boobs for me, including to my own if that was stuck in my memories. That said go ahead and do whatever you want.

The older kids are still getting most of their nutrients from solid food, nursing is about mom time and comfort. And some people have a hard time pumping anyway. (This gal! )

Dr Sears from the article recommends co-sleeping, so the child wakes at night to nurse. Western kids don't all sleep in cribs down the hall with a baby monitor.