"When is it best to stop breastfeeding?"

Originally posted on "Baby Forum: Breastfeeding Crowd" as "3 time nursing mom"


Name: Mum of 1 Title: Breastfeeding

just wondering when is best to stop breastfeeding?




Replies

Name: lisa • Date: 03/09/2006 19:17:03

The worldwide average age of weaning is 4 years, but I understand the average for the U.S. is 2 years.

As for when the best time is, well that is really up to your baby, and you.



Name: 3 time nursing mom • Date: 03/10/2006 02:34:28

Hi Mum!

Although I am sure there will be plenty of people who will tell you that it is entirely up to you (no offense lisa), you already know this. The question you are asking is when is it best? You, in knowing it is entirely up to you want to make your choice to wean by becoming as educated on this as you can.

And though most people will tell you that you should nurse for how long it is comfortable for you, you did ask "when is it best to stop breastfeeding". So that is the question I will answer.

It is best to stop breastfeeding when your child weans him or herself.

All studies on the matter prove this is the best time. All medical agencies that have done studies on this matter prove that this is the best time.

Studies have shown that because breastmilk grows and changes with your baby's needs, it is always the best food for your child. Comparing ourselves with other mammals, taking size, life expectancy, gestation periods all into consideration, the natural time to wean our young is somewhere between 3 to 4 1/2 years of age, and for most of the world that is the case. But in the U.S. it is a different story unfortunately.

Most children that are allowed to nurse as long as they desire will usually wean themselves between 2 3/4 to 4 1/2. This is the worldwide norm and further supports the fact that this is what Nature intended. And as in all the cases where we walk away from Nature's recommendations, we discover that Momma Nature really does know best, just like most mothers

UNICEF and WHO (World Health Organization) both strongly recommend nursing up to and beyond the age of two.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that "Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child... Increased duration of breastfeeding confers significant health and developmental benefits for the child and the mother... There is no upper limit to the duration of breastfeeding and no evidence of psychologic or developmental harm from breastfeeding into the third year of life or longer." (AAP 2005)

The American Academy of Family Physicians recommends that breastfeeding continue throughout the first year of life and that "Breastfeeding beyond the first year offers considerable benefits to both mother and child, and should continue as long as mutually desired." They also note that "If the child is younger than two years of age, the child is at increased risk of illness if weaned." (AAFP 2001)

Note that both of the American agencies did say "mutually" and this is indeed true, because if a mother is nursing against her will, the child will notice this and it is not a benefit, even though the child will still be receiving other benefits.

However I think that this is an injustice to the American child, for we in the U.S. live in a society that still attaches a stigma to nursing toddlers, therefore most mother do not give nursing their toddlers a chance. Most who do give it a chance are surprised to find that they find themselves still 'mutually desiring' the nursing relationship. This is not surprising considering that nursing our children into their third year is actually the most natural thing in the world. Only the U.S. has walked away from this fact. Far too often the American mother has decided that extended nursing would no longer be 'mutually desirable' on her end and weans before giving it a chance and discovering that indeed she would find it desirable, thus her child loses out on benefits that (s)he could have continued receiving.

Children that are allowed to nurse as long as they desire have been documented as being more self-confident then their peers. This makes sense as it is clear from their very beginning that mother will listen to them and provide them with their needs.

Even in these older stages, a nursing toddlers have a more mature immune system and come down with illness less often then weaned toddlers.

Extended breastfeeding past the 2nd year has many positive benefits for the mother also, long after the nursing relationship has ended, including strong reductions in Breast Cancer, Ovarian Cancer, Uterine Cancer, Endometrial Cancer, Osteoporosis. Breastfeeding also has been shown to decrease insulin requirements in diabetic women, which I personally can attest to.

This is all just the surface of health benefits which you and your child will enjoy by breastfeeding for the length of time Mother Nature intended.

If you would like more info on this, a simple search using the keywords "extended breastfeeding" will supply you with plenty.

I know I answered this as though you lived in the U.S. and now seeing how you titles yourself as "Mum", it has dawned on me that you may not be in the U.S. Please forgive me if that is the case. Either way the information I posted is still valid.

So once again, the honest answer to your question of when is it best to stop breastfeeding, is

For as long as your child desires.

Hope this helped.