'Full-Term' Breastfeeding? Until 8? Give me a break...?

Question

I put this is the 'Society' section because I wanted a variety of opinions.

Believe it or not, there are people out there who breastfeed their kids until the kid is age 8 or even older! They've coined it 'full-term' or 'entended' breastfeeding.

OH PLEASE. That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard of.

This lady is psychotic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxv6R9fUO74

Why would an 8 year old child NEED to be breastfed? The child is eating the same foods as their mother! They already have their mother's antibodies from breastfeeding while they were babies.The kid can eat a balanced diet that consists of fruits, vegetables, meats, whole grain wheats, ect.

I'm a BREASTFEEDING ADVOCATE, but that is just taking things too far and too the extremes.

My pediatrician only recommended 12 months.

I say 2 years MAXIMUM.

I believe that breastfeeding a baby for 2 years is enough to provide PLENTY of nourishment.

I can understand this type of behavior in a third world country where food is scarce and children are starving, but in a well developed country, it is extremely silly and unnecessary to continue any longer.

Breastfeeding is for BABIES AND YOUNG TODDLERS, it's not suppose to be a security blanket for 8 year olds, it's for nutritional purposes.

8 year olds don't 'NEED' to be breastfed, end of story.

What are your opinions on the matter? DON'T YOU DARE GET SNIPPY WITH ME.

Answer 1

Ok calm down ... I totally agree that that mom has issues and that kid must not go to school because im sure hed have stopped it himself.

Answer 2

Yeah...that's really sick.  

Answer 3

My friends cousin was breast feed until about 9 and I think its nasty and disgusting because at that age they are able to feed themselves and even cook some meals are at least pour a bowl of cereal.

Answer 4

You watched that video and she told you the reasons.

My opinion:

I agree with you, it is wrong to breastfeed until 8.  It should be against the law because it is damaging the kids mentally!!!!!

(Oh, by the way, I love your attitude! Lol)

My aunt still breastfeeds her 2 kids... ages 13? and 9?  Around that age, I am disgusted with her and her family.

Seriously, her two kids (brother and sister) already had s*x with each other.  I wouldn't be surprised if they had s*x with their mother.

I stay away from these people as much as I can.

Answer 5

I completely agree. In my opinion that is just sick. I fed all three of my kids until they were about a year and a half, none until age 2. I see nothing wrong with feeding up until 2 but 8 is sick. I would have to say that is when the mom is doing it for herself not her child and that is an issue. A very sick individual. It is sick! I did see that though a while back. I don't think I will post all of my opinion on this because I know it would seriously tick a few people off so lets just say that would have to be one sick individual.

Answer 6

You don't want people to get snippy yet you are. I am a strong believer of Extended Breastfeeding and allowing a child to self wean. My youngest was breastfed till 27 months. I am no one to judge anyone who chooses not to breastfeed, give their child cow's milk, or breastfeed till the age of 15. I can say I personally would not breastfeed till 8 but possibly 4. Again I am no one to judge this mother or Millions of mother's out there its their children and they will raise them how they see fit.

Answer 7

Amen sister!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! neither do 2,3,4,5,6,7 year olds.

Answer 8

It's perverted.

Answer 9

Yeah, that's disgusting, and she seems like she's doing in more for herself than for her kids, which is f'ing perverted.

Her excuse is that they get the nutrition from it and it enables them to have higher IQ's... If that is the case, then why doesn't she just pump her milk and let them drink it out of a glass?!! The fact that they suck it out of her b***s is just gross, the way that she talks about it is really creepy too.

I think most people would agree that this is weird.

Answer 10

I don't think it is that strange. I saw an incredibly interesting meta-analysis that examined what the age of human weaning should be compared to other mammals. It concluded that humans should be weaned anywhere from 3 to 9 years. They take into account the gestation period, size of the mammal, age at which the immune system matures, etc.

I also saw various studies that indicated that the longer the children are breastfed, the higher the average IQ goes up. Breast milk has evolved for hundreds of thousands of years to provide the absolute BEST nourishment for a child. Formula can't come close. Children's immune systems are not fully developed until the age of 6, so I don't think it would be that strange to breast feed a child until age 6.

Small children have poor immune system so they get sick a lot. If they were breast fed, I am sure they would have a higher immune system. So if I breast fed my 4-year-old he would have my level of immunity since I am giving him immunity through my breastmilk. He would normally get the flu once or twice a year, like most kids do, but if I were breastfeeding him, he probably wouldn't get it since I developed a much greater level of immunity.

I do not have children yet but I will definitely breastfeed my children until a minimum of 3 years. Also considered pumping and feeding them breast milk in a cup from the age of 3-5.

People are only outraged at breastfeeding an 8-year-old because of cultural conditioning. However, people forget that we are ANIMALS. Our ancestors breast fed there children for up to 15 years. They needed to breast feed because it gave the children nourishment to survive but it also served as a natural birth control. The original hunter-gatherers couldn't have survived carrying several infants around. With breastfeeding, they only had one baby to carry at a time.

The World Health Organization recommends at least two years. They also said the average for around the world is four years.

I will go to about 3 years. I don't care one bit if my friends give me a hard time for doing this. All I care about is my child having immunity and the best health possible, as well as the nutritional nourishment to obtain their maximum IQ potential. I believe that genetics determines intelligence. However, whether you reach the maximum level that genetics allows you depends on whether you received the best nourishment and environmental influences.

For example, suppose I have a kid and at conception his IQ was determined to be 160. If I locked him in a closet and only fed him a piece of bread each day and beat him with a baseball bat, do you think he would turn out to have an IQ of 160? No, he would only have an IQ of 160 if I breastfed him until at least two years or age and provided exceptional environmental influences.

I HATE when people give anecdotal evidence by saying things like "I was bottle fed and I have an extremely high IQ." or "I bottle fed my kid and he is on the honor role." You don't know if your kid could have reached a higher potential if you had breast fed him. Sure he/she won't turn out profoundly retarded if you give them forumula, but they certainly won't reach their maximum potential.