Here it is - a bit long - sorry!
I found this article tedious, ill informed and vaguely pompous. Dorothy Rowe didn?t actually say anything of interest. The whole article amounted to ?I think babies shouldn?t breastfeed for too long?, a view which is hardly newsworthy.
The majority of the article consisted of vague conjectures arrived at with no supporting evidence and seems to merely reveal the authors distaste in a practice which I suspect she doesn?t know very much about. Time and time again I find it seems to be alright for people to have (and give) an opinion on something which they have never actually done themselves. ?Extended? breastfeeding is a popular topic for debate. What evidence does Dorothy Rowe have that mothers are only breastfeeding their 12 month (or older) babies for ?themselves?. If she were to actually ask any mother in this situation she would see what a ridiculous statement this is. I have ?extended? (why use this word anyway?) breastfed all three of my children, all of whom are quite independent and capable of looking after themselves appropriate to their age. At times I have enjoyed breastfeeding, at other times I have found it tiring and difficult, much the same as any aspect of mothering. I am still breastfeeding my youngest aged 18 months and have no definite time in mind of stopping.
Dorothy Rowe mentions an example of a 40 year old man who doesn?t do his own washing. What has this got to do with breastfeeding a 12 month old? Was this some half hearted attempt at humour? The myth that breastfeeding a toddler makes them dependent on their mother is age-old and over simplistic to the extreme. In fact if anything the opposite is true. The child knows that the mother is there to provide comfort (which happens to be in the form of breastfeeding) and therefore the child feels loved and secure. Security facilitates independence. Obviously this message of security and comfort can be provided in other ways (and is by breastfeeding mothers as well) such as hugs, kisses, special attention and so on?. A child can enjoy many forms of love and breastfeeding just happens to be one of them. A 12 month old child is still very young and is still very dependent upon other people for its needs. Independence is a gradual process. Children aren?t deemed to be safe on their own till some time in their teens so why this hurry to get a mere baby who is still in nappies, maybe not even walking or talking to be independent? Some may argue that breastfeeding a 12 month old isn?t necessary but we don?t always do things in life because they are necessary. We don?t need biscuits with our cup of tea or to give our children the occasional sweet. We do it because we like it. Why shouldn?t a baby have these simple pleasures particularly in a world where it understands very little but the comfort of his mothers arms (and at times breasts too)?
In many parts of the world breastfeeding toddlers and even older children is seen as perfectly normal. Many of these families are poor and certainly don?t have the luxury of worrying about how dependent they are on their mothers. Indeed many of them if it is available attend school and still breastfeed (see ?The Politics of Breastfeeding? by Gabrielle Palmer for more information). If children are clingy or dependent on their mothers then we must look for other reasons for their behaviour, not whether they are still breastfed or not.
I agree with Dorothy Rowe that an 18 month old can understand emotions but these are fairly crude. For example; ?mummy will get cross if I pull all the pans out of the cupboard again?. I hardly think a child of this age can equate breastfeeding with boosting his own mothers self esteem. The link between the two is far, far too vague. Besides being aware of feelings and actually making allowances for them are completely different things. An 18 month old is fiercely selfish most of the time, hence the developmental stage known as the ?Terrible 2?s? where many battle lie between what the child wants to do and what the child has to do to fit in with the rest of the world. And I can tell you (from experience) that you cannot force an 18 month old to breastfeed if they don?t want to nor do anything else for that matter. If an 18 month old can be as acquiescent as the author suggests then we?d see lots of them eating up their bowls of food every day, tidying their toys up and so on just to please their mothers! I wish! Why shouldn?t a mother enjoy breastfeeding anyway? What is so wrong with that?
It has long been known that breastfeeding your child has health benefits for the mother in the form of protection against uterine, cervical and ovarian cancers as well as breast cancer. Cancer Research UK carried out research in 2002 which stated that if a woman were to extend her period of breastfeeding then the risks of breast cancer would drop.
?On average women in the developing world breastfeed for approximately two years, and have six or seven children, as opposed to two months per child and two or three children in the UK. Researcher Dr Gillian Reeves said: "Even if women in the West were to breastfeed each of their children for an extra six months, this could prevent 5% of breast cancers each year."
Friday, 19 July, 2002,
Extra breastfeeding 'prevents cancer' (BBC Online)
So there seems little wrong with breastfeeding a 12 month, 18 month or older child. Children have plenty of time to grow up and become independent and breastfeeding does not affect them adversely. Indeed it can contribute towards a healthy loving relationship between child and mother providing security and comfort particularly when the child is tired, fractious or ill. On top of that the child receives nutrition that is warm, tasty, healthy and boosts their immune system. Furthermore breastfeeding is healthy for mother too.
I wonder if Dorothy Rowe would object if she saw a child of 12 months sucking a piece of silicone (a dummy) or clutching a piece of cloth (?blanky?). I fear she wouldn?t bat an eyelid. Strange that we live in a culture where attachment to inanimate objects is seen as normal (or even to be encouraged) but engaging in a loving exchange between mother and child is viewed with disdain and suspicion.