benefits of breastfeeding beyond 12 mo

[ionesmum]

What are they?

My G.P. says that the only benefit is convenience for me.

Sorry if I am repeating anything here but just thinking about your drs original comment about it being for your own convenience. As said here there is a lot more to it than that but even so what is wrong with doing something that is convenient. I remember I held my sons birthday party in a soft play area ? my friend came along with her boy and baby who was about 6 months. At the stroke of 1pm she said that he ?had to have his solids? and then panicked as there was no way of heating up his food and bottle. We eventually hunted down a kettle and she proceeded to fiddle on with bowls and heating up this food and milk and then taking ages spooning it in, and then followed by a bottle of formula ? a lot of which came up afterwards. The child was strapped to a car seat the whole time and had no physical contact with his mother. Contrast that to my kids who at 6 months would have been put to the breast within seconds (no particular time schedule ? as if it matters), been fed and comforted at the same time and probably had fallen asleep. Convenience plays a big part and its all very well for a doctor to say that is not important sitting in their office distanced from it all.

OK rant over?

Well said Eulalia!
Sums the whole ludicrous artificial feeding thing very well indeed.

Thanks again everyone. When dd2 has been poorly I've always felt better that I'm breastfeeding her simply because breastmilk is so easy to digest. I had to bottlefeed dd1 (and it broke my heart for a while) and whenever she got a cold she got snot-filled nappies and an upset tummy, too, which hasn't happened with dd2.

Re the iron thing, I do try - being veggie myself I know what foods she should be having, and dd1 is virtually veggie and isn't anaemic. The problem is that dd2 is so fussy about what she eats. I've tried mixing pureed dried apricots in with yoghurt but she spits it out. Ditto Weetabix/readybrek. The OJ thing won't work as dd2 won't drink from a cup. She only really likes toast, cheese and mango! The thing is, I know if I try to push it things won't get any better, so I just keep offering her what dd1 and I are having.

Just seen this and my first thoughts were along the same lines as Eulalia's last comment - don't knock convenience! Sometimes it's easier to carry something on because it is working and it's convenient then because it has xyz health benefits.

I tried to get my DS2 to take a bottle or a cup with formula at 9 months because I was going out and he spat it out, tried again with cows milk at 13 months (going out again) it made him shudder then he spat it out. I'm so glad I didn't try to wean him onto formula or cows milk because he clearly didn't like it and as it was he gave up b/feeding of his own accord at 16 months.

IMO ignore the Doc, what did the human race do before formula?

Demented, I agree. I used to get so stressed out preparing bottles of bloody formula, which I didn't want to be giving to dd1 anyway. Going out was a nightmare too. I have no intention of ever giving dd2 formula.

As I understand it there is something in breaastmilk that enables th ebody to utilise iron more efficiently. Needless to say it isn't in cow's milk or formula.

Laura, no, you won't be destroying the iron by heating the apricots, but you will the vitamin C. Add this once the apricots are cold before pureeing. Alternatively add other pureed fruit to the porridge. HTH

Hi there

can i quickly introduce myself.I have a dd of 1 year old who is still b/f. i am 36 of age and happy to carry on doing so.my cycles have come back for a while, probably 8 months ago now, but very erratic.i thought b/f was contradicting conception as we are trying for no2, but i am beginning to think that it doesnt. i tried to stop to conceive, but dd wont have it, also i must admint i enjoy too much the emotional side of b/f-the closeness.but i am trying to stop night b/f and i am really really struggling to do so.can any of yous relate to this?
i would be so happy to join your thread.i actually joined the conception thread just in November.thanks

just read quickly your opinions and saw a few familiar names

is there any of you who felt pg still b/f?

your GP clearly isn't doing her homework ionesmum

I'm still bf ds2 18 months but just before bed, he has been on a pint of full fat cow's milk during the day since 12 month

sorry if th is has been mentioned before but if your child is talking a balanced diet of solids then there is no earthly reason why anyone should stop breastfeeding until you both want to (just don't poke your bosom through the school gates at playtime)

ionesmum - have only just caught up with this thread - your GP is talking rot, keep up the brilliant work and continue breastfeeding for as long as you and the baby are happy. As a zillion others have said the WHO recommend it - of course the most important benefits from breastmilk are in the early months, but that doesn't suddenly mean it's of no value later on. The natural age of weaning is much older than what is 'culturally' deemed acceptable these days in the Western world.

I fed dd till she was 2 when she stopped of her own accord. Fresco - I had just fallen pregnant at the point my dd decided to stop. Don't know if the two were related. I was a little relieved as I was beginning to feel so violently sick that I'm not sure I could have managed to feed dd each morning without throwing up on her!

As long as you're ovulating you can get pregnant regardless of breastfeeding.

thanks pidge.how do you know if u ov?

Well, the most obvious sign of ovulation is that you have periods (mine resumed at around 10 months, when I was down to doing 3-4 feeds per day, none overnight). But of course you ovulate 2 weeks BEFORE your period, so that's how a lot of women get caught out getting pregnant whilst breastfeeding. They think they're protected and fall pregnant on that very first ovulation before they've had any periods.

Good luck. There are lots of threads here on when ovulation may restart whilst breastfeeding. It really varies from woman to woman, and depends to some extent on the gaps between feeds.

suzywong, what a lovely image

|O|O|

thanks pidge. can i assume that a 'day 21'test may just tell me if i ov and mayb at what stage of the cycle?

My GP asked ME what the "let-down" reflex was! They're not always experts!

Yes I fell pregnant while breastfeeding - both times although my children were much older. ds was 2 years old when I got pregnant and I fed him right the way through the pregnancy and beyond. dd was 2.5 when I got pregnant this time and I am still feeding her at 2.10 and am 17 weeks pregnant.

If you are having periods you should be fertile and it would be pointless to stop feeding your dd. It may make your cycles erratic and the only prob is that you'd not know your fertile times. I'd say that even if you stopped it may take a few months for your cycles to settle down anyway so you may as well just carry on as you are. There is absolutely no problem with b/feeding while pregnant so don;t even feel you have to stop then although your milk may dry up later on in the pregnancy.

Good luck.

eulalia,thank you so much.it may just be the case that we havent hit the spot at the right time yet

I was also breast feeding when I got pg with ds2 - ds1 was 19 months at time. (took 4 months to conceive ds2 - over 1 year with ds1) Fed ds1 right through pregnancy no probs.
I think it is only when you are exclusivly bfeeding that you are unlikely to conceive.

Ignore the GP, If you were really worried about amaemia, you could give iron drops, but if taking solids probably shouldn't have to.

Sorry, I know there's an "n" in anaemia

I was just having this whinge with my DH in the kitchen today (while DS a breastfed 8 month old was having a nap) on my favourite topic: how bloody useless my HV and GP are and how little they know about B/F!

DH is an engineer and I am a lawyer, so I said to him, if lawyers are meant to understand the law (their own specialisation anyway) and you engineers are meant to know engineering (your own specilisation any way), why is it that my HV and GP know absolutely nothing about MEDICINE ?

I mean for God's sake, isn't medicine what they study ? And isn't B/F and the SCIENCE behind it important ? Obviously not !

I suggest you do what my clients would do if I gave them crap legal advice, find another lawyer (GP in your case) ! LOL