Can't find a thread that explains this sorry... but could someone tell me more about extended breast feeding?

[RudeEnglishLady]

Hello,

This is my first post on this thread. I normally post on AIBU / relationships / overseas so I'm not a troll. I don't want a controversial debate like on AIBU just some info and opinions! What it is, I'm going to be breastfeeding and I would like to know 1)when does breastfeeding become extended breastfeeding and 2) what are the benefits of doing this?

I asked the midwife and she seemed to be saying that extended breastfeeding is just about the mother. That doesn't sound right to me and I think if I'm going to plan out 8+ months of BF and if there are particular benefits of extended BF, then I may as well continue. I don't have to go back to work and don't have to care for other children full-time so feel equipped to give this 'my best shot'. Also, I'm overseas and so don't feel any social pressure to feed in a certain way.

Many thanks for your advice.

Hi, REL. Extended breastfeeding is sometimes termed 'natural term breastfeeding' as 'extended' is so socially and culturally defined. I mean, some people start twitching if they think of a baby being breastfed for longer than a few weeks!

For practical purposes, though, I would say that UK parents tend to think of 'extended' bf as beyond a year or so. Others may disagree.

Breastfeeding is a lovely relationship between the child and mother and it's not just 'for' the mother. In addition, breastmilk is always a nourishing,valuable drink. So a lot of people think 'why stop before the child seems to want to?'

Thats great, BF is very nutritious. I continued till my DD was just over 12 months. Breast milk contains everything the baby needs and the bond between you and child will grow very strong.
I found this online, hope it helps;
www.storknet.com/cubbies/breast/AS-bfbenefits.htm

extended breastfeeding is feeding longer than the norm, different people have different ideas as to how long that is.

most people who ebf do it because they haven't gotten around to stopping/see no reason to stop, not because they've made a conscious decision to bf for x amount of time.

if you're planning on bfing for 8 months then carrying on on to a year means you'll probably never have to bother with formula/sterilising etc.

ebfing is not 'just about the mother' although it is good for the mother - the longer you bf the more protection you have from breast/ovarian cancers. the benefits of bfing continue for as long as you nurse for, the emotional security and closeness, the immunological benefits to the child (a childs immune system isn't mature until they're around 7) and the nutrition - the same HV you spoke to will be wanting your chid to have plenty of cows milk if you stop bfing, why give a child milk designed for baby cows if you are willing and able to give it milk designed for baby humans?

Some people worry that if you continue bfing then you will never be able to go out for an evening, from 9 months I worked 3 evenings a week and DD had milk when I was there, not when I was away, by 9-12 months your supply is very established and the baby's feeding is much more flexible than many realise.

My DD is 3 in August and still nurses 2-3 times a day when we're together, but goes to her grandparents for the weekend and isn't at all worried by not having 'mum mums' while there.

Just carry on doing what you feel is best for your baby.

I don't think there's a formal definition of "extended" BF. The World Health Organisation recommends that breastfeeding continues until the child is at least two years old, so logically "extended" breastfeeding would be past that point, but as your HV has shown many people define "extended" as "the point where I personally get weirded out by it". I'm not sure the term "extended breastfeeding" is particularly helpful; I prefer "natural term breastfeeding", i.e. breastfeeding until the child chooses to stop. In the case of mine DS nursed until he was 3.2 but DD only until about 20/21 months. Both of them self-weaned very gradually.

I have never understood the "just about the mother" thing. I would love to find a HV spouting that stuff at me. Are they saying that your child shouldn't have milk at all at this age? No. Are they saying that cow's milk is more beneficial and better suited to the needs of a small human than human milk? No, not normally (and if they were I would like to see one tiny shred of evidence for that view). So in what possible way is giving a child the milk he needs in the form best suited to him "just about the mother".

Anyway, for the specific health benefits:

In the second year (12-23 months), 448 mL of breastmilk provides:

29% of energy requirements
43% of protein requirements
36% of calcium requirements
75% of vitamin A requirements
76% of folate requirements
94% of vitamin B12 requirements
60% of vitamin C requirements

(Source: Dewey KG. Nutrition, Growth, and Complementary Feeding of the Breastfed Infant. Pediatric Clinics of North America . February 2001;48(1))

Nursing toddlers between the ages of 16 and 30 months have been found to have fewer illnesses and illnesses of shorter duration than their non-nursing peers. (Source: Gulick EE. The effects of breastfeeding on toddler health. Pediatr Nurs . 1986 Jan-Feb;12(1):51-4.)

Antibodies are abundant in human milk throughout lactation. In fact, some of the immune factors in breastmilk increase in concentration during the second year. (Source: Goldman AS, Goldblum RM, Garza C. Immunologic components in human milk during the second year of lactation. Acta Paediatr Scand. 1983 May;72(3):461-2.)

One study [I only have it noted as "Ferguson et al, 1987"] showed a significant link between the length of time children had been breastfed as toddlers and their teachers' ratings of how well socially adjusted they were aged six to eight.

Increased time spent bf also offers some protection for the mother against breast cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, endometrial cancer, osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis.

It's also great for helping them calm down and great when they are ill and don't fancy eating.

Hello Professor, Robyn, FYI and Tik,

Thanks for that mix of support and science! So what I'm hearing here is that there are clear health benefits for Mother and Child but also that the relationship is key and will dictate the length of BFing.

The links and the science bits are great - I can share them with DP and family who are all a bit sceptical on BFing. DP wants to be educated on this and I know he'll support me, family - well - I feel like certain family are trying to justify the fact that they didn't/don't BF and honestly they don't have to. I'm just getting the message that I'm making life hard for myself and if I want a "good baby" i.e. one that sleeps all night I'd better feed formula. I'm just not that bothered about the sleep thing - is it even true?

The midwife is a sweetie really, she's just a bit vague and very 'whatever suits you dear!' when sometimes I like to know what is the best thing to do and then aim for this rather than the easy option.

One more question - and this is about me! Am I right in thinking that you can't smoke cigarettes when you BF?

Its just that I quit a heavy habit as soon as I got pregnant and only the righteous indignation about not smoking while pregnant has got me through it! If I couldn't smoke for a further 2 years that would be very helpful to me.

Thanks again and will be visiting this board much more from now on!

hi RudeEnglishLady, with all due respect your midwife is talking bollocks

can't compete with all the info others have given, but I used to think BFing past a year or so was a bit... odd... but hey, the World Health Organisation says 2 years is beneficial, so that's the minimum I'm aiming for.

You shouldn't smoke when BF. If you do smoke then the evidence is (and I don't have a reference on this one, but tiktok may be able to provide it) that it's still better for the baby to be bf by a smoking mother than to be ff by a smoking mother. But being bf by a smoking mother is a long way behind being bf by a non-smoking mother.

I have no idea about smoking affecting breast milk, but I have heard that if you smoke then to avoid it harming your baby you should smoke away from the child - outside if they're inside - and before you hold the child you should change all your clothes, have a shower and wash your hair, not very convienient, is that enough to keep you encouraged? good luck with the smoking, it is really hard, my dad gave up smoking before he got married, 30 years ago, and still says he feels like an ex, not a non smoker.

I read somewhere that smoking while breastfeeding can cause your baby to vomit. Also, cuddling your baby when you've just had a cigarette is not going to be great for your baby anyway. Something that I saw recently on TV was saying that smoking can be a contributing factor towards glue-ear, even if you smoke outside, because the smoke clings to your hair/ clthes is on your breath...
Does that help?

ooh yes, I saw the glue ear thing, they were very adamant that even if you smoked away from the child that wasn't enough, there was one poor little boy who's dad refused to believe the doctor and the boy's ears just kept getting worse

I think the notion of 'extended' bf seems to conjure up images of 8 year olds being bfed, which is hardly helpful. Anyway, here's my experience...

Lots of the anti-extended bf opinions seem to rest on this idea that you continue to be at the beck and call of your DC in the same way as the first few months. It may be more like that if you are still night feeding, I imagine (ready to be corrected). However, I started scaling down my feeding when my DS was around 9 months old, when he had formula during the day at nursery (I couldn't keep producing enough through expressing) but I still bf'd morning and night. At 18 months, I am still doing this and we're both happy. As I see it, he is continuing to get the benefits of breastmilk alongside his solid food, but I am doing it in a manageable way. It impacts on my evenings only in that I prefer to put him to bed myself and only go out after he's asleep, but as he goes to bed at 7.30 that is not a major issue. Evenings out are fine. I don't feed during the night, I shush and pat back to sleep when necessary. My DS enjoys his two feeds a day but doesn't ask for more; I don't have him tugging on my clothes or crying 'boobie!' (not to criticise people who have this and are fine with it, but I know the thought of this puts some people off). It has proved a really good compromise for me, and my supply seems to have adjusted to this. So my advice would be to take it day by day and adjust to fit your circumstances - extended bf'ing doesn't have to mean feeding many times a day or all of the night.

And well done on quitting smoking! You have done brilliantly. Why not tell yourself that you can't continue for your own and your DC's benefit, never mind the bf issue?

In that case I'll read that as 'Absolutely no smoking REL'. I've never been one for smoking in the house but I was just thinking about all that formaldehyde and stuff being in my body and getting in the milk.

I do prefer being a non-smoker, its just that the deal with addiction is that its not rational and so you need something bigger than it to give up! People who know me still can't believe that I just gave up on the spot and are very complimentary, however, I know that I could easily go back if I dont keep motivated.

Thanks again.

A trick I used with my DD is to give her one bottle of formula before bed and she would sleep for a lovely 7 hours!
She was a very easy baby though so it may not work for all.
But the rest of the time, unless I was out I would BF. I never BF in public, only in the MotherCare toilets where they had a bench for mothers to sit and feed in privacy.
...Back to the subject at hand though, formula really (imo) isnt advisable. I always say, if you can BF why not!
The benefits are endless.
And you want to so I really dont see why you shouldnt!

Oh and to add, I was also a smoker, but I didnt have to give up, my body completely rejected smoke and ciggarettes when I fell pregnant, I had to tell my DP to smoke outside because it made me feel sick!
I did take it up again a while after giving birth but it had been so long I started to get headaches and such and I really didnt fancy wasting money of ciggs so I packed it in. Glad I did...just wish my DP would too!

Thanks again chaps,

Spoke to DP about your information and he was pretty impressed. He's typically male and loves statistics! Feel much more confident about forging ahead with this now as I know he'll support me to continue if I'm having any difficulties.

Hopefully the baby will be here within the next 2 weeks so I'll let you know how it goes.

Good luck!