What age did you all stop breastfeeding?

[flawless29]

To all breastfeeding mamas, I have a 7-month-old and I'm just curious: at what age do most of you stop breastfeeding? I realize everyone's journey is unique, which is exactly why I'm reaching out. How long do you think we should breastfeed to give our little ones the best start? Thanks!

Well there has to be a cut off somewhere surely?! Those feeding beyond that just can’t let go or help their child to let go

Yes exactly YOU would like to get to 2. It’s the loveliest thing YOU have ever done you say. It’s the mums desires and wishes not the babies most of the time and certainly past 2 the mums need to tell their kids enough is enough.

Nature’s cut-off is around 7, when the child’s palate has changed due to growing adult teeth so that they can no longer latch onto the breast effectively (that’s where ‘milk teeth’ get their name).

Thanks for the laugh on a dreary afternoon Mumbuns 😂

Give me strength why would you feed your 7 year old with your breast how ridiculous

5 1/2 years
5 years
And
4 years

All self weaned.

Love breastfeeding. Weaned my first naturally at 2.5. My second is 4 months old and will stop when she wants to (hopefully around her 2nd birthday).

Well done for making it to 7 months, OP! :)

Yeah feeding a 7 year old is a bit weird.

But if the mum is having to tell the baby 'enough is enough' then surely that's because it's the baby's natural wish to carry on and she's acting to stop that? So it's not the mum pushing it onto the baby?

I definitely don't intend to breastfeed forever, nor til 7 which I do agree seems quite extreme. But I don't think it's quite right to say any babies breastfeeding past the first year or so is only because of what the mum wants. If anything, it's the baby driving it because it can be difficult to try and wean them off when they're seeking the comfort and connection that they are used to.

@Cowlover89Agreed! It is extremely weird!

@GlitteryGreen yes but at sone point we need to be the parent and say that’s enough surely. They can have teddies and comforters and cuddles but most carry on as they can’t get their kids off them and it’s too hard. My youngest would have kept his dummy forever but when we started nursery I said enough as ours just time to let go at sone point. 7 is ridiculous. Shows you how bizarre this research is to state 7.

How does a mother force a baby/infant/toddler to breast feed against its wishes exactly?

I’m about 100% sure that all those being breast fed are also thinking it’s a lovely experience.

I do agree 7 is extreme, but I think that age is mainly more relevant in places where there isn't as much secure, safe food, in which case breastfeeding is the safest way to get a child past infancy. I would be very surprised if many people were breastfeeding til 7 in the UK, as others have mentioned not many go past 6 months here, if that.

I never got to 2 so didn't really look beyond that and WHO says 2.

Kellymon a useful obviously pro bf site - and has this:

https://kellymom.com/ages/older-infant/ebf-benefits/

• Although there has been little research done on children who breastfeed beyond the age of two, the available information indicates that breastfeeding continues to be a valuable source of nutrition and disease protection for as long as breastfeeding continues.

There quotes from some research below this you can follow up on but so few in UK or western countries get to 2 I can't see you'd have enough to study.

Plus you do have to look at methodology of studies to see how robust they are and what they actually look at and accounted for.

I still don't see beyond 2 needing to put down mother's who choose that - though as I say I know no-one who bf school aged kids so you'd be dealing with small numbers who may have medical or development reasons for their choices or not.

One minute you’re saying the breast feeding mothers are selfish and only breastfeeding their toddler for her own needs and wishes and because she can’t bear to ‘let go’….

And then you’re saying the breast feeding mothers are only doing it because they can’t get the infant/toddler to stop?

Which is it?!

7 is the top end of biologically normal for our species. It is around the age of 7 children become physically unable to latch on to the breast anymore.

Two years for both mine

Thank goodness as I’m sure if not there are sone that would keep doing it! Very odd.

@HeadAgainstWall0923 both I imagine. Just stop feeding nursery/school age humans with teeth that talk and eat food please! They can get all their nutrition from a good diet after that it’s more about the mums just not wanting to stop or not being able to stop it.

No probably not.

Children naturally self wean if left to it. They just want it less and less until it gets less and less frequent and one day they just never ask again. It's very unlikely many 7 year olds would still want to nurse.

why do you care so much about mother's doing what is completely natural for our species? Like surely this is an each to their own situation.

Sorry but after age 2 I really think it is not natural but sure feed your older kids and I assume they will never ever be sick and be members of Mensa. Or have major attachment issues….it is odd.

It literally is natural though.

No it’s not to feed walking talking school kids. No.

You keep talking about it being odd, yet is significantly more odd to be this out of touch with what is natural for our species. It's weird you think it's more natural to wean from human milk to milk of another species. That is not what other mammals do.