TIME magazine and breast feeding a 4 year old

TheFunBun

Anyone using this "cow's teat" defense is just in denial.

Meat comes from animals.
Milk comes from breast.

Just because you distance yourself or dissociate yourself from the source doesn't change the source. I think that's why other countries have less problems with this. They don't divorce themselves from the natural process that produces what they use and eat. I bet half of you that have this "put it in a cup" defense would never go out and kill your own food.

I would have no problem drinking from the cows teat, and I would have no problem with my children drinking from my breast. It's a breast. Yeah, it's sexy, but it's first function is for milk delivery. I'm not going to say, "Oh, you've got to drink this out of a cup because you're going to remember drinking it from my breast after this certain point" or, "Now that you have reached this arbitrary age, it's DISTASTEFUL". Nah. We'll know when it's time to quit the tit.

I think the woman on the cover was probably intending to just give a good article about something she's passionate about.. but with the photo and the tone of the article being out of her control it just ended up being that way. It's disappointing and will ultimately lead to a lot of people not researching attachment parenting as much.

opus649

That is probably the stupidest thing I've ever heard another human say. Congratulations.

I'm just trying to get a rise out of you

Mission accomplished

AlsDonkBoxSquat

I am not a mother.

Having done some research on BFing, however, I have read there are A LOT of different things that are positive about breast milk, so I could see why the idea of BFing till they are older would be a benefit.

My problem with it is, you ween children off bottles, "binkies", out of cribs, etc - So why wouldn't you just put the pumped breast milk into a cup? Mixed with cereal or oatmeal?

1) not everyone forces a ween at all.
2) pumping takes time (I would pump 30 - 45 minutes at a time), nursing takes far less time as it is natures way of extracting the milk and therefore generally the most efficient, and although many of the benefits still exist when storing it for the prescribed period and using it (which how you described is another way we got milk into our kiddo) it does lose something in the storing process. It's best directly from the breast.

cspong

To everyone saying to just pump it and put it in a cup: I just have to say that pumping totally sucks. It's not as easy as that. I couldn't wait until I got to the point where I could go a whole day at work without pumping.

And as far as the whole "cow teet" argument goes, I don't think its about the child actually drinking directly from a cow. That would be a huge health hazard. Its about them drinking milk that is not at all designed for them.

THIS.

firstnamekaren

Additionally, from a nutritional standpoint, it's totally unnecessary. Mammals nurse their young until they are able to receive adequate nutrition from solid foods. Once a child (or puppy, or kitten, etc) is old enough to eat real solid food, there is no need for breast milk any longer, as they can now receive all necessary nutrients via food sources. So, in short, it is completely nutritionally UNNECESSARY to breastfeed a child once they are able to eat a diet completely consisting of solid food (not baby food, but actual food---so really, probably about 2 years old).

There are a lot of organizations that tend to be authorities on the subject that disagree with what you stated.

Yup.

10acity

Breastfeeding is great for infants. If you can do it, I think you should.

But this whole "it's totally natural so I should be able to do it in everyone's faces whenever I want" crap is tired. Sex is totally "natural" too, and you'd be horrified if someone started doing THAT in the middle of a restaurant. One thing that no one seems to consider: I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

Huskeryogi

This is disturbing...fast forward 20 years and I want to see if these kids has serious mommy issues.

Do you want to know about this specific kid or just kids who were BF later in general because as I previously stated - I was BF until I was 3 and a half and I have a great relationship with my mom.

firstnamekaren

I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

What conversation? "That is a breast, mommies use it to feed their children". And done.

cspong

I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

What conversation? "That is a breast, mommies use it to feed their children". And done.

Yeah seriously... They even show and talk about it in Sesame Street...

cherrybomb_77

^^^That's what I said...TWICE! But, apparently, no one read my comment because two different people have made that same ridiculous argument.

The reason that you don't latch a child on to a cow is because the cow isn't the child's mother, and therefore is not designed to provide milk to a human via its teats. Your assertion that a toddler nursing from his own mother is in anyway comparable to a child sucking on the teats of a cow is absolutely absurd. We milk cows and drink that milk from a vessel because we aren't of the same species and we aren't their offspring. That has absolutely NOTHING to do with whether or not it's appropriate for a child to nurse at his own mother's breasts.

I'm still waiting on all the empirical evidence that nursing past an arbitrary age is detrimental. I'm sure that since so many people feel confident enough to contradict the advice of every major medical body in the world, they must have some really good research to back them up. Once again, here is what the WHO has to say- http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2011/breastfeeding_20110115/en/index.html

thomassd1969

I breastfed all 5 of my children. The oldest was a year and half. Out of all the disturbing parenting aspect I can think of this isnt one of them.

JanineHarrison

I'm not promoting one way or another but there is a Q&A with the cover lady were she provides more information and reasoning and apparently she has a blog for those of you that are interested.

the Q&A Link - I don't have subscription so i couldn't read the article but I could read this.

http://healthland.time.com/2012/05/10/q-a-with-jamie-lynne-grumet/?iid=obnetwork

AlsDonkBoxSquat

Breastfeeding is great for infants. If you can do it, I think you should.

But this whole "it's totally natural so I should be able to do it in everyone's faces whenever I want" crap is tired. Sex is totally "natural" too, and you'd be horrified if someone started doing THAT in the middle of a restaurant. One thing that no one seems to consider: I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

Sex =/= breast feeding on any planet. You can go an entire lifetime without sex (although I wouldn't want to). you cannot go an entire lifetime without eating. I really think that equating the two is quite ignorant.

firstnamekaren

I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

What conversation? "That is a breast, mommies use it to feed their children". And done.

Yeah seriously... They even show and talk about it in Sesame Street...

I actually HAVE a three year old. He's asked what my breasts were - I told him. I didn't say, "Oh they're associated with sex". :huh:

krystina_letitia9

I'll add it to the list of "things that don't affect my life even a little."

This. Thank you. I had a fleeting thought when I saw the cover - then stopped thinking about it. End of story.

I'm also not a mother yet. So maybe I will feel differently, one way or another, when I am.

10acity

I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

What conversation? "That is a breast, mommies use it to feed their children". And done.

Genius! Thanks for that. I will be sure to ask you whenever I need to explain anything about life to a child!

Bottom line: you want your opinions respected, but don't feel the need to respect anyone else's. At least we cleared that up.

Ali_TSO

I find nothing wrong with the picture or extended BF if Mom and Child are comfortable with it.
But the caption on the cover really bothers me.

I didn't particularly care for how the photo was composed, and I have NO problem with extended BF.
But I COMPLETELY agree with the caption.
"Are you mom enough?"
:noway:

jennifer52484

For me personally, I think once the child grows teeth, it is time to pump and give your child the breast milk from a bottle.

SeasideOasis

I am not a mother.

Having done some research on BFing, however, I have read there are A LOT of different things that are positive about breast milk, so I could see why the idea of BFing till they are older would be a benefit.

My problem with it is, you ween children off bottles, "binkies", out of cribs, etc - So why wouldn't you just put the pumped breast milk into a cup? Mixed with cereal or oatmeal?

1) not everyone forces a ween at all.
2) pumping takes time (I would pump 30 - 45 minutes at a time), nursing takes far less time as it is natures way of extracting the milk and therefore generally the most efficient, and although many of the benefits still exist when storing it for the prescribed period and using it (which how you described is another way we got milk into our kiddo) it does lose something in the storing process. It's best directly from the breast.

Great points on the above.

I guess my concerns for people not weening (and working in a dentist office, I saw a lot of this first hand...little sister included) is that kids actually have problems with their teeth (not so much from breast feeding, but bottles and binkies). Long term use of those two objects specifically can cause major problems with a gap forming in the middle of their front teeth and as well as speech disorders - Obviously, this part has nothing to do with breastfeeding, specifically the weening portion. As a nipple is not a plastic material, I wouldn't imagine it would cause the same problems.

As for part two, pumping does take time, but my god sons mother would pump and I dont remember it ever taking that long? Maybe it was the type of machine?

10acity

Breastfeeding is great for infants. If you can do it, I think you should.

But this whole "it's totally natural so I should be able to do it in everyone's faces whenever I want" crap is tired. Sex is totally "natural" too, and you'd be horrified if someone started doing THAT in the middle of a restaurant. One thing that no one seems to consider: I appreciate that you're doing the healthiest thing for your child, but can you appreciate when you're thinking about whipping your boob out in the middle of the mall, that maybe I didn't want to have that conversation with my 3-year-old yet? I can have respect for your parenting decisions, but you need to have some respect for everyone else's.

Sex =/= breast feeding on any planet. You can go an entire lifetime without sex (although I wouldn't want to). you cannot go an entire lifetime without eating. I really think that equating the two is quite ignorant.

What's ignorant is reading this as "equating" sex and breasfeeding. I was merely showing that the "it's totally natural" argument is entirely unsound.