TIME magazine and breast feeding a 4 year old

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  • jcstanton
    jcstanton Posts: 1,849 Member
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    The kid is 3, not 4.

    thanks for the correction-even at 3 years old-its disgusting. Not breast feeding itself-just at that age and the cover was just disturbing.

    I agree.

    oh, but its less disgusting to give your kids milk from a cow teet? hmm. intersting. or a toddler mixed formula from some big company that has killed children in 3rd world countries for greed...yup, im talking Nestle.

    When you feed a kid cow's milk, they're not drinking it straight from the teet. That would be disgusting as well. And I don't think people are as much upset about breastfeeding at that age (though some have expressed distatste) as much as they are put off by the way TIME chose to portray it.
  • runnermel
    runnermel Posts: 278
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    Pump it and put it in a cup...you wouldn't keep giving a 3-7 year old milk in a bottle

    EXACTLY!!!!!!!
  • mayerel
    mayerel Posts: 254 Member
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    TIME Magazine put this on the cover because their sales are down and they're at risk to go under like many publications these days. They have succeeded in making us talk about them and I'm sure boosting their sales this month (week?)

    Personally, I hope to breastfeed when I have children, but whatever works as a mom, rock it out.
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
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    I'm against Time Magazine for pitting mothers against each other. And doing it on Mother's Day.

    Great reply! :D

    I think it's great that she's breastfeeding her child. The caption on the cover was super annoying. "Are you mom enough?" They are trying to incite some mommy war and it's dumb.
  • kelceyjean12011
    kelceyjean12011 Posts: 185 Member
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    i breastfed my son for 14 months and that was long enough LOL! i wouldnt want to breastfed a child over 18 months
  • e_trexler
    e_trexler Posts: 32
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    My brother's wife did it until the first kid was, if I recall correctly, about 7 or 8. Their son was a preemie and their chiropractor/homeopathist recommended it at the time. Also he stayed in bed with them until he was about 10. "Attachment parenting", I think they called it. Certainly not my cup of tea, but also none of my damned beeswax.

    Their son is now a healthy, well-adjusted, outgoing teenager who is doing very well in school. He's a respectful kid who's a pleasure to be around, he works hard, and he's going to go a long way. Did the breastfeeding help? No idea. It obviously hasn't left any psychological scars or anything. They've got two other younger kids that they weaned earlier in life (not preemies) and they are also good kids who are doing well in school.

    There are plenty of ways to raise a child. Caring seems to be the key. Who knew?

    Thank you for this. I think it's none of my business how someone else raises their child. I have no children, and no clue if I want children. But if I did, I would want to do it without judgment from others.
  • SirBen81
    SirBen81 Posts: 396 Member
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    That kid just had his picture on one of the worlds most popular magazine's with his mom's tit in his mouth. I think it's safe to say that he will be mocked for the rest of his life and any hopes for a normal childhood/teen years are lost.
  • annamook
    annamook Posts: 28
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    I'm against Time Magazine for pitting mothers against each other. And doing it on Mother's Day.

    Agreed.
  • Asil76
    Asil76 Posts: 477 Member
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    I think it is the picture itself that is disturbing to me. Not how old the kid is or anything else. Bfeeding is the most natural thing in the world. Each parent has their own ideas of how they want to raise their children and no one should judge that. However, I think the picture, in and of itself, is what is truly disturbing.

    This ^^
  • DieVixen
    DieVixen Posts: 790 Member
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    I still breast feed my 16 year old.....why didnt anyone tell me that your supposed to stop!!!!!!!!!
  • shannonperry13
    shannonperry13 Posts: 99
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    i have nursed all 4 of my daughters, currently still nursing my 6 month old, and my 2 year old nursed at bedtime until about 1.5 years. i don't find the cover disturbing or disgusting. obviously, they posed the picture. i'm sure she doesn't have her child stand on a public bench and have him latch on in the middle of a park. as far as how the child will feel later in life. i'm sure he will be a normal boy. as far as he probably knows, everyone does this, and it's normal. he probably won't even remember it in a few years. lighten up people.
  • _Elemenopee_
    _Elemenopee_ Posts: 2,665 Member
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    Breastfeeding your children - great! Breastfeeding in public - great! Breastfeeding for as long as you both are comfortable - GREAT! Having your child stand on a chair on the cover of a magazine while breastfeeding - exploitation.

    :flowerforyou:
  • annamook
    annamook Posts: 28
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    Oh please
  • sun33082
    sun33082 Posts: 416 Member
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    I'm all for breastfeeding. But the picture is ridiculous.
  • BumbyDog
    BumbyDog Posts: 70 Member
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    I find it interesting all the posters who say something along the lines of "XX is too old. I don't have a problem with a mother giving her child breast milk, but If the kiddo wants the milk, put it in a cup/bottle/sippy." So the issue, for many, isn't that the mother is still lactating and the child still drinking, but the bothersome fact is that the milk comes from BREASTS. Newsflash. Milk from every mammal comes from tits/teats/breasts. That's just nature. Cows' milk comes from cow teats. Oh, but wait, cows' teats aren't sexualized by society and their biological purpose isn't sigmatized. When you think about it, which is weirder? A mother feeding her child milk that was biologically designed for that child and changes over time to meet the child's growing needs, or milk that was designed for a baby cow?

    Hear hear!
  • vtate75
    vtate75 Posts: 221 Member
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    I nursed all four of my kids for well over a year. My third child nursed until he was 2 1/2. I don't find it disturbing that the mother nurses a 3 year old (not four), but I find the pose distrubing. Nursing a child is beautiful, and the mother looks defiant, not nurturing. I find this debate really annoying too. Attachment parenting is wonderful.......people need to back off. I think Time Magazine has sensationalized a really important issue.
  • ademiter
    ademiter Posts: 176 Member
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    Like most of you said, "To each their own." However, I breast fed my children until they were around 6mths old. I ended up with mastitis and couldn't continue (with both), but I would have probably done it up until 12 months. I think it's a little disgraceful to put a picture like that on the cover of a well-known magazine. It's taking something very natural and turning it into a freak show. Now I do think it would be very strange for me to breastfeed a 3 year old, but that's just me. If you choose to do it as a parent, that's your choice, but why in the world would you ever agree to a picture like that of something that is very private? There's always someone out there what just wants to stir the pot and it looks like they've succeeded once again.
  • BumbyDog
    BumbyDog Posts: 70 Member
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    I'm against Time Magazine for pitting mothers against each other. And doing it on Mother's Day.

    Agreed.

    Double agreed
  • secretlobster
    secretlobster Posts: 3,566 Member
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    Honestly, when your kid is starting school and socializing with other children... It's time to stop breastfeeding. I don't see anything wrong with prolonged breastfeeding, not at all, but there is no reason you can't pump it.

    The arguments from "attachment parenting" people are all so fake. The mom on the Time magazine cover says that she remembers breastfeeding and feeling so loved, like her mother would never leave her. Well, good luck coping when your mother finally does leave you. There's a difference between giving milk as nourishment to your child, and having your child breastfeed at an advanced age because you are obsessed with attachment.

    Just hug your kids, they don't need to latch onto your nipple in order to feel loved.
  • firstnamekaren
    firstnamekaren Posts: 274 Member
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    The only thing I find disturbing about it is Time's exploiation of a divisive topic and blatant attempt to revise an otherwise dying form of media.

    In other species, and in other countries, breastfeeding is used far beyond children "growing teeth" or long after their first birthday. Breastmilk actually CHANGES as children grow to adapt to their nutritional needs. That's why it's so wonderful.

    But society has sexualized breasts SO MUCH that they're no longer even seen as a means of providing nutrition. I mean, that's what's really going on here, right? That's why people are so upset - that's why breastfeeding moms should be shamed into a closet or covered with a blanket. Somehow either the mom gets some sexual gratification or the child myseriously starts thinking of breasts in a sexual way. Either way, breasts equal sex sex sex!

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