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Archive for March, 2011

toddler breastfeeding

Everyone was so supportive when you decided to breastfeed your baby. However, now that he’s two, some people look uncomfortable when you say that you’re still breastfeeding. Isn’t he too old? Aren’t you making him too dependent on you? Shouldn’t you consider weaning him already?

Who Says Breastfeeding Has to Stop?

Usually, the cultural context dictates our breastfeeding behavior. In the Philippines, with only 38% of mothers exclusively breastfeeding their babies up to six months (based on a recent government survey), it’s no wonder that breastfeeding moms, particularly those who are breastfeeding toddlers, are still in need of a support system. It’s good to keep in mind, though, that weaning is a process that involves two people: you and your child. Take your feelings about breastfeeding and your child’s behavior into consideration when you think of weaning.

The Benefits of Breastfeeding Your Toddler

1. It’s the best way to comfort your toddler when he gets a “booboo” or is upset. A toddler in his terrible twos stage can be very demanding and will be prone to upsets and tantrums. Breastfeeding is your special “peace zone” when all else fails.
2. A toddler will agree to go to sleep at bedtime when you offer him your breast. Breastfeeding is relaxing for both you and your toddler and you’ll both be nodding off before you know it.
3. Protection from breast cancer. According to The Breastfeeding Book by Martha and William Sears, “the degree to which breastfeeding protects a woman against breast cancer depends on how long she nurses.” Breastfeeding benefits are cumulative, meaning for some benefits, the longer you nurse, the more benefits you get (i.e. bonding, immunity, etc.) and another implication is there are certain benefits that you only get if you nurse for an extended period, which includes protection from breast cancer.
4. Special one-on-one time with your toddler. Time flies very quickly, especially when you have a growing child. Your extended breastfeeding will assure your child that he is special to you, even when another sibling comes into the picture.
5. A more immunologically protected child. According to Martha and William Sears, “Levels of immunities in a mother’s milk actually increase during the second year of breastfeeding.”
6. A more independent toddler. According to Kate Mortenson, in her article Sustained Breastfeeding, “Ainsworth’s research (in the book Review of Child Development Research) showed that a secure attachment to the mother through breastfeeding enabled children to form attachments to others and to become more independent than a comparable group of bottle-fed infants.”

A breastfeeding relationship doesn’t have to end at 12 months. If you and your child are still happily breastfeeding after more than one year, there’s no need to be alarmed. You’re not alone. In fact, there are many benefits to breastfeeding a toddler including “a more independent child,” the exact opposite of what many parents fear.

Resources:

• Interview with LATCH (Lactation, Attachment, Counseling, Help) certified counselor, Buding Aquino-Dee.
• Ainsworth MA 1973, The development of infant-mother attachment. In Caldwell BM, Ricciuti HN (eds): Review of Child Development Research, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

Image from Flickr.com/pjboudreau

There’s a reason humans are called mammals. We were born to be nourished at our mother’s mammary glands. There is really no better nutrition for a baby than pure breast milk from birth to six months or even a year and beyond.

Benefits

In 1997, the American Academy of Pediatrics officially advocated breastfeeding in a public statement. The Academy cited that:

• breast milk is superior to any kind of formula
• protects the baby from infections and other diseases and recommended that babies be breastfed exclusively up to six months or beyond.
• Apart from pure nutrition, breastfeeding provides your baby with an experience of the first relationship in his or her life. Breastfeeding allows a mother to reassure her baby of her unconditional love and presence. This forms the foundation of a child’s development and later independence in life.

Barriers

But why do a lot of women end up not breastfeeding despite all the benefits? In the Philippines, only 38% of mothers end up exclusively breastfeeding their babies in their first six months of life.

• The top reason is really a lack of information. If they think that formula is “just as good” as mother’s milk, then they will not have second thoughts about giving their babies formula.
• Secondly, because breast milk is easily absorbed by the baby’s body, breastfeeding takes up every two to three hours of a mother’s day, leaving no other activity for her.
• If a mother needs to return to work right away, which is the usual case in the Philippines, she gives up breastfeeding. A working mother needs to invest her time in collecting milk for her baby three to four times during her eight-hour work day. If she is extremely busy, she needs to invest in a pump that can extract more milk in less time. Or she can invest time in expressing her milk and collecting it in a container that can be refrigerated or stored in an ice box.
• Apart from collecting the milk, she needs to properly store the milk in a sterile container and in the proper temperature, requiring a refrigerator or an ice box.

Breastfeeding is a wonderful mother-child experience. According to James P. Grant, former Executive Director of UNICEF, it provides the absolute best in terms of nutritional and emotional nourishment, equalizing rich and poor infants. However, breastfeeding also demands time and commitment from mothers. In the end, it is up to a mother to decide what is best for her child.

Sources:

• The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, La Leche League International
• “Measuring breastfeeding” by Alexis Rodrigo, http://keepabreastphils.blogspot.com/2007/08/measuring-breastfeeding.html, August 1, 2007, accessed July 19, 2009
• “Breastfeeding” by Marc Kaufman, M.D. ACOG and Robert Daigneault, M.D., eds., http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/breastfeeding.html?pageNum=8, Feb. 27, 2007 (accessed on July 19, 2009)

Visit www.theperfectlatch.com for a list of certified breastfeeding counselors that you can call. You can also email info@the perfectlatch.com

Image from flickr/jessicafm