Breastfeeding- how long is too long?

[Tuckins1]

What do you all think? I know breast milk is good for babies, but would you keep doing it till your kid was, say, 6? Do you find this disturbing or natural?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/a...rn--horrifying-loving-bond.html#ixzz17k0onkti

 

[TravelingGal]

This topic has been discussed around here somewhere before, but I am too lazy to find the link....

Personally, I think it's a bit weird to BF a 5 year old...mostly because society thinks it's so and the kid might go through some serious teasing if it were to leak out.

But as my child continues to grow up and I learn that life seems to be one big cosmic joke, I've learned to kick back, smooch my kid to pieces and just smile and think: to each, her own.

 

[Steel]

This topic has been discussed around here somewhere before, but I am too lazy to find the link....

Personally, I think it's a bit weird to BF a 5 year old...mostly because society thinks it's so and the kid might go through some serious teasing if it were to leak out.

But as my child continues to grow up and I learn that life seems to be one big cosmic joke, I've learned to kick back, smooch my kid to pieces and just smile and think: to each, her own.

Not to be a nodding dog, but I'm with t-gal. Do what you want. I don't think I would want to b-feed for that long but if you want to then knock yourself out!

BTW: T-gal, I know I'm not in the states, but I'm pretty sure that Thanksgiving has come and gone. Yet the shoe remains. Whats up with that? Get festive! Hop to it, in your single shoe.

 

[TravelingGal]

Steal, can you believe I can't find my old santa av? I'll see that I can find it in time for spring.

 

[Steel]

Steal, can you believe I can't find my old santa av? I'll see that I can find it in time for spring.

<------ Now that we are feeling festive, doesn't this little fella look like Macaulay Culkin

I look forward to the Easter Santa hat!

 

[Tuckins1]

This topic has been discussed around here somewhere before, but I am too lazy to find the link....

Personally, I think it's a bit weird to BF a 5 year old...mostly because society thinks it's so and the kid might go through some serious teasing if it were to leak out.

But as my child continues to grow up and I learn that life seems to be one big cosmic joke, I've learned to kick back, smooch my kid to pieces and just smile and think: to each, her own.

Agreed. Just asking... Personally I think it's weird, but that's just me.

 

[cara]

This is one of those topics where I am like *why* do we need to discuss it. Is extended breastfeeding really such a societal problem that it warrants random people discussing it at length so that they can decide how long is too long for someone else's family?

Which is not to say that I think 10 yro should be breastfeeding or that some parents might be going a bit overboard on the whole thing breastfeeding their elementary schooler, but I'm not convinced its this huge issue that needs to be addressed.

I think its probably because breastfeeding just seems so out there when you aren't around it - and it is easy for people in certain circles or certain stages of life to just not be exposed to breastfeeding and think its this weird thing. I just started breastfeeding 3 months ago (when I gave birth) and as this is my first kid and I haven't been around a lot of breastfeeding moms since *I* was a kid and my mother/aunts were having babies, I found breastfeeding to be a bit weird and bizarre. At first. But then you do something 10+ times a day for three months and watch your kiddo put on weight and grow and develop on this sustenance form... breastfeeding does seem more natural to me now.

However now that I am back to work and breastfeeding also consists of hooking myself up to a milk-extracting contraption during my lunch hour and every night I have to come home and wash the bottles from daycare and the pump parts, this aspect of breastfeeding seems less natural... I can see why most women these days only breastfeed for 6 months or a year (if at all). But most societies historically have breastfed longer than that, and even in our society little kids are typically fed either formula or cow's uddermilk for years. Why would human breastmilk not be reasonable instead of one of its substitutes?

 

[Octavia]

IMO, if the child is suffering physiologically because he or she is no longer getting the number of calories or type of nutrients needed to grow properly, it's too long. If the child is suffering psychologically because he or she is able to understand that it's not really accepted in the culture he or she lives in, it's too long. Otherwise, if it works for the family, who am I to judge?

 

[NovemberBride]

Ditto Cara.

Also, in many parts of the world extended breastfeeding is the norm because it is the only way for a child to get sufficient nutrients to grow and develop properly because of a lack of available food. I am lucky enough to live in a first world country and have a wide variety of fresh, nutritious food readily available to me to feed my daughter and I am also lucky enough to be able to afford it. Accordingly, I feel good about my decision to wean my daughter at 1. If I was not so lucky and breastfeeding my daughter until she was 5 or older was the only way to ensure she got adequate nutrition, I would do it in an instant.

 

[laine]

This topic has been discussed around here somewhere before, but I am too lazy to find the link....

Personally, I think it's a bit weird to BF a 5 year old...mostly because society thinks it's so and the kid might go through some serious teasing if it were to leak out.

But as my child continues to grow up and I learn that life seems to be one big cosmic joke, I've learned to kick back, smooch my kid to pieces and just smile and think: to each, her own.

Hehe, breastfeeding...leak out...

(yes, I'm lame)

 

[Steel]

This topic has been discussed around here somewhere before, but I am too lazy to find the link....

Personally, I think it's a bit weird to BF a 5 year old...mostly because society thinks it's so and the kid might go through some serious teasing if it were to leak out.

But as my child continues to grow up and I learn that life seems to be one big cosmic joke, I've learned to kick back, smooch my kid to pieces and just smile and think: to each, her own.

Hehe, breastfeeding...leak out...

(yes, I'm lame)

I thought it too - but I chose to hide my stupid .


(Doh! Kicking self )

 

[Tuckins1]

This is one of those topics where I am like *why* do we need to discuss it. Is extended breastfeeding really such a societal problem that it warrants random people discussing it at length so that they can decide how long is too long for someone else's family?

Which is not to say that I think 10 yro should be breastfeeding or that some parents might be going a bit overboard on the whole thing breastfeeding their elementary schooler, but I'm not convinced its this huge issue that needs to be addressed.

I think its probably because breastfeeding just seems so out there when you aren't around it - and it is easy for people in certain circles or certain stages of life to just not be exposed to breastfeeding and think its this weird thing. I just started breastfeeding 3 months ago (when I gave birth) and as this is my first kid and I haven't been around a lot of breastfeeding moms since *I* was a kid and my mother/aunts were having babies, I found breastfeeding to be a bit weird and bizarre. At first. But then you do something 10+ times a day for three months and watch your kiddo put on weight and grow and develop on this sustenance form... breastfeeding does seem more natural to me now.

However now that I am back to work and breastfeeding also consists of hooking myself up to a milk-extracting contraption during my lunch hour and every night I have to come home and wash the bottles from daycare and the pump parts, this aspect of breastfeeding seems less natural... I can see why most women these days only breastfeed for 6 months or a year (if at all). But most societies historically have breastfed longer than that, and even in our society little kids are typically fed either formula or cow's uddermilk for years. Why would human breastmilk not be reasonable instead of one of its substitutes?

I guess the "why" is because it's something that i'm curious about. I'm new to this particular forum because I only just got pregnant a few months ago, so I didn't see the older threads. I'm interested in social norms and how they differ from place to place.

 

[Dreamer_D]

It is pretty rare for anyone to BF a kid older than about 3 years where I am from, and longer than 12 months is also very rare. I think that articles like the linked one have ferreted out the most obscure examples of BFing to raise controversy. It is so rare and unusual that we want to stop and stare a little. Sort of like we want to stop and stare at anyone who seems to really flout norms -- sister Wives anyone?

I don't see any reason not to BF for as long as your child and you enjoy it -- which seems to be a max of about 3 years in about 99.99% of the cases in North America. I would have liked to nurse longer than I did, 12 months, but society really does not support that. I don't mean it is frowned on, but our social roles and lifestyle just do not supprt BFing. When you wean at night and wean all day but 2 feeds, it is hard to keep up a supply. And don't get me started on the annoyance of pumping etc. I was talking to an OB the other day about BFing rates and he mentioned that Health Canada would ask him about BFing rates of his new moms and was "WHY aren't more doing it longer?" The recommendation is exclusive BFing for 6mo, but most, even in Canada, does not hit that. He said they go back to work! He noticed a huge increase in the length of time moms BF when gov't subsidized maternity leave was extended to 12 months about 5-10 years ago (can't recall exact time frame). I believe it. Any impediments to BFing -- like having to pump all the time -- are going to decrease rates. Add to that other impediments -- like lack of support for getting started or lack of models of successful BFing etc -- and I am not at all surprised that the majority of women do not BF and if they do, it is for a short period.**



**NOTE: I am not judging any woman's choice to BF or not, just discussing contributing factors.

 

[meresal]

Dreamer... re: the comment you made about 12 months being even more rare these days... on Saturday night, DH and I met one of our neighbors. His wife is due in a month and he has done research and decided that he wants his child to be on formula from the beginning, becuase he believes that is the way for the baby to get the most nutrients.

This completely shoked me, as I have never heard a single person say this before. Maybe people are going to start choosing not to BF at all??

As for the neighbor: If that is what he wants, then fine... but if DH had told me that I *couldn't* BF my child... we would be having many many words. I was more shocked that he thought it was his decision to make, rather than the fact that they aren't going to try.
I have no idea if his wife was involved in the decision, but he only used the word *I* when talking about all the research and reading HE had done.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Dreamer... re: the comment you made about 12 months being even more rare these days... on Saturday night, DH and I met one of our neighbors. His wife is due in a month and he has done research and decided that he wants his child to be on formula from the beginning, becuase he believes that is the way for the baby to get the most nutrients.

This completely shoked me, as I have never heard a single person say this before. Maybe people are going to start choosing not to BF at all??

As for the neighbor: If that is what he wants, then fine... but if DH had told me that I *couldn't* BF my child... we would be having many many words. I was more shocked that he thought it was his decision to make, rather than the fact that they aren't going to try.
I have no idea if his wife was involved in the decision, but he only used the word *I* when talking about all the research and reading HE had done.

Where the heck was he doing "research"? Of course, babies also thrive on formula, but I cannot think of a single legitimate source that would say formula is *better* except under some very specific circumstances (mom can't produce, mom has HIV etc) -- was he reading articles from the 1950s?

I would have laughed in my husband's face if he tried to tell me what to do in that arena. I am guessing the husband runs the show in other domains, too, though Mine is better trained.

 

[Tuckins1]

It is pretty rare for anyone to BF a kid older than about 3 years where I am from, and longer than 12 months is also very rare. I think that articles like the linked one have ferreted out the most obscure examples of BFing to raise controversy. It is so rare and unusual that we want to stop and stare a little. Sort of like we want to stop and stare at anyone who seems to really flout norms -- sister Wives anyone?

I don't see any reason not to BF for as long as your child and you enjoy it -- which seems to be a max of about 3 years in about 99.99% of the cases in North America. I would have liked to nurse longer than I did, 12 months, but society really does not support that. I don't mean it is frowned on, but our social roles and lifestyle just do not supprt BFing. When you wean at night and wean all day but 2 feeds, it is hard to keep up a supply. And don't get me started on the annoyance of pumping etc. I was talking to an OB the other day about BFing rates and he mentioned that Health Canada would ask him about BFing rates of his new moms and was "WHY aren't more doing it longer?" The recommendation is exclusive BFing for 6mo, but most, even in Canada, does not hit that. He said they go back to work! He noticed a huge increase in the length of time moms BF when gov't subsidized maternity leave was extended to 12 months about 5-10 years ago (can't recall exact time frame). I believe it. Any impediments to BFing -- like having to pump all the time -- are going to decrease rates. Add to that other impediments -- like lack of support for getting started or lack of models of successful BFing etc -- and I am not at all surprised that the majority of women do not BF and if they do, it is for a short period.**



**NOTE: I am not judging any woman's choice to BF or not, just discussing contributing factors.

Just want to say- I didn't search this out... I came across it on another website and thought it was interesting... I do see the correlation with going back to work and stopping BFing earlier. Kids get hungry when mommy's at work!!

 

[Tuckins1]

Dreamer... re: the comment you made about 12 months being even more rare these days... on Saturday night, DH and I met one of our neighbors. His wife is due in a month and he has done research and decided that he wants his child to be on formula from the beginning, becuase he believes that is the way for the baby to get the most nutrients.

This completely shoked me, as I have never heard a single person say this before. Maybe people are going to start choosing not to BF at all??

As for the neighbor: If that is what he wants, then fine... but if DH had told me that I *couldn't* BF my child... we would be having many many words. I was more shocked that he thought it was his decision to make, rather than the fact that they aren't going to try.
I have no idea if his wife was involved in the decision, but he only used the word *I* when talking about all the research and reading HE had done.

Weird. Everything i've ever read about BFing states that it is really the BEST option! I wonder what info he's been reading, and who published that material?

 

[cara]

Well back in the 50s people thought formula was better. More scientific, modern way of feeding a kid. And way back there were wetnurses so that the lady of the house didn't have to do such things. There are also more modern examples of the formula-is-preferable mindset - such as the unscrupulous marketing campaigns of formula companies in certain places. Keep in mind there has been a rather big change in thought over the last few generations also in the US - used to be that upper class women had the 'luxury' of formula while poorer women couldn't afford formula and had to breastfeed. And now in our society the tables have mostly turned - as hard as breastfeeding is for upper/middle class women in our society, most upper/middle class women get *some* amount of maternity leave and some social support for breastfeeding but women that can't afford to take any maternity leave or work even less flexible jobs probably find it even harder today to breastfeed and have to go straight to formula. But I'm sure in many places the older dynamic is still at work where formula is a luxury of the upper class.

There was an example of this in Weeds recently... The Mary Louise Parker character (imagine upper middle class American white lady) was trying to breastfeed her son with the Mexican cartel leader (its fiction!), but was getting pushback from the Mexican characters on the show because only peasant women breastfeed and she - being the bossman's wife - should let the nanny feed the kid formula.

 

[diamondringlover]

I say each to their own, I wouldnt do it much more then a year (i didnt BF at all) but I do find that picture somewhat disturbing....

 

[qtiekiki]

It is pretty rare for anyone to BF a kid older than about 3 years where I am from, and longer than 12 months is also very rare. I think that articles like the linked one have ferreted out the most obscure examples of BFing to raise controversy. It is so rare and unusual that we want to stop and stare a little. Sort of like we want to stop and stare at anyone who seems to really flout norms -- sister Wives anyone?

I don't see any reason not to BF for as long as your child and you enjoy it -- which seems to be a max of about 3 years in about 99.99% of the cases in North America. I would have liked to nurse longer than I did, 12 months, but society really does not support that. I don't mean it is frowned on, but our social roles and lifestyle just do not supprt BFing. When you wean at night and wean all day but 2 feeds, it is hard to keep up a supply. And don't get me started on the annoyance of pumping etc. I was talking to an OB the other day about BFing rates and he mentioned that Health Canada would ask him about BFing rates of his new moms and was "WHY aren't more doing it longer?" The recommendation is exclusive BFing for 6mo, but most, even in Canada, does not hit that. He said they go back to work! He noticed a huge increase in the length of time moms BF when gov't subsidized maternity leave was extended to 12 months about 5-10 years ago (can't recall exact time frame). I believe it. Any impediments to BFing -- like having to pump all the time -- are going to decrease rates. Add to that other impediments -- like lack of support for getting started or lack of models of successful BFing etc -- and I am not at all surprised that the majority of women do not BF and if they do, it is for a short period.**

**NOTE: I am not judging any woman's choice to BF or not, just discussing contributing factors.

Completely agree with DD.

I got pregnant the 2nd time when Meena was 9 months. When I went in to see my OB, he was shocked that I was still BFing Meena. He said that his patients usually don't breastfeeding for that long. And since Jaron's 4 months check-up (he is 10 months now), our pedi had been asking if he gets formula. When I said BM only, he is like "good for you". So I guess not a lot of his patients get BM exclusively.

It definitely takes a lot of work to BF, especially when you have to pump at work. I absolutely hate pumping and washing bottles, but I do it. My co-workers are always asking me how old Jaron is because they still see me pumping. They would go on and say that they couldn't continue BFing once they went back to work, couldn't pump enough, etc. My SIL stopped BFing the day she went back to work; she didn't want to deal with pumping at work. So it's fairly "normal" for moms to stop when maternity leave is over.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I remember this topic discussed, and while cases like this are "shocking" they are rare. In our society, our breast feeding rates are pretty low, and there have been some pretty strong studies that have come out recently that have shown multiple health benefits to the infant (and the mother) who is exclusively breastfeeding (no solids, no formula).

The CDC publishes a report card on breastfeeding and right now only 17% of babies are exclusively breast feeding until 6 months of age in the US (although 50% are getting some breast milk at 6 months). Only 25% of babies are being BF to a year.

While the case above may be extreme, it is really an outlier. From the medical and public health prospective, the focus is trying to get women to breast feed longer than they currently are.

 

[megumic]

Dreamer... re: the comment you made about 12 months being even more rare these days... on Saturday night, DH and I met one of our neighbors. His wife is due in a month and he has done research and decided that he wants his child to be on formula from the beginning, becuase he believes that is the way for the baby to get the most nutrients.

This completely shoked me, as I have never heard a single person say this before. Maybe people are going to start choosing not to BF at all??

As for the neighbor: If that is what he wants, then fine... but if DH had told me that I *couldn't* BF my child... we would be having many many words. I was more shocked that he thought it was his decision to make, rather than the fact that they aren't going to try.
I have no idea if his wife was involved in the decision, but he only used the word *I* when talking about all the research and reading HE had done.

I would have said, "Wow, that's so interesting. All of the research I've done has indicates exclusive BFing is best for baby. I'd love to read the articles, studies and research you did. Do you mind sharing them?"

Small chance there are some studies that may indicate this, but maybe he just doesn't know what the heck he is talking about??? I dunno, nothing shocks me anymore. Your outrage about ppl choosing formula over BFing is equivalent to my outrage of elective c-section (i.e. for no medical reason whatsoever. Sorry if this offends, but I find this choice to be analogous to meresal's outrage about ppl not BFing anymore...) *meresal, I may have misperceived your words...please correct me if I did! so easy to do via typing only!*

 

[meresal]

Meg- I'm really not so much outraged at the choice not to, but more amazed by the conclusion he came to. It just makes no sense to me. What bothered me more was the way he was saying that "HE researched it..." and "HE decided...". I just smiled and nodded.

As far as asking this guy for his references, it was about 1 in the morning and we had all been drinking (Him much more than the rest of us), and I wasn't interested in extending the converstaion any longer considering I had only met him about 30 minutes prior. People that try to have serious converstaions when intoxicated really creep me out. Ha.

Ohh, and after I avioded the BF'ing conversation... he noticed my push present, David Yurman cable bracelet, and prceeded to tell me that it must be inspired by a Hindu belief. He wouldn't stop staring at my wrist and just kept saying how amazing it was. He then kept asking if it made me feel *better*, as in healthier (which I assume is the use in the Hindu religion)... I just replied that everytime I look at it, I think of the wonderful day that I met my son, and that makes me feel pretty darn good. {Conversation ended. }

 

[Guilty Pleasure]

While I understand that the man in question was irritating since he was talking about HIS opinion and HIS research (maybe he's the type of guy that takes six months to pick out a camera while researches articles on engadget), I would like to say that I think a father has every bit as much of a right to make choices concerning a child's nutrition as the child's mother. Of course a man cannot force his wife to breastfeed as it concerns HER body, but his opinions are just as valid as a mother's, in my opinion.


(but the guy does sound annoying)

 

[meresal]

While I understand that the man in question was irritating since he was talking about HIS opinion and HIS research (maybe he's the type of guy that takes six months to pick out a camera while researches articles on engadget), I would like to say that I think a father has every bit as much of a right to make choices concerning a child's nutrition as the child's mother. Of course a man cannot force his wife to breastfeed as it concerns HER body, but his opinions are just as valid as a mother's, in my opinion.

I was not irritated by the man because of his opinion. I was simply sharing a story about my weekend. I had never heard someone say that formula contained more nutrients, and given the points that DD was making, I thought that I would share. (Yes, the man was *annoying/irritatin*, but not because of the formula discussion. That was only a few minutes of the hour I was stuck talking to him.)

I never said he didn't have the right, I just don't think it should be only his decision. Maybe they did decide together, but I was just sharing an opinion based of the facts that I had. He was not using the term "We...".

No one here is saying that Dad's should have less input than the mother.

 

[swimmer]

GP, Nothing wrong with taking a year to pick out a camera...your original preferences will become obsolete or much cheaper in the meantime. But that isn't really the same thing as the camera is not part of the wife's body.

DH can decree when DS starts or stops bfing when DH starts lactating, end of story. Should a female partner get exactly 50% say in when or whether her man gets a vasectomy? Sorry, that is the closest comparison I can make. These are my boobs and I get to damn well do what I want with them when it comes to feeding my baby. Meresal was not saying that men don't have a right to have a voice in the decision to bf or not, and I'm in agreement with her, dads get a say. She was rightly startled at his WHOA NELLY! declarations. For a Dad to decide and decree exactly what a woman will do with her body in regards to the baby she just birthed? Now that is rather Handmaiden's Tale I feel.

Note: typed while breastfeeding a 7 mth old.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Personally, I think when the child can ask the question "mummy may I please have some milk" and pull up your shirt to nurse, then it's too long.

 

[Tuckins1]

Personally, I think when the child can ask the question "mummy may I please have some milk" and pull up your shirt to nurse, then it's too long.

This is my general feeling as well.

 

[Sha]

hmmm...I do find it a bit weird, especially after looking at the pics. That said, I can understand extended breastfeeding to an extent. I'm weaning my 12 month old daughter right now (I committed to bfeeding for a year), but I'm really feeling sad about it and am not really ready to let it go. If it weren't for wanting to get my cycles and body back to 'normal', I could've easily gone on. I love breastfeeding (thankfully I didn't have any major issues). I love being able to feed her with my milk at any time, and I love holding her close while she feeds. I know she loves it too, and it makes me sad to have to wean her off it when I know she really enjoys the milk, closeness and comfort. That said, 12 months is a pretty good chunk of time, especially these days. People make strange comments when they realize I'm still breastfeeding. I was at the pharmacist the other day and was asking him if it was safe to take a particular medication while bf, so he asked me how old my child was - I told him 1 year. He said, "And she's still breastfeeding??" with a surprised look. I get those types of comments all the time. It's irritating but at the same time, I guess I can sort of understand it, because before I became a mom, I remembered thinking it was strange that my friend was still bfeeding her 8 month old year son. I guess it's different when you're in it.

And I agree with the post about people in the old days thinking that formula was better than bm . My mother is always making comments like, "So, do you still have milk??", or "I don't think she's getting enough milk from you.. .", or "I think you should give her a bottle of formula to make sure she gets enough..." It's like she secretly thinks that the formula is somehow more powerful and nutritious than my bm.

 

[cara]

Personally, I think when the child can ask the question "mummy may I please have some milk" and pull up your shirt to nurse, then it's too long.

I've heard a number of people say something like this is their limit, but *why*?

This isn't meant to single you out, I've just heard this guideline a lot and I'm not sure what it is based on. Is it that breastfeeding older kids grosses you out? Or is it a view that breastfeeding is infants only, but once a kid has mastered their vocal cords and made progress on their sentence construction then you are uncomfortable with it? Is the ability to make a verbal request merely a proxy for their age, so its really a way of having a mental age limit on what makes you uncomfortable?

If its the idea that when they are old enough to ask, they are too old, I've seen babies under 1 year clearly ask for milk by signing - they just haven't got the vocal skills yet to be able to communicate their request in spoken words. And my friend's 16 month old could ask verbally. Maybe not as elegantly as the sentence above, but "mommy, nurse, nurse!" made with whining and pleading face You are supposed to feed a child breastmilk or formula through age 1, and then you *may* switch to cow's milk at age 1. But many 1-2 yro are still getting an important part of their nutrition from milk, I don't see why cow's milk is preferable to human, and at some point in that year many children will be able to ask verbally for milk. After that breastfeeding is mostly for comfort, but the AAP clearly states there is "no evidence of psychologic or developmental harm from breastfeeding into the third year of life or longer."

I just think we as a society are out of touch with breastfeeding and it makes us uncomfortable. Heck, I am in that category myself. I had to work at it initially and still don't feel comfortable doing it anywhere and everywhere. But when people go around talking about how "well if they can ask for it that is too old" or "isn't this 6 yro breastfeeding gross!" I just think it doesn't help create a supportive environment for breastfeeding and that is more of a problem. I'm not some kind of lactavist, I think there are a lot of barriers to breastfeeding and if formula works for you or you have some kind of problem breastfeeding, well get your kid fed somehow and feel good about it. But I do feel that there should be somewhat more support for breastfeeding and ideally it would be more normative. I mentioned that my goal is to breastfeed to a year to a friend, and she looked at me like that is quite ambitious/overambitious. (It's the guideline! I'm trying to meet the guideline!) This woman is currently breastfeeding her 6 mo old, so its not like she's clueless. And then I've heard questioning comments about women that are still breastfeeding in their kids in the 1-2 range. None of those women really ended up breastfeeding past age two. Do we really need to make unsupportive comments about breastfeeding in that age range and be judgmental about it? Is it really a problem?