When should I stop breastfeeding my 4 year old?

Question

My son is 4 years old and we sometimes get strange looks from strangers when I feed him in public. What is a good age to stop breastfeeding? He really enjoys it and I don't want to deprive him. Thanks!

Answer 1

3 years ago.

Answer 2

****You have all been conned! This is not even a woman writing the question! This person is making a joke out of a serious subject! There is nothing wrong with breastfeeding a 4 year old and it is true that breastfeeding should continue until 1 or 2, until the child is ready to give it up. BUT- this guy is making a mockery out of the whole subject! Quit answering him!******
Something about the tone of your question makes me feel that it is a spoof.
IF, you were serious, IF that is.....you would probably not be feeding your son in public as you would know that it would likely get you lynched in some places.
While I personally see nothing wrong with extended nursing, I think it is valuable and precious, your letter does not sound "right". The fact that you are nursing your son until he is four years old, and I doubt that you are, makes me a tad uneasy. My step-daughter, who is also a registered nurse, breastfed her youngest daughter until she was 4, but she did not sound like you. There is just something unwholesome about your attitude. I read your profile, your other questions and your answers. They do not add up.
I don't believe that you are a mother, much less a breastfeeding one.
sorry, I am not going to take the bait.
Lady Trinity~ *****To SillyGirl and HyperMama, you are SO right and as usual you stole the words right out of my mouth! You always make me wish that I had said the same thing! Belinda, I wanted to mention to you that "YES!", I have noticed the same thing. Could it be because there is a strong correlation between breastfeeding and a college education? I know that there are many, many very smart ladies that did not attend college and I am not for one minute putting them down, but it has been proven that college educated women are more likely to breastfeed their babies. That would explain why these bottle feeding mom's cannot even spell their favorite word...."disgusting"......lol.*****

Answer 3

I totally agree with Tanya. Wean when you and your son are ready.

Babies do NOT have to stop nursing when they get teeth! That's ridiculous! They cannot bite and nurse at the same time, it's not possible. My children quickly learned that if they bit Mommy, the milk stops and Mommy took them off the breast.

Good luck, and hang in there...just do what you think is right!

Answer 4

I stopped at 12 months. I think 4 years old is too old to be breastfeeding. But I heard it was good for the child.

Answer 5

I don't think you're serious, but the answers you've gotten make me sad. I'll nurse my baby until she's ready to stop and I wish more mothers would.

I've always wanted to do a study on here. I could correlate spelling/grammatical/punctuation errors with support or lack of support of breastfeeding. Has anyone else ever noticed that the bottle crowd can't write?

Answer 6

Its amazing to me the number of stupid, small minded, un evolved, perverted comments you have gotten.

THERE IS NOTHING WRONG with breastfeeding your child...the global average is between 2 and 3 years and it's not uncommon in Europe and other parts of the planet to see children upwards of 4 years old being breastfed.

Your son enjoys your companionship and comfort he gets from breastfeeding, there is nothing wrong with that.

This idiotic society we live in, has so over sexualized breasts, that women seem to have forgotten what our breasts are for. THEY ARE FOR FEEDING CHILDREN, not for bikinis or playboy centerfolds or filling out designer tops, those are all just happy coincidences...but their true purpose, is for comforting and nourishing our children.

It's amazing to me that even women in third world countries that are supposedly "uneducated" or "underprivliged" have always known this...and have no shame doing it...

But here, we sit on the top of the world, labeled a "super power" and we're completely ************ and misinformed and breeding more generations of misinformed women that are thoroughly confused as to the purpose of our bodies.

THAT's DISGUSTING to me...not a woman feeding her child.

YOU FEED YOUR CHILD as long as you both want to...to hell with anyone that has a problem with it.

Answer 7

I am a firm believer in breastfeeding! I think it's the best thing you can do for your child. Saying that...I do believe that there should be a limit! I think that after the first year, they should be on milk. And I think it should be in a sippy. I do not think it's ok to nurse after a year. Your child id gonna be going to school soon and what is going to happen when he is in school? How are you going to nurse him then? I would start weaning him now!!! Don't do it all at once. That make it too hard on him. Start taking one feeding a day away. Instead of feeding him on your breast, offer him milk or breast milk in a sippy or even a bottle! If you slowly take the breast from him instead of all at once, it should make it easier for him. I nursed for a month and after that I used a bottle. It's an idea! You can try it or not, but anything is worth a shot!

Answer 8

He does not enjoy the breastfeeding, as such. He enjoys your companionship. Find something else to do together.

Remember: he's going to stop abruptly at some point because he will be in school.

He's also old enough to talk and tell strange stories. I assume that you have not discussed male/female privacy with him either. I have a friend who has a 4-year old nurser in the family and the mother would probably die if she new some of the things he was talking about.

Answer 9

If it's a mutual thing, then there really isn't anything wrong with it. I breastfed my oldest to 35 months, tandum nursed for 8 1/2 months, and nursed my middle child until he self-weaned at 2 1/2. (My youngest weaned herself at 11 months.) That being said, I really do not think there is any reason for breastfeeding in public at that age and of course you are going to get strange looks. I quit nursing in public (meaning at a store or restaraunt or whatever) when my children were 18 months old. Not that there is an automatic cut off date for when you should stop nursing in public, but I do think 4 is a little old. The thing you need to think about is if you want him still nursing when he goes to school. I think if he is still "needing" to nurse so frequently that you have to breastfeed him in public, he is going to have a hard time leaving your side to go to kindergarden, not to mention that he will be made fun of if other kids find out. Anyway, just my own thoughts. Good for you for doing what's best for your child!


Can I just say that all of you who say to quit at a year are very misinformed. The World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding until at least 3 years. There are many, many benefits to breastfeeding past a year.

Answer 10

First of all congratulations Dayton for breastfeeding your son for so long, especially in the face of strange looks from strangers, which are mirrored by most of the previous comments (some of which I felt were quite offensive in tone--but then, there appears to be a positive correlation between extended breastfeeding and maternal educational level in "developed" countries--see for example http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1074&context=uclabiolchem/nutritionbytes -- so dare I say perhaps the converse is also possible). WHO and UNICEF recommend breastfeeding for at least two years. In other more "primitive" cultures extended nursing is normal, and it also was in "western" countries in the past--Isaac was about five when Abraham threw a weaning party for him, Shakespeare's Juliet was three when her wetnurse put wormwood on her breasts to wean her http://shakespeare.about.com/library/blromeo_1_3.htm?terms=nurse+call . Extrapolating from other primates, most human children need to nurse for four to seven years http://www.kathydettwyler.org/detwean.html . The immune system is not fully developed until the age of five or six, so antibodies in breast milk are still useful protection against disease long after nutritional needs are met by solid food. And of course there is the comfort factor and the bonding. My advice to you is the classic 'don't offer, don't refuse' and to continue as long as you both enjoy it, but as some others here have suggested, it may be wise to keep it in private to prevent the strange looks. At four your son is old enough to accept that he has to wait a little while until you are alone. And he is old enough to remember, warm memories that he will cherish for the rest of his life.

Answer 11

First, this is a very controversial topic, I personally think it is extremely weird for someone to breastfeed past 2 years old. I would not breastfeed personally past 1 as any pediatrician would say cows milk (vitamin D) is fine after 12 months of age. There are certain times when i think past one are fine if you are very tight on money and can't afford milk as young children really NEED milk from some source or if the child has some sick conditions where the immunity from your breastmilk would be necessary because the child does not have a good immune system which in an average child is just fine by 6 months. If the above is the case I would still say after 1 you should pump and give bottles or to them in a sippy cup.

To be honest I think it is much worse for your child to still breastfeed at 4 year because at this point it is a crutch for the child like sucking on a pacifier at that age. You as the parent need to set the time to stop NOT THE CHILD and at 4 your child is too mature to be sucking on your breast and if a child can ask to suck on your boob I think breastfeeding is ridiculous. I think you should find another special way for your kid and you to bond. Cuddle and read a book. Your 4 year old should be able to self sooth without sucking on your breast!!!!!!