How long can I exclusively breastfeed my baby??

Question

My daughter is 5 mo.s old and I'd like to know how much longer I can safely just breastfeed her. Also how many dirty diapers should she be having at this age??

Answer 1

You can breastfeed as long as you want. The longer the better. There is a cut-off point where it is no longer beneficial to baby, but i don't remember what it is. I only breastfed my kids about 2-4 months. I have heard about some women feeding their kids that way until they were about 3 years old. Personally, I think that is way too long. Doctors will tell you at least a year.

Answer 2

It is recommended the exclusively breast feed until 6 months and then at age 6 months introducing solids but still breastfeed for the first 12 months. Most doctors will recommend between 4-6 months introducing solids... if you think your daughter needs more, then I would say (as a mom, not any kind of professional) to start giving her some solid foods. A mother knows best :) But if you would rather wait another month to introduce solids, then by all means, keep just breastfeeding. This really comes down to motherly instincts and you will make the right decison for your daughter :) good luck.

Answer 3

Breastmilk provides complete nutrition for your baby for about her first year of life. After that point, her growing body will need other foods to fully meet her needs. However, the best person to decide when to start solids is your baby. Most babies will be ready to start solids sometime in the second half of their first year. Look for signs of readiness - sitting up on her own, loss of the "tongue thrust" reflex, interest in and grabbing your food, acting unsatisfied after breastfeeding. Being ready for solids is a new developmental stage and there's no benefit to your baby in NOT starting if she seems ready. Until she's at least a year old, your milk should still be the main source of her nutrition, so solids are mainly for practice and play. To make sure she gets plenty of your milk, breastfeed before offering solids. Let her choose how much to eat and don't worry if her appetite is highly variable. A 5-month old, exclusively breastfed baby may have several poopy diapers a day, or may go several days (even a week or longer) without a BM. As long as she's gaining weight well, acts happy and comfortable, and is developing normally, she's getting plenty of your milk and her # of dirty diapers is just right for her!

Answer 4

It really depends on your child and you ARE the expert here. With our kids, the first one I BF for four months and then switched him to bottles as I started him on solid foods, partly because I was READY to wean, he wasn't and I regretted it afterwards. The next one I exclusively BF and he wasn't interested in solid foods till almost 9 months old (and this was a above average sized kiddo) Next was our daughter and she also was exclusively BF till around 9 months, although she was interested in solid foods earlier so we started them with her at around 7 mos. She on the other hand though thrived after I put her on a bottle at 9 months, she was and still is teeny tiny, will be 5 next week and wears 3T/4T clothes..... last one (yes I have four kids) was breastfed till about 8 months, ate solid foods as soon as we introduced them, took bottles here and there throughout and was on bottles after I dried up, not sure if I just couldn't keep up with him,or what the deal was. All that long story to say, trust YOUR instincts, do what's best for your family and every one of your kids will be different.
Diapers I can remember a Dr telling me that the normal range is anywhere from four a day to one in four days...... if those have changed, that is something I'd ask baby's DR. (also my kids were on EVERY part of THAT spectrum as well!) :)

Answer 5

"Many health professionals suggest starting solid foods at four months of age. However, most babies do fine with breastfeeding only to six months of age or even longer. You should start your baby on solids when s/he shows signs of being ready for solids, not by the calendar. See below. Health Canada and UNICEF recommend breastfeeding exclusively to about six months.

Why start solid foods?
Because there comes a time when breastmilk no longer supplies all your baby’s nutritional needs. (This does not mean, as some uninformed people say, that there is no nutritional value in breastmilk after the baby is six months old.) A full term baby will start requiring iron from other sources by 6 to 9 months of age. The calories supplied by breastmilk may become inadequate by 8 to 9 months of age, although some babies can continue to grow well on breastmilk alone well past a year.
Because some babies not started on solids by a certain age (9-12 months) may have great difficulty accepting solid foods. Because it is a developmental milestone that your child passes when he starts solid foods. He is growing up. Usually, he will want to eat solids. Why stop him?"

http://www.drjacknewman.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=127&Itemid=170

Answer 6

You can exclusively breastfeed your baby up until 12 months of age. Many doctors recommend that you start supplementing at 6 months with infant cereal because it is fortified with iron (breastmilk does not contain much iron)....but there is no other medical reason for supplementing that early. My midwife suggested that I wait until my baby showed interest in table food, which actually occurred when he turned 7 months old. He shows strong interest in tasting almost everything that mom is eating! :-)

My pediatrician told me that my baby would have to go to a behavioral therapist to learn how to chew and swallow if I didn't feed him solids at 6 months.... crazy, crazy, crazy. (Doctors sometimes remind me of witch doctors trying to spook moms into submission with their recommended practices). We are switching doctors. :-)

Answer 7

How ever many dirty diapers she needs to make. Generally she should be peeing atleast 6-8 times a day. Breastfed babies dont poop every day. unless they need to.

She doesnt NEED anything else until she's a year, although most people introduce some solids around 4-5 months.

Answer 8

You can breastfeed for as long as you wish. But you do need to start her on some sort of solids...they need more substance after awhile.

Answer 9

she will let you know when she is ready

readiness signs of solids are development of pincer grasp which normally coincides with the ability to swallow without the tongue thrust

when she is eyeing your food....perhaps you can let her have tastes and licks of your food if you think she is interested

your milk is more than sufficient for her hunger and nutrition until she lets you know she needs more....and even then your milk continues to benenfit her for years if you choose to nurse that long

Answer 10

Gosh, don't you think your doctor is the best one to ask?? I would think she's about ready for some cereal but not my decision.
Also, dirty diapers are subjective, so to speak, one kid's mess is not like the other.