When baby boy was born and I was first introduced to my first nursing session with him I would have never thought that he would still be nursing at his age. I hadn't place a length of time on it, I wanted to open on the thought. Just if you would had said you are going to breastfeed pass the age of 18 months I would have screamed. In the thought of that is way too old and why.
But, at the point I would not have changed a thing. Breastfeeding has proved so much more for him than just nutrition.
- I just didn't want to wean him for my convenience.
- Breastfeeding has proved a sense of security for him.
1. Breast milk continues to provide substantial amounts
of key nutrients well beyond the first year of life, especially
protein, fat, and most vitamins.
- 29% of energy requirements
- 43% of protein requirements
- 36% of calcium requirements
- 75% of vitamin A requirements
- 76% of folate requirements
- 94% of vitamin B12 requirements
- 60% of vitamin C requirements
3. Nursing toddlers between the ages of 16 and 30 months have been found to have fewer illnesses and illnesses of shorter duration than their non-nursing peers .
What about Mommy:
MOTHERS also benefit from breastfeeding past infancy
- Extended nursing delays the return of fertility in some women by suppressing ovulation
- Breastfeeding reduces the risk of breast cancer . Studies have found a significant inverse association between duration of lactation and breast cancer risk.
- Breastfeeding reduces the risk of ovarian cancer .
- Breastfeeding reduces the risk of uterine cancer .
- Breastfeeding reduces the risk of endometrial cancer .
- Breastfeeding protects against osteoporosis. During lactation a mother may experience decreases of bone mineral. A nursing mom's bone mineral density may be reduced in the whole body by 1 to 2 percent while she is still nursing. This is gained back, and bone mineral density may actually increase, when the baby is weaned from the breast. This is not dependent on additional calcium supplementation in the mother's diet.
- Breastfeeding reduces the risk of rheumatoid arthritis.
- Breastfeeding has been shown to decrease insulin requirements in diabetic women.
- Breastfeeding moms tend to lose weight easier .
Moms who are breastfeeding at this moment or who are pregnant shouldn't place a time on how long they plan on breastfeeding, unless necessary. Far to many times moms setup a point to stop nursing before they even begin. Though uncommon Mothers should explore the ideas and facts of nursing past infancy prior to counting it out.
References:
http://www.kellymom.com/index.html
http://www.llli.org/
