by Anura Guruge
on February 2, 2022
Before anybody even thinks of getting on their high horse and claiming that I, as a man, have no right, or say, when it comes to breastfeeding, let me give you the FOUR (4) reasons that make me uniquely qualified.
1/ I am a father of four kids all of whom were breastfeed.
2/ My youngest, soon to be 16, was breastfed for 27 months (i.e., 2 years, 3 months).
3/ I am & have been for as long as I can remember an ardent & committed supporter of breastfeeding.
4/ For 9 years I was a poster child, a ‘Lactogen Baby‘, for a Swiss baby formula company!
As stated above, my youngest was breastfed, daily, directly by her mother, for 27 months. At that stage it was getting slightly out of hand & we decided to stop.
She has grown up to be quite the young lady, & incredibly gifted artist.
But, recently she has had some medical issues. We lucked out. She got to see some really good pediatric doctors at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Facility in Lebanon, NH. One of the things that we discussed was the length of time she was breastfed. WHY?
Because, push comes to shove, there is really NOT THAT MUCH data as to what happens to kids breastfed beyond 1 year.
The BIG, unanswered question is what medicines can get transferred from the mother to the child. We are talking about prescription medication DEEMED safe for breastfeeding mothers. But, here is the PROBLEM. The ‘SAFE’ in this instance does NOT take into account long-term.
Get it.
Doctors know that ‘so-and-so’ medication is safe while breastfeeding — BUT, they are NOT sure whether their claim & beliefs extend when the breastfeeding was done for 27 months. Basically, the concern, as you probably worked out by now, has to do with possible ACCUMULATION.
A kid breastfed for 3 months — fine. 6 months — ditto.
1-year. Not as sure. 27 months?
Yes, it is possible that chemicals from the mother could have got through in large enough quantities.
The problem is that they just don’t know. There is no data. No studies have been done.
Now YOU know.
Hence, why I am advocating prudence.
I will go as far as 24 months — BUT that will be max.
