Benefits of Breastfeeding: Extended and Tandem

Breastfeeding has become such a norm in this house. If it is not my 2 month old then it is my 2 year old. I never thought I would be nursing a child over 2 and especially not tandem nursing. I actually weaned my 2 year old when he turned two. I was pregnant and it did not feel that great to have a child nursing on my tender boobs. It became quite easy to wean him as my milk was drying up. Then the baby came and he saw someone else nursing all the time and he wanted comfort and closeness. I immediately thought that I would let him nurse a couple times a day to get through this drastic change he just experienced. Then as the days went on he wanted it more and more. I realized that this was his way of trying to keep my attention and my close relationship. I decided to put together some guidelines and boundaries. You are allowed to nurse once in the morning, once at nap time and once at bed time. This gives him his own special times without making it an any time thing. When he asks for "his booby" during the day, I remind him that he has to wait until nap time or bed time. Once and awhile I break this rule when he seriously injures himself or seems sick. As a mom I like to reserve the right for exceptions.

World Health Organization Guidelines on Breastfeeding - Recommend until at least 2 years of age!

The Adventures in Tandem Nursing - Great book on nursing during pregnancy and beyond

Known Benefits of Breastfeeding:

1) Increases the child’s immunity to illness- the mother creates antibodies to illness the child has been exposed to and passes them to the child through her milk;

2) Increases the size of the thymus gland in children while they are breastfed which is essential in immune response by increasing the amount of lymphodial tissue in the child;

3) Intimate bonding for the mom and baby and reduction in post partum depression due to the oxytocin release and calming the mother’s nerves;

4) Studies are now showing a decrease in obesity of breastfeed children, especially among moms who exclusively breastfeed;

5) Reduction in chemicals the child is exposed to (in 2008 they found tainted baby formula from China included Melamine and killed or injured numerous children);

6) Takes your weight off faster due to the increase in calories you burn;

7) More environmentally friendly as it results in no waste from formula cans;

8) Saves money!!