The $100 Question: Heather From Sprittibee Asks When To Wean A Breastfed Baby?

I would imagine that each situation is different and it depends on both the mom and the baby

My daughter weaned at 20 months when we had a plane trip to visit her grandparents. I realized that nursing no longer comforted her (ugh, bad timing) and she wasn't interested anymore. Her grandparents put her to bed that night so the plane was the last time she ever nursed!

My son weaned at 15 months because he was ready! He was way too busy to keep nursing and was really phoning it in since about 12 months so we quit.

I did not breast feed.

I think when a baby is one they should be weaned. Bottle fed babies start drinking whole milk at 1 so I think that's a good age.

I don't have kids yet but if I did I would probably stop around 1 year.

I intended to nurse until 12 months with all my kids.

My first was only nursed until 3 months and then supplemented until about 9 months when we were done - too much biting with that one. Never pumped to speak of with him.

My second was only nursed for about 1 month before supplementing. Nursed until just about 12 months, though it was just one evening feeding by the last few months. I did pump for a while with her when I went back to work.

My third was only nursed for two months before supplementing. Nursed until about 6 months - due to a house fire, our schedule got so screwed up and I just lost too much milk. She would just get frustrated and rather have a bottle. I did pump for a while with her too.

I tried breastfeeding but I was unable to. garrettsambo@aol.com

my son until he was a year and a half old. He did eat other food, but still was breastfeeding. I wanted him to get as much nutrients for as long as normally possible for him to stay healthy and grow strong.

I weaned mine off the breast at 12 months.
That is long enough for the baby and me

I would say it most cases around the baby's first birthday because, by then, they are allowed to drink milk.

I had to stop pumping around 6 months for both of mine. Too much work with not enough pumping time allowed. Plus, both my kids had teeth come in early and had biting issues...I didn't miss it much.

Health kids both, so they don't seem to have missed it.

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I did not breast feed either of my sons,sorry have no clue to your question!

After my sons 1st birthday we stopped breastfeeding :)

i believe that a baby should be weaned off the breast by the age of 2 (max). i follow this because I am a muslim and in islaam the right of the baby has over his/her mother (for the breastfeeding) is 2 years.

As soon as my babies got interested in sippy cups and finger food they were less interested in breast milk. I still cuddled them and that seemed to satisfy them. The range was between 15 months and 2 years.

When the permanent teeth come in, they're more than ready to be removed.

Each child is a different person and has a different personality so the right answer for one child is different for another. I really do believe in child-led weaning.

I nursed my first for 18 months and then she weaned herself. I nursed my second for 24 months and needed to go on an overseas trip for two weeks without her so I stopped her cold turkey (I don't recommend that). My third weaned himself at 25 months and my fourth was never a good nurser so I stopped nursing her at 4 months and then pumped milk for 12 months for her. By the time she was 16 montbs, I was DONE pumping. Breastfeeding is so much easier that pumping and then bottlefeeding the milk you just pumped.

I think that when they start getting their molars at 12-14 months it is natured way of saying they need real food

I started to slowly wind down the nursing at 14 months. I wanted to make it till at least 12 months and he was slowly not asking to nurse as much at 13 months. It was a thrill not having to pump anymore!
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I breastfed both my children. My son I breastfed until he was 5 1/2 months, and my daughter I breastfed until she was 6 months. I would have loved to made it a year with both, but I was having trouble getting enough milk, as I had to work and pump every three hours. I was so..happy being able to make it to 5 1/2 and 6 months, because it was very important to me that I do breastfeed. Just incase someone is reading who will be breastfeeding or knows someone who will be, Oatmeal does wonders for milk supply, and Mothers Milk Tea, and the herb Fenugreek too! Thanks for the wonderful giveaway :0)

When my oldest daughter was born I so wanted to breastfeed her but my family was not supportive at all and they actually discouraged me because I was a single mom and would have to go back to work as soon as possible to raise my baby. I let them get the best of me and for months after she was born everything I wore stayed wet with milk that should have been given to my daughter. Lord only knows the number of shirts that were ruined. My breast drained ALL THE TIME. I didn't think it was ever going to stop. I cry to think of all that was wasted because I let my family control me.
When my second daughter was born I was determined I would breastfeed her till the day she didn't want to be attached to the breast any longer. She was introduced to a bottle in the nursery at the hospital and I was furious! I struggled to get her to latch on and just when I thought it was accomplished ... my breast dried up ... completely ... I couldn't manage a drop of anything from either breast. I tried pumping. I increased my fluid intake to the point that I thought I was going to float away and nothing ... not a drop.
She was my last baby so I never got the joy of breastfeeding. I have encouraged both my daughters to at least attempt breastfeeding. One did and hated it ... the other tried and cried like I did when she realized that she was no longer producing milk for her little boy. I later found out that very few women in my family have ever been successful with breastfeeding due to their supply drying up without reason.

not a mom so don't know

I didn't breastfeed my son, but I had friends that did. They stopped when they felt comfortable that the child was ready.

My first daughter Elphine* was an avid nurser, and by the time her sister Thumper* was born three years later it was still important to her, so I tandem nursed for 6 months. I injured my back at that point, and had to wean Elphine, though she was sad to give it up.

I based my decision to let my daughters nurse as long as they needed on whether nursing was still important to them. Looking back almost 20 years later, I still feel it was the right way to determine when they were ready to wean.

Thumper was happy to nurse until she was about 4. I once asked her when she intended to wean, and she replied "In about a thousand years!" But we went on vacation to the coast of Maine a few weeks later, and she was so busy having fun that she forgot to nurse, and I went back to having ornamental breasts.

I'll always remember the answer a friend gave to the question of what would happen if her nursing toddler was still nursing when he went off to college. Her snappy reply of "Then I'll give him a dollar for a cup of coffee!" kept playing over and over in my mind the day I brought my daughter to college for the first time.

*names changed to keep the former babies from being mortified that Mom is talking about this sort of thing in public ;)

I breastfed my son for almost 2 1/2 years. My milk began to really slack off during my pregnancy with our second child, and my son eventually lost interest.

i tried it for only a couple weeks and i was all scabbed and sore so i switched to formula

I didn't breastfeed but wish I would have.

to let nature take it's course.

I think each child's needs will be different. When baby can eat a wide enough range of food to get good nutrition and can drink from a sippy cup, it's time to think about weaning baby. Baby can still get tons of cuddling and comforting without feeding. I always figured that breastfeeding past when baby needs it is more for the mother than the child, and I'm not sure that's good for baby.

Show me the money!!!

My daughter started weaning her self when she was about one and started eating more solid foods. I feel breast milk is nutrional beneficial then I think the longer a child breast feeds the better it is for them.

Every baby is different. Some are ready sooner. Usually between a year and 15 months. In Bible days many were several years old before weaning.
My babies never had "sippy cups" etc as replacement. They learned to drink out of small cups before they were a year old. (Nowdays--aren't those sippy cups like not weaning a child until several years old???)

I dont agree with all those cups for my grandbabies, but since Im not the Mom, I try to be quiet about it, and continue to give them their cups when I baby sit.

I stopped breastfeeding when my daughter was only a few months old, but if I had it to do all over again I would have gone until she was a little over a year.

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I breastfed my oldest until she was 16 months and my youngest until she was 20 months. I started weaning when they started just snacking on me instead of actually eating. lol They would pop on for 5 minutes and then go about their day. I figured they were done.

I stopped breastfeeding my daughter when she was 15 months old. She started asking for it and I knew it was time to stop. I was also pregnant with my son and I wanted a little time to myself and my ta-tas.
My son is 11 months old and I'm thinking that it's time to start weaning him now. He is a biter and he thinks it's funny. It really hurts and I'm ready to have my body back to myself.

IMO, that all women should end breastfeeding. Many babies reject bf. I did not but in my extended family I have noticed that the trend is towards nursing over 1 year but less than 3. This may be a cultural difference, however. I have noticed that in the US, that women nurse their babies for less than a year, while overseas in Europe they may nurse for a longer period of time.

I think it depends on the child and the situation. My Grandson will be two tomorrow and he still nurses at bedtime. He has been very healthy and I contribute that to her breastfeeding.

This is such a personal choice and so many factors are involved. I personally weaned at 10 months, but that was because my supply dropped dramatically. I would have happily gone longer and think all moms need to do what works best for them.

When I was a new mom I was surprised to learn that the norm for weaning, world wide, is a little over 4 years old! That meant to me that all of those moms and babies who are not living in industrialized nations, are weaning well into toddlerhood. Once I learned that, I quit worrying about it.

My longest nursing baby went until he was 4 years old. My shortest nursing baby went to 9 months and I suspect quit because I was pregnant and the milk didn't taste the same. The last time I nursed my oldest daughter, she was 2 1/2, running around the room playing with her siblings and I asked her to come over to nurse and she put her hand on her little hip and said, "Oh alright!"

But I have no regrets, they all nursed until they were ready to stop and on the plus side, all that nursing provided me with the added benefit of reducing my breast cancer risk.

Elena,

"If you bungle raising your children, nothing else much matters." Jackie Kennedy

i would say about a year old, because they were capable of eating real foods.

I do not have kids, so no I did not

I've breasfed each of my kids, along with formula feeding them. Each one, we have gone a bit longer. We made it to the 6 month mark with my 2 year old, but then a nasty bout of thrush squashed our breasfeeding relationship. It's been pretty smooth sailing so far with my 5 week old.

Both of my daughters seemed ready at around a year, they adjusted so easily but I really missed the bonding ritual.

The time for weaning would vary as much as the personalities of individual children and moms. There can't be any set time.

I stopped when my son was 2, I had surgery and was away from him for the first time (for a full night) and figured it was a good time to see if he was ready to wean & he was.

The best time? Different for each baby and mommy. I think the best time to wean is when the baby starts to be more comfortable with solid food and take it from there. Some babies do better with longer, some with shorter- and each mom has a timeframe that works for them. I knew of one mom that breastfed until the child was 3 or 4 - too long in my opinion.

I don't have my own kids, but my sister stopped breastfeeding my nephew at about a year just because it seemed like it was time.

We weren't in a hurry, just waited until they were ready

When they are interested in lots of other food!