Dear Dr. Christian

What about the myriad other diseases that breastfeeding “protects” against?  Well, we know in the USA that if 90% of women exclusively breastfed for six months, they would save $13 billion in health care costs and save 911 lives[2].  Now, this is only the first six months, but if you believe breast milk magically changes at six months such that a day after all those benefits just cease, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you too.  In fact, researchers have examined the immunological elements in breast milk and guess what?  They are stable in the first two years (and they simply haven’t examined beyond that so we can’t make any claims about breast milk post two years)[3].  This means that we can expect to have immunological benefits for at least that long.  How’s that for helping a baby’s immune system?

Next you claim, “As long as the child is having a healthy diet, there’s no harm in breastfeeding.”  Okay… what?!  Back up…  Who’s talking about harm?  You’re now implying that somehow breastfeeding could be harmful.  Not only that, but that it’s harmful for kids who don’t have a healthy diet when in reality those are the children who would most benefit from breast milk!  Clearly you have no idea what’s in breast milk so let me give you a breakdown of breast milk at an even later age than your six month limit:

In the second year (12-23 months), 448 mL of breastmilk provides[4]

• 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

How could this possibly ever be harmful?  Or, more to the point, how could this not be beneficial?  At six months of age – heck even a year – most babies or toddlers are not eating enough calories to obtain all of their nutrients.  In fact, a third to half of parents report their toddlers are picky eaters or don’t eat enough[5], and have you met a six month old who can consume enough solid food to survive?  I didn’t think so.  Let’s be clear: Not only is breast milk not harmful, it offers nutrients and immunological elements that help baby and toddler.

Now we’re at your closing, which is where the whole pulling things out of thin air comes into play.  You claim, “But breastfed older children risk becoming psychologically dependent on the mother.  This could result in behavioural problems as they grow up.”  We’re out of ignorance and into bullshit (pardon the language), aren’t we?  Nothing like instilling fear in parents to get them to turn against breastfeeding, right?  First, let’s be clear, for the vast majority of human history children have breastfed well beyond six months.  Normal, natural weaning occurs most frequently between the ages of three and five[6], though of course there are children who fall outside this median range.  Are you suggesting that every human being prior to our modern culture was psychologically dependent on their mother and thus had behavioural problems growing up?

Second, I’m quite curious what type of independence you think babies have psychologically.  All of the babies I know are psychologically dependent upon their caregivers for support and comfort.  As we know from history and research, babies not given this psychological support and comfort (and instead left to their own devices) suffer severe behavioural problems, mental health problems, and in the worst cases, death[7][8].  For many babies and children, breastfeeding is their preferred means of comfort (though of course it is not the only means by any stretch).  This myth of baby independence does all of our children a disservice by forcing independence on them when they are not ready for it, depriving them of the foundation they need to truly be independent down the line.  Read up on the behaviours of children from current hunter-gatherer tribes where these children are breastfed full-term and try to come back and claim these kids suffer from psychological dependence (as a negative connotation, not the normal psychological dependence that is expected in infancy and childhood) or behavioural problems[9].  I dare you.

All this said, breastfeeding at all or breastfeeding beyond six months will not be for every mother or every family.  There are too many factors that we simply don’t have control over that can end a breastfeeding relationship at any stage – including before it’s begun.  However, what you have said here is so anti-breastfeeding, it needed a response.  I sincerely hope for the presumably many readers of Closer that you are able to look at the ignorant and factually incorrect statement you have made and issue a retraction and apology.  No mother, and certainly no baby, deserves to have this ignorant and incorrect driven paraded around in a public forum from a so-called “expert”.

Sincerely,

Tracy Cassels
EvolutionaryParenting.com
Where History Meets Science in Parenting

p.s. There as been a “retraction” which include some comments from Dr. Christian which I would like to address here:

“Advice on breast feeding is always changing. The World Health Organisation recommends breast feeding for up to two years, while the NHS recommends breast feeding for the first six months.”

Me: Actually not really. Different places make different recommendations, but the WHO recommendation of 2 years has been in place since at least 2007. The WHO bases its policy on health and medical research. Many countries base opinions on feasibility of what members of that country can be expected to do as well as cultural norms.  Personally I prefer to take the global view of WHO whose sole focus is on the medical benefits for babies, children, and mothers. 

“Breast milk is beneficial to a baby’s immune system for the first six months, but there is no harm in continuing to do it as long as the child has a healthy diet.”

Again with the “no harm”. No one has suggested harm, but the fact that you mention this in the negative as well as with the caveat that the child has a healthy diet (implying it’s not good for those without a healthy diet when in fact that’s the group who benefits most from it) suggests you view it as a negative. I can think of no other reason for the phrasing.

“If a child is being breast fed until eight, this may make them overly dependent on their mother. However if they are being breast-fed at four there is no harm in this.”

What are you basing this distinction on? What research? I ask because there is none that suggests a problem or “over dependent” behaviour at 8, 7, 6, or 5. When a child weans is up to the child and mother. Trying to scare moms into thinking something bad will happen is unfair and unfounded.

“I support women who want to breastfeed and would never wish to discourage anyone from doing so.”

Except write comments like the above and retractions like this that continue to place breastfeeding in a negative light and promote inaccurate information?