Some years ago I had this question posed to me by a mom, age 43, when
BFing her 7th baby, who was very colicky and a nearly marathon nurser at
age 8 weeks. She wondered if she had insufficient milk thinking maybe
she'd gone into menopause. I certainly didn't know the answer but knew
who had been doing alot of research on female hormones and
breastfeeding. So I phoned Dr. Miriam Labbock. I am paraphrasing what I
remember, but she said basically the two things (menopause and
breastfeeding) are mutually incompatible, because the hormones for
breastfeeding suppress the hormones of leading to menopause. Both events
require the "participation" of the pitutary gland, and BFing carries the
veto (so to speak). I do not pretend to understand the pituitary gland,
but perhaps this will shed some light on the current discussion and
someone else can give the "real" explanation.

By the way, the average age of menopause in the U.S. is 51 - how old was
this mom again?

P.S. The colic in my consult was the result of excessive foremilk intake
without adequate hindmilk to balance it; foremilk is high in calcium
which turns to gas in the gut without a sufficient fat intake - the old
"calcium load" problem. We finally settled on mom pumping until the
hindmilk started down and then let the baby nurse. Also contributing was
lactose intolerance in mom's diet, - she was heavily reliant on dairy.

Katharine West, BSN, MPH
Sherman Oaks, CA