Mothers may be justifiably concerned about the impact of pregnancy on their
milk supply even when the pregnancy comes years after the last one. First,
the biologically normal average age of weaning for humans is estimated to
be between 2.5 and 7 years of age (Dettwyler 1995). We simply do not have
data on the health and developmental impact of premature weaning by this
biological standard. Furthermore, not all of the world's nurslings have
access to nutritionally adequate weaning foods. Human milk may play a vital
role in providing the "older" nursling with key nutrients otherwise not
available in his or her diet, as well as with immunological components
critical to survival (UNICEF/WHO/UNESCO/UNFPA 1993). And not all of the
world's nurslings are born with similar functioning of their respiratory,
immune, digestive, endocrine, nervous, etc. systems; one out of 50 babies
is born with a significant congenital disorder (Good Mojab 1999/2000,
2002). Human milk may be a matter of survival even for a toddler or
preschooler. In ordinary and extraordinary situations, we still do not
fully know what needs will go unmet and what the consequences will be when
weaning is premature by the biological standard.
Dettwyler, K. A time to wean: The hominid blueprint for the natural age of
weaning in modern human populations. In P. Stuart-Macadam and K. Dettwyler
(Eds.) Breastfeeding: Biological Perspectives. New York: Aldine De Gruyter
1995.
Good Mojab, C. Congenital disorders: Implications for breastfeeding.
LEAVEN. Vol. 35 No. 6, December 1999-January 2000, pp. 123-28.
(http://home.attbi.com/~ammawell)
Good Mojab, C. Congenital disorders in the nursling. Unit 5. Lactation
Consultant Series II. Schaumburg, IL: La Leche League International, 2002.
UNICEF/WHO/UNESCO/UNFPA. Facts for Life: A Communication Challenge.
Oxfordshire, UK: P&LA 1993.
Cynthia
Cynthia Good Mojab
Ammawell
Email: [log in to unmask]; Web site: http://home.attbi.com/~ammawell
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