Breast-feeding: Is 6 too old?

No, says a British woman who breast-feeds her school-age son alongside her infant. Many others, however, are not so sure

How old is too old for breast-feeding?
(Image credit: Corbis)

The story of an English woman who nurses her infant alongside her 6-year-old has parents around the world debating "how old is too old" when it comes to breast-feeding. The woman, Amanda Hurst, tried to wean her eldest when he was 3, but when he threw tantrums, she let him continue to nurse. "I know some people think it's strange," she says. "But I think it's perfectly natural." Is it?

It is creepy and wrong: Breast-feeding is usually a "beautiful and natural thing," but it's something else entirely when it's a 6-year-old who's doing the suckling, says Wendy Atterberry at The Frisky. The mother in this case claims it's more convenient and says she's too lazy to deal with baby bottles, which makes me think she may be clinically depressed. She needs to "get out of bed" and pour a bowl of Cheerios for her son.

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