If it's for comfort, how about a hug instead? Or a blanket? Or stuffed animal? It's repulsive and it made me uncomfortable to watch. I know, I know, this isn't about ME or what makes me uncomfortable. But it's downright wrong. At the age of eight, some children (boys) already recognize *advertiser censored* as sexual objects!!I know that is a fact about some boys Shamrock, and that should alarm us way more than this one woman in Cumbria.
The video made me uncomfortable too. It made me uncomfortable because it is outside of my own personal "range" of what "I" deem appropriate. But does that make it universally inappropriate? The World Health Organization after looking at many cultural standards stated that weaning ages vary from 2 thru 7. The child in the video is 7 and about to turn 8. That puts this mom at the upper echelon of normal by global standards. It puts her way past "normal" by American standards.
Primates wean their offspring when they get their first permanent molars. In humans, that would be: 5.5-6.0 years.
Some pediatricians claim that length of gestation is approximately equal to length of nursing in many species, suggesting a weaning age of 9 months for humans. However, this relationship turns out to be affected by how large the adult animals are -- the larger the adults, the longer the length of breastfeeding relative to gestation. For chimpanzees and gorillas, the two primates closest in size to humans and also the most closely genetically related, the relationship is 6 to 1. That is to say, they nurse their offspring for SIX times the length of gestation (actually 6.1 for chimps and 6.4 for gorillas, with humans mid-way in size between these two). In humans, that would be: 4.5 years of nursing (six times the 9 months of gestation).
Most mammals wean their offspring when they have tripled their birth weight, suggesting a weaning age of 1 year in humans. Again though, this is affected by body weight, with larger mammals nursing their offspring until they have quadrupled their birth weight. In humans, quadrupling of birth weight occurs between 2.5 and 3.5 years, usually.
One study of primates showed that the offspring were weaned when they had reached about 1/3 their adult weight. This happens in humans at about 5-7 years.
A comparison of weaning age and sexual maturity in non-human primates suggests a weaning age of 6-7 for humans (about half-way to reproductive maturity).
Studies have shown that a child's immune system doesn't completely mature until about 6 years of age, and it is well established that breast milk helps develop the immune system and augment it with maternal antibodies as long as breast milk is produced (up to two years, no studies have been done on breast milk composition after two years post partum).
And on and on. The minimum predicted age for a natural age of weaning in humans is 2.5 years, with a maximum of 7.0 years.
more at the link
http://www.kathydettwyler.org/detwean.html
sorry- you are simply wrong imo- regardless of your debating the issue- I wont even "listen" to your side
Me too! And I agree with others, this case is about the mother, not the children. So disgusting!!
My pediatrician disagreed with you. She fully supported my decision to allow my infants/toddlers to wean themselves. They both did it easily at about 2 years old for the one (who is now 6-6...good milk, I guess- hehe) and the other at about 20 months.
If it's for comfort, how about a hug instead? Or a blanket? Or stuffed animal? It's repulsive and it made me uncomfortable to watch. I know, I know, this isn't about ME or what makes me uncomfortable. But it's downright wrong. At the age of eight, some children (boys) already recognize *advertiser censored* as sexual objects!!I know that is a fact about some boys Shamrock, and that should alarm us way more than this one woman in Cumbria.
The video made me uncomfortable too. It made me uncomfortable because it is outside of my own personal "range" of what "I" deem appropriate. But does that make it universally inappropriate? The World Health Organization after looking at many cultural standards stated that weaning ages vary from 2 thru 7. The child in the video is 7 and about to turn 8. That puts this mom at the upper echelon of normal by global standards. It puts her way past "normal" by American standards.
Primates wean their offspring when they get their first permanent molars. In humans, that would be: 5.5-6.0 years.
Some pediatricians claim that length of gestation is approximately equal to length of nursing in many species, suggesting a weaning age of 9 months for humans. However, this relationship turns out to be affected by how large the adult animals are -- the larger the adults, the longer the length of breastfeeding relative to gestation. For chimpanzees and gorillas, the two primates closest in size to humans and also the most closely genetically related, the relationship is 6 to 1. That is to say, they nurse their offspring for SIX times the length of gestation (actually 6.1 for chimps and 6.4 for gorillas, with humans mid-way in size between these two). In humans, that would be: 4.5 years of nursing (six times the 9 months of gestation).
Most mammals wean their offspring when they have tripled their birth weight, suggesting a weaning age of 1 year in humans. Again though, this is affected by body weight, with larger mammals nursing their offspring until they have quadrupled their birth weight. In humans, quadrupling of birth weight occurs between 2.5 and 3.5 years, usually.
One study of primates showed that the offspring were weaned when they had reached about 1/3 their adult weight. This happens in humans at about 5-7 years.
A comparison of weaning age and sexual maturity in non-human primates suggests a weaning age of 6-7 for humans (about half-way to reproductive maturity).
Studies have shown that a child's immune system doesn't completely mature until about 6 years of age, and it is well established that breast milk helps develop the immune system and augment it with maternal antibodies as long as breast milk is produced (up to two years, no studies have been done on breast milk composition after two years post partum).
And on and on. The minimum predicted age for a natural age of weaning in humans is 2.5 years, with a maximum of 7.0 years.
more at the link
http://www.kathydettwyler.org/detwean.html
Fascinating, Glow. Thanks for that link.
