Can you ever be too old to breastfeed?
A mum has hit back after she overheard strangers, 2 women in their 30s, commenting that she was too old to breastfeed ?
This story made headlines everywhere when it came out: an Italian mum who, while breastfeeding her little one in public, overheard 2 women commenting that she was too old to be nursing her baby.
Stefani Giraldi says she heard the strangers (who she thought were in their 30s) discussing the dangers of 'older' milk for a child - and decided to interrupt their convo, telling them: "By the way, I am 44 years old, 45 next June and my milk is perfect!"
Sharing her story on Facebook page Mamas World, she added: "After 6 consecutive years of breastfeeding my children, I thought no comments could ever shock me anymore on the topic."
Does the quality of your milk reduce as you get older?
In a word - no! Dr Philippa Kaye told us that there isn't any evidence that she's aware of that says women make lower quality milk as you get older.
"Many older women breastfeed successfully and there is no medical indication not to breast feed on the basis of age!" she adds. "In fact, breast milk is the recommended 1st food for all babies, irrespective of how old their mothers are."
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And as the Office For National Statistics revealed recently that women in their 40s are the only age group who are having more babies than ever before (in England and Wales at least) - chances are more women over 40 than ever before will be breastfeeding, too.
What do others mums say?
When Stefani shared her story she received lots of comments in support from older mums who breastfed. One said: "I’m 42 and currently feeding my 3rd child who turned 1 last Sunday.
"She’s been exclusively breastfed (as were my other two) and is in the 95th percentile so there’s nothing wrong with my milk. My baby, my body, none of your business." ✊
Image: Facebook/Stefani Giraldi
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Authors
Tara is mum to 1 daughter, Bodhi Rae, and has worked as Content Editor and Social Media Producer at MadeForMums since 2015
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