What is the average age for weaning??

[Heaven]

Just wondering, I have no idea, no one I know has waited for baby to wean themselves, they've all actively weaned them.

If following BLW, what is the average age a baby would wean??

[Ginger]

i don't know the 'average' but i can tell you that my ds1 self-weaned at 14 months old.

[onthefly]

I think it mostly comes down to cultural norms.
Some research I've seen referred to suggests anywhere from 3 to 7 as natural weaning age (on average), assuming no pressure to wean and no external influences on mother making bfing difficult, etc, etc.
In Aus it's probably around 4 months or something on average... (that's just a guess)

[STARRYSKY]

This is purely anectdotal, but most women i speak to seem to wean around 18months of age.

[Pretty Butterfly]

I have given my bubbas a minimum of 12 months, but WHO says it should be minimum of 2 years, so I am aiming for the 2 years.

My others self weaned due to pregnancy, so I hope Harmony doesn't. I'd like to tandem feed, with H having maybe morning and night still. She'll be 17 months.

I think you could potentially get 100's of different answers babe!!

[KimmyF]

My Ds self weaned at 14 and half months, he was ready to stop but i wasn't! i tried to hang on to morning and night feeds but he wasn't interested. I had planned on feeding until he was two, but he was ready and i guess its easier to follow his needs than weaning because i was ready. HTH

[Freya]

I dont know hardly anyone who actually breastfed past a few mths of age (if that!) but the rare few I know who did, the kids generally seemed to self wean around the 12-16mth mark.

[~clover~]

DS is nearly 20 months, & while I'm cutting him back to just one or 2 feeds, he is keen to keep going.

A friend's DS was almost 3 when she decided to stop him. He would've kept going happily. Her next one she weaned at 16 months due to her next pregnancy.

Another friend's DS is about 17 months & I can see him feeding for a long time yet. He still feeds night & day.

I find its easier for us though. All our friends are either BFing or have only just stopped with their babies being well over the 12 month walking stage everyone thinks is when weaning should be done. I don't think anyone here would bother saying anything or make us feel uncomfortable or whatever, coz there are too many of us, lol.

Every baby is different though

[mbear]

I dont know hardly anyone who actually breastfed past a few mths of age (if that!)

...mmmm neither do i actually. All my g/fs have bottle fed, tried b/f, but all gone to the bottle.

Around the 12-13 mth mark ive found mine start to wean - but i have fallen pregnant both times around the 10mth and 11mth mark, so would say that has something to do with it too....

[Willow]

I'm still waiting for DS to self wean...he's turning 2 on Sunday and we're currently tandem feeding with his little brother.

Because I am feeding a new baby though, I have actively cut him back to 1-2 feeds a day, generally 1. I just find it more manageable that way.

I am stoked to have made it this far but am starting to feel a LOT of pressure to wean him. I'm positive my family and friends think I'm a total freak but are too polite to come right out and say so

I'm hoping he will wean himself soonish, I really would like to stop feeding him before he turns 3

[kelebek]

can't answer the question of average but lot's of people I know bf for only months... I am still feeding 19 mnths later and happy to keep following his lead for the moment

[AnyDream]

The average in my family is 17 months. DD1 fed until one week before 18 months (I was thrilled, that was my goal all along) but DD2 fed until 16 months. I was really sad, I hoped to feed her longer, but in the end it turned out to be very good timing because of all the medical treatment I had in the months after that.

[*Beema*]

DD weaned at 15 months, out right refusal, screaming and redfaced until she got a bottle, she had fussed over it for a short while and was dropping feeds, and then one morning it was all over red rover I had hoped to make it to two years

[Shanti]

Good thread Heaven! I'm interested in reading all the different posts.

I think I'd be devastated if DD weaned around 12mths.... I am really hoping to go til 18mths, if not up to 2yrs... we are really enjoying it especially after all our early problems in the first 4mths.... BF'ing only really kicked off for us from 3/4mths mark!

Before I had DD, i had it in my head that I would wean my babies off when I was done but now I'm not so sure I could do that....

I too, don't know anyone IRL who let their babies wean off themselves.... most friends or family only BF for about 7-9mths. (on average) then they said they got sick of it.

[Laranna]

DS self-weaned at 14 and a half months due to me being pregnant. Although yesterday he did try to latch on again! But just bit me instead! I was hoping to feed him until 2 and have a go at tandem feeding but alas it wasn't to be. In my mothers group, all the BF babies were weaned (mums choice) by 12 months. I had the lowest odds with all the trouble we had but ended up feeding the longest out of them all!

[Jennifer13]

I'll let you know when it happens.

I think most children would wean between 2 and 5 years, if bfing were the norm and the child still had access to Mum for the majority of the time.

[Shanti]

I read in my ABA book "Breastfeeding Naturally" today that the average age for babies to wean (on their own accord) is approx 2.5yrs....

So I guess it's safe to assume most babies won't self wean until they are 2yrs of age at least? With the exception to some I guess self weaning earlier than that ? That's my interpretation anyway!

[Heaven]

Thanks guys!
Time is going so fast and I don't want DD to wean any time soon. No chance of that atm anyway, she's still feeding 3 hrly