news:8fvkjg$5q8$1@dfw-ixnews3.ix.netcom.com...
I am pro-breastfeeding, and I do originate in the Breastfeeding newsgroup.
However, this one is always coming up, and the answer is this:

Let's say you eat carrots daily for a year, and for argument's sake, nothing
else. Obviously the nutrients within the carrot are vital, because it is the
sole constituent of your diet. Now let's say that after a year you start to
consume a normal, healthy diet. You continue to eat the carrots, but they
are less important to your diet, because you are consuming other things as
well.

Same with breastmilk. It continues to be an excellent food. However MOST
children WILL be eating a wide variety of solid foods by the age of 1. So
although the nutritional value of breastmilk per se does not diminish, the
importance of breastmilk as a provider of nutrients does, quite naturally.
Some might also suggest that after the age of 1, breastmilk is NOT actually
THE perfect food for your child. It is a good food, certainly, and there is
no reason to wean at that point. But it lacks iron, and also if your 1 year
old was surviving solely on breastmilk, you might have concerns that they
were not learning the socialisation aspects that solid food brings.

Anna