Ecological Breastfeeding
The term is brand new to me, but it turns out I already practice ecological breastfeeding!
I came across it in my search for an acceptable birth control method. Ecological breastfeeding is free, comfortable, and natural–it fits all my criteria!
Wikipedia reports that it has a 1% failure rate in the first six months of a baby’s life, and only 6% failure rate after that until the woman’s period returns. Pretty good rates for something I was doing anyway.
According to Wikipedia:
- Breastfeeding must be the infant’s only source of nutrition – no formula, no pumping, and (if the infant is less than six months old) no solids or water at all.
- The infant must be pacified at the breast, not with pacifiers or bottles or by placing a finger in the mouth.
- The infant must be breastfed frequently. The standards for LAM (lactational amenorrhea method) are a bare minimum; greater frequency is better. Sucking should include non-nutritive sucking when the infant cues the mother, not just breastfeeding as a means of nutrition. Scheduling of feedings is incompatible with LAM.
- Mothers must practice safe co-sleeping as it is the proximity of the child to the mother that increases prolactin.
- Mothers must not be separated from their infants. This includes substitutes for mother such as babysitters and even strollers or anything else that comes between mother and physical contact with her child. Babywearing (using cloth carriers) means tactile stimulation between mother and child and increases access to the breast. Any separation from the mother will decrease the efficacy of ecological breast feeding.
- Mothers must take daily naps with their infants.
- A mother must not have had a period after 56 days post-partum (bleeding prior to 56 days post-partum can be ignored).
I don’t nap with Annabelle (I would if I didn’t have a five year old to keep up with) but she does nap on me, and I assume it is the proximity, not the sleep, which contributes to the effectiveness of ecological birth control.
And so I have discovered another benefit to the family of babywearing: it contributes to convenient spacing of babies and helps avoid the use of dangerous or inconvenient birth control methods!
Does it seem to anyone else that so many “modern conveniences” (strollers, pacifiers, cribs, and bottles) end up being more of an inconvenience than anything else?
Linda May 22, 2019 at 2:30 pm
Thank you for this article, I practiced ecological breastfeeding with my three children, and my period returned 8, 12 and 16 months postpartum. Third baby experieced 2 years breastfeeding and babywearing, and it made diference in lenght of amenorea. Now comes baby no 4 and we continue ecobreastfeeding hopefully even longer.
thomas September 25, 2020 at 9:11 pm
Our family reaps great benefits from breastfeeding.
The better health of my wife
Save on family expenses
The benefit rests on our twin daughters.
Currently 4 years 8 months old.
Both of them are still breastfed at regular intervals every day.
Our family has one more benefit from breastfeeding.
Natural contraception
My wife was able to enjoy sex together without worrying about getting pregnant again while breastfeeding. It works and is wonderful for our family.
My wife
Returning to menstruation again after delivery
When both our daughters were 4 years old
Spaced Natural Childhood As Our Families Desire
Now, my wife is back.
I’m trying to get pregnant for the second time.
We both hope
Will have a chance
Have breastfeeding
With a little boy who will be reborn to us in the future
As well as her two sisters
And family, we hope
Will benefit from breastfeeding
Just like the past in the past and now.
DianaR October 3, 2020 at 5:24 pm
That’s beautiful. I’m so glad, Thomas!
michael March 16, 2022 at 5:29 pm
Our families benefit from many aspects of breastfeeding.
Self-discipline in life
Better eating and health care for the whole family
Practicing restraint in bad actions
Makes everyone in the family receive the benefit of all, especially my wife and children, the results are most evident in this matter.
Our family also relies on breastfeeding as a natural contraception.
This makes our family’s 4 pregnancy periods about 3 years apart.
which my wife and I did not interfere in that natural process
We currently have 8 daughters in our family.
out of 4 pregnancies
(Female twins 2 all 4 times)
Sofia and Jojo
10 years 1 month
Anna and Elsa
Age 7 years 2 months
Daisy and Minnie
4 years 1 month
Callie and Olife
Age 1 year 4 months
In the 2nd/3/4th pregnancy
My wife hasn’t seen a return of her postpartum periods even once.
But my wife and I noticed that every time we were about to conceive a new
The signs of ovarian mucus are always detected 2-3 times.
Shortly after my ovulation was detected, my wife became pregnant again.
Our family will continue to do this for as long as possible for the wellbeing of all family members and the effect of natural contraception that my wife and I have agreed and intend to always be.