WHY do you breastfeed? Needing some motivation here cos my boy is coming 2 years old, below 25% percentile, low interest in food & wanna comfort latch which I give in to. I wanna carry on for as long as he wants to. Here's my skinny one :p

I plan to breastfeed baby for as long as I can produce milk. I aim to exclusively breastfeed for a minimum of 4 months. There are some studies that indicate weaning should occur at month 4 and not 6, as WHO suggests, but I am still studying that research and have not 100% made up my mind yet. Even if I start weaning early, I intend to complement my babies food intake with breastmilk for as Long as possible, hopefully till 2. Here are some research backed information for why I intend to breastfeed exclusively for a minimum of 4 months. Benefits of minimum 3 months: 1. The risk of ear infections is decreased by 50 percent. 2. A 27 percent decrease in the development of asthma, atopic dermatitis, and eczema. This protection increases to 42 percent in infants with a positive family history for these allergic conditions 3. a 30 percent decrease in type 1 diabetes and a reduction of 40 percent in the incidence of type 2 diabetes. 4. Higher IQ scores and higher teacher ratings vs babies on formula or mixed feeding. Benefits of minimum 4 months: 1. The risk of being hospitalized for a lower respiratory track infection (pneumonia, bronchitis) is reduced by 72 percent. Benefits of minimum 6 months: 1. The risk of ear infections is decreased by 63 percent. 2. A reduction of 20 percent in the risk of acute lymphocytic leukemia and 15 percent in the risk of acute myeloid leukemia. 3. If infants are breastfed at the time of their first exposure to gluten (around weaning), there is a 52 percent reduction in the risk of developing celiac disease. Benefits of more than 1 year: 1. 28 percent decreased risk in breast cancer and each additional year of breastfeeding results in an additional 4.3 percent reduction. 2. More likely to display better social adjustment when they begin school. Bonus reasons to keep breastfeeding: 1. Breastfeeding reduced the incidence of gastrointestinal infections by 64 percent, with the protection lasting for two months after breastfeeding is discontinued. 2. Breastfeeding confers a 38 percent reduction in the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) that is independent of the sleeping position of the infant. 3. There is a 31 percent reduction in the development of inflammatory bowel disease in breastfed children. 4. When breastfeeding of any duration had occurred, there was a 15 to 30 percent decrease in adolescent and adult obesity; the longer the breastfeeding, the more the reduction in overweight.