Jeez, Hanna, get a grip.

One post negates a review of studies because they don't meet your high standards of excellence -- those studies are confirming the myriad benefits of breastfeeding for the mother (many of which are indeed well-documented over the last 30+ years at least). Hanna scornfully reminds us all not to confuse correlation with causation.

Then, darn it, a handful of posts later she reverses herself and advocates confusing correlation with causation because a study came out with which she agrees!

Just admit you had mixed feelings about your personal breastfeeding experiences and move on! Get some therepy, get a hobby, get a job that demands some consistent intellectual analysis from you. But stop posting your "but I told you so" drivel.

Exactly -- the cited study simply observes trends but can't in any way make the claim that breastfeeding CAUSES lower earnings. No doubt women whose earnings decreased made, or were forced to make a series of choices that resulting in lower income and more time to breastfeed.

I have actually been one, and perhaps the rare, breastfeeding mother who has really appreciated Hanna's efforts to debunk some of the breastfeeding groupthink. I loved breastfeeding and can believe it has some health benefits, but I hated the sanctimony of La Leche league-types, and the idea that the decision whether to breastfeed was some kind of ultimately litmus test of motherhood. I appreciated Hanna's pointing out that some of the evidence about the long term health benefits of breastfeeding is shaky, largely because it doesn't "control" for charactistics such as parental health, income, race and education, things which could independently affect children in the long run.

So, Hanna, it's disappointing indeed to see you promoting research that is no more convincing than the studies you debunk!

Agreed octobia. Researchers have NEVER said that some every supposed long term breastfeeeding are set in stone. The studies will never be the gold standard of randomized controlled trial because it is NOT ETHICAL to randomize mothers to NOT breastfeed because there are so many known benefits. Not only did Hanna cherry pick studies and ignore the most recent major systematic review of breastfeeding in developed countries in her Atlantic article, she did not acknowledge that we believe breastfeeding is best not just because studies point in that direction, but because of what we know about its PHYSIOLOGY and all its components. Its true that breastfeeding vs. formula feeding does not impact a child's health in the US as much as a developing countries. And there are as Lizzie mentions some groups of people who may get overzealous about the importance of breastfeeding. However we still know that human milk is for human babies and the MAJORITY of mothers do not make it to the six month mark, so obviously support for breastfeeding is not what it should be. So lets stop quiveling over studies and start helping breastfeeding mothers find ways to make their goals.