Fans Weigh In As Ice-T's Wife Says She Still Breastfeeds Almost Five-Year-Old Daughter

Nov 18, 2020

When Coco Austin, wife of Law & Order SVU star and rapper Ice-T, revealed to her followers in March of 2020 that she still breastfeeds her daughter, many people were not so supportive. While most were not against the idea of her breastfeeding her daughter Chanel, Austin came under fire because her daughter was nearly 5 years old at the time.

Nicole Natalie Marrow, a 41-year-old actress better known as Coco Austin, has been married to American rapper Ice-T since the early 2000s. Fast forward more than a decade later to 2015, and the star couple had their first child together, Chanel Nicole, who will turn five at the end of November 2020. The scrutiny and criticism surrounding Chanel Nicole and her mother came about when back in September 2019, Austin posted a picture of her nursing her daughter, according to USA Today. At the time, Chanel was 3 years old. As part of the controversial Instagram post, Austin wrote:

"A mothers calling.... I'm so blessed to have this unbelievable experience in this thing called Nursing," she captioned the series of photos.

"I had a hard time breastfeeding the 1st week of when Chanel was born, I almost gave up but my family told me to hang for another week. They told me I dont want to miss this special moment you have with your child," she continued in September of 2019. Since then, Austin has come under fire again. In March of 2020, she posted another photo of herself breastfeeding Chanel, who is nearing 5 years old.

"I know the moms out there will appreciate this pic!" Austin wrote in March. "I've been getting a lot of props in the breastfeeding community and get tons of emails from woman/moms appreciating me bringing light to the subject [...] I will write about what it's like to continue boob time with a 4 year old. I get tons and tons of requests that want me to speak on it! At this point in nursing it's just for comfort and believe me the girl loves meat so it's not like she isn't eating real food."

In September of 2019, father Ice-T went on to defend his family and explain how her daughter still ate regular food such as cheeseburgers. Austin says she is happy her daughter continues to want to nurse as she likes being able to have that bonding time.

However, many followers don't agree with Austin when she says that her daughter just hasn't outgrown the phase. According to the CDC's factsheet on breastfeeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies be breastfed for up to 1 year while the World Health Organization recommends "breastfeeding along with appropriate complementary foods up to 2 years of age or older." However, Austin isn't alone in her opinion. This ABC News article notes, for example, that it's common in some parts of the world for children to be breastfed until 4 or 5 years old.

Besides the numerous negative comments that Austin received regarding her decision to continue breastfeeding, she has also received that many, if not more, supportive ones. One woman expressed her admiration for Austin and thought that her decision to continue nursing Chanel was beautiful, and she supported it. The woman also expressed hope that more women would consider the idea of extended breastfeeding as well.

Austin and her supportive followers are not the only ones to feel that the benefits of breastfeeding, even long term, outweigh any discomfort or negative opinions they might encounter. Some would even say that breastfeeding, especially when a child is older, is more about receiving comfort and feeling close than it is about nutrients. These are similar sentiments that Austin expressed as well, however, many of her followers remained in disagreement.

Although the 41-year-old mom of one is not new to criticism about her decision to breastfeed, Austin seems to remain unbothered by negative comments and continues to do what makes her and her daughter happy. The duo has dug their heels in the sand in regards to the breastfeeding frenzy all while taking their twin pics and living their best lives.

If you have children, did you breastfeed your child, and at what age did you stop nursing? How do you feel about breastfeeding for an extended period of time, and at what age do you think breastfeeding should end?

Do you agree with Coco Austin and her supporters that the act is more about bonding and should continue until the child outgrows it? Or, do you think that breastfeeding past a certain age is inappropriate? Leave your comments and tell us what you think about it. And don't forget to pass this on to your friends to see what they think.