Ice-T Defends Coco Austin's Decision To Continue To Breastfeed Their Then-5½-Year-Old Daughter Chanel

Aug 05, 2021 by apost team

When Coco Austin, wife of Law & Order SVU star and rapper Ice-T, revealed to her followers in March 2020 that she still breastfed 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. Later, when Chanel was 5 1/2 years old, Coco came under heat again for still breastfeeding her daughter.

In an interview with US Weekly on July 31, 2021, Coco said she continued to feed Chanel because she liked it, and Coco didn't want to just tell Chanel "no." The interview was focused more generally on parenting do's and don'ts, but most of the attention from readers honed in on Coco's choice to continue breastfeeding at that point in time. While Coco's daughter Chanel did have a well-balanced diet outside of being breastfed, many threw hate comments at both Coco and Ice-T for their parenting choice. 

While many mothers stop breastfeeding after the age of 2, other mothers continue to breastfeed until the age of 5 or 6, and in many countries, it is quite normal. However, just as many criticized Coco the first time around, she came under fire again for continuing to breastfeed. Thankfully, Ice-T stepped up to defend his wife amid the controversy.

Read on to learn more about the breastfeeding controversy and how Ice-T stepped up to defend his wife's decision as a mother to still breastfeed their daughter Chanel.

Nicole Natalie Marrow, a 44-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 turned 8 at the end of November 2023. The scrutiny and criticism surrounding Chanel Nicole and her mother came about back in September 2019, when 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 2019. Since then, Austin has come under fire again. In March of 2020, she posted another photo of herself breastfeeding Chanel, who at the time was 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."

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In the interview with US Weekly, Coco said:

"Chanel still likes my boobs. It’s a big bonding moment for a mother and your child. Why take that away from her? … If she doesn’t want it, all right, that’s where you stop it. But I’m not just going to say no."

The coupling of the comment and her parenting choice sent people into an internet hate frenzy. However, her husband, Ice-T, certainly didn't stay silent on the matter. The father of Chanel took to Twitter to defend his wife. He wrote:

"News Flash! We feed Chanel FOOD... She just likes to suck moms boob every now and then... Me Too!!!"

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. 

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 regard to the breastfeeding frenzy, all while taking their twin pics and living their best lives.

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? Let us know what you think about it. And don't forget to pass this on to your friends to see what they think.