Yup, Adult to Adult Breastfeeding is a Thing

You may have heard the controversy of moms breastfeeding for "too long," to be met with new research showing that prolonging the breastfeeding stage into toddlerhood can actually make your kid smarter. However, if a kid is breastfed by his or her mother into, say, his or her teens, that would likely not fly, and be deemed "unnecessary" at best and "gross" at worst. Okay, great ready for it, what if the person being breastfed isn't related to the woman? And another step further, what if the person being breastfed also isn't a child, but rather, a full-fledged adult?

Now things get interesting. Some people are quick to dismiss this as a sexual fetish, and others are disturbed by the sexualization of an act that usually involves an infant. While those who actively participate in adult to adult breastfeeding agree that it can sometimes occur as a part of foreplay or during sexual acts, sometimes it's strictly platonic.

Adult breastfeeder *Chelsea (name has been changed) says that breastfeeding is "a nice way for me to relax or fall asleep at the end of each day." Perhaps because breastfeeding releases oxytocin, a bonding hormone, some women are comforted by the biological effects the act has on them.

Some women induce lactation to engage in adult to adult breastfeeding for a variety of reasons. If a woman has never been pregnant, she may induce the production of breast milk to feel more connected to her femininity, and the nurturing part of her that may otherwise be underutilized. Others enjoy the sensation of lactating, and may miss it from a previous experience with their child. Some just embrace the lactation that occurs once they've given birth as a part of sex, since it's how their bodies now operate when they become aroused. 

Then, of course, there are those who engage in adult to adult breastfeeding for exclusively sexual kink purposes. The suckling arouses them, and they see the act as a way to become closer to their partner, allowing for the internalization of their milk by their partner. The ingestion of a woman's milk is viewed as extremely intimate and connecting. 

With the existing controversy of breastfeeding in public getting flack by some conservatives in the political landscape, we can only imagine the reaction to breastfeeding another adult in public. If you're thinking of giving it a go, maybe keep it behind closed doors for the time being.