Breastfeeding: How Old Is Too Old?

Correction: An earlier version of this article misidentified Katie Hamilton. We regret the error.

Katie Hamilton is a Redondo Beach mother of two. She also practices "attachment parenting," a method of child-rearing that encourages breastfeeding, physical contact and co-sleeping, according to Attachment Parenting International.

In a video produced by the Associated Press, Hamilton, who breastfeeds her 21-month-old daughter, referred to the controversial Time magazine cover depicting a child standing on a chair to breastfeed during her interview.

"I love that (attachment parenting is) in the news," she told the AP. "I feel like the cover was to sell magazines. It's inflammatory. It doesn't look like that."

The article, which is only available online to Time subscribers, sparked a debate about when mothers should stop breastfeeding their children.

The World Health Organization recommends mothers continue to breastfeed their child "along with appropriate complementary foods" until the child is 2 years of age or older. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months.

"One, to me, is this arbitrary age," said Hamilton. "It's not like you turn one and then all of a sudden, 'OK, that's it—you're cut off!' … To cut it off right at one, there's no need for it."

About 23 percent of infants born in 2006 were still breastfeeding when they were 12 months old, according to the CDC's National Immunization Survey, a nationally representative sample of the U.S. population.

Watch the video above to hear more from Hamilton.