可以同时母乳喂养一个新生婴儿和一个大些的宝宝吗？Is It Possible to Breastfeed Both an Infant and a Toddler?

郑宇 翻译

The common term (in the USA) for breastfeeding siblings concurrently is “tandem nursing.” Mothers have practiced tandem nursing for centuries, and today there are still many families with nursing toddlers who do not wean when their mother becomes pregnant, or who resume breastfeeding after the birth of a new sibling (see also the FAQ onbreastfeeding during pregnancy).

同时母乳喂养兄弟姐妹这种情形常用的术语（在美国）叫做“手足哺乳”。妈妈们实践手足哺乳已经有好几个世纪了。至今仍有许多家庭不会因为母亲怀孕而给孩子断奶，或者会在小婴儿出生后给大些的孩子恢复母乳喂养（参见关于孕期哺乳的问答）。

Some mothers express concern that their toddler may be taking milk meant to nourish their baby. These mothers may take comfort in the fact that breasts are marvelous things that can adjust their production to meet the demands placed upon them–if they are asked to produce enough milk for two, they usually can! Also, most toddlers breastfeed considerably less frequently than an infant, and get most of their nutrition from other foods.

有些妈妈担心大孩子会不会吃掉了给小孩子提供营养的奶。事实上，妈妈的乳房是非常神奇的，可以调整产出的母乳来适应孩子的需求——如果需要足够来喂哺两个孩子的乳汁，通常就会分泌出那么多。妈妈们了解了这点可能会解除担心。并且，多数大孩子会体贴地不需要像小婴儿那样频繁吃奶，他们营养多半来自其它食物。

Many mothers find that children who tandem nurse are closer with each other than children who do not.

许多妈妈发现进行手足哺乳的孩子之间比没有手足哺乳的兄弟姐妹更加亲密。

It is normal even for mothers who choose to tandem nurse to sometimes wish they weren‘‘t so tied down to two babies or to want to breastfeed only one baby at a time.

甚至对进行手足哺乳的妈妈来说，她们有时希望两个孩子不要那么的形影不离，或者希望一次只给一个孩子哺乳，这也是很正常的。

It is often the case that a baby or toddler will want to breastfeed much more often when a younger sibling is born. Many want to breastfeed every time the baby does. Many mothers suggest allowing this for a period of perhaps three weeks. After that time, try telling the older child that you prefer to be able to really pay attention to him/her while breastfeeding, and request that he/she wait until the baby is done before he/she breastfeeds. This will not eliminate the constant double-nursing, but may very well cut it down.

情况经常是稍大的宝宝在小弟弟或小妹妹出生时会想要更加频繁地吃奶。很多孩子在每次小宝宝吃奶的时候也会要求要吃。许多妈妈建议允许这种情况持续一段时间，也许三个星期。过了这段时间以后，试着告诉年长的孩子你希望在哺乳时能完全专注于小宝宝，要求他/她等小宝宝吃完再吃。这可能不能完全避免常常需要两个孩子一起喂的情况，但是或许能够顺利地减少这种情况发生。

Enjoy both your babies!

享受两个宝贝带来的欢乐！

Many mothers have found that tandem nursing is a good way of meeting the needs of both children. Your local LLL Leader can give you more information on tandem nursing.

很多妈妈发现这种名为“手足哺乳”的安排是很好的满足两个孩子的方法。你所在当地的国际母乳会的负责人可以给你提供更多关于孕期哺乳和/或手足哺乳的信息。