A mum who posts videos online while breastfeeding has hit back at people who are criticising her for nursing her four-year-old daughter on camera.
Leanne Allerton, 35, a mum-of-four from Grimsby, has built up a loyal YouTube following after vlogging about breastfeeding all of her children over the last eight years.
Her latest post about nursing her four-year-old daughter, Poppy, has attracted nearly one million views.
But the video has also attracted cruel comments from those who claim Poppy - who will start school in September - is too old to breastfeed.
“I get a lot of nice suggestions but also a lot of abuse - those I tend to block and delete,” said Allerton. “But I’m shocked by how many views it has had.”
Leanne’s breastfeeding posts have attracted a series of negative comments from people such as YouTube user CeCe Kansas who posted: “She’s too old to be breastfed.”
Morgan White said: “How do you expect your child to grow and prosper socially when they are still relying on your boobs for sustenance?
“This isn’t natural. This is not wanting your child to grow up. It’s not necessary. It’s sickening honestly.”
And YouTube user olga998123 said: “It most certainly is for the mum feeling she is a better mum when she ‘sacrifices’ herself in this way.
“It’s a pity because the child is being taught total dependency rather than to independently soothe and feel self-sufficient.”
TheMotherReborn said: “You can bond by holding and cuddling. I mean, imagine going to school and breastfeeding - she doesn’t need breast milk this old.
“Mum should find another way to bond if I read this right - she needs to accept she’s a child and not a baby - and let her be a kid.”
Allerton continued feeding son Georgie, now five, when Poppy was born and battled through pregnancy aversions and dry milk spells until he was four.
But she was fully supported by husband Lee, 30.
She said: “[Georgie] was still quite young and I didn’t want to say no. But I got through all the hard stages and we got into a flow where it became effortless.
“I just knew it helped settle him and I didn’t want to take that away. And now when I look back I realise it has been just over eight years that I have been breastfeeding.
“It’s quite a large chunk of time and I am quite proud of myself. I am happy that I have done it.”
But Allerton’s journey did not come without some problems and she still has feelings of guilt for not persevering longer with sons Bobby and Franki, aged seven and nine.
She said: “I knew when I was pregnant with Frankie that I wanted to have a go but I found it difficult understanding the patterns with babies and their development.
“Like when they cry it feels like you are breastfeeding every five minutes but the baby is just helping you build up your milk supply.
“And then there are other funny things, like how they wake up as soon as you come into a room because they can smell you.
“But I think being a mum is hard work whether you are breastfeeding or using formula milk. People say to me that Poppy relies on me too much but it is not about that.
“It’s our time and it benefits her. It is just our routine and our life and it’s just the way it is.”
During the last eight years, Allerton said she has breastfed “everywhere imaginable” but has had few negative reactions.
She said: “I was in a cafe once and a lady said there was a breastfeeding room but how exactly was I supposed to take Georgie in there as well while he was still eating his dinner?
“I think it’s absolute rubbish that breastfed children are less confident or independent. People who say that have not experienced what we experience - I just think it helps settle kids down.
“But I will miss it when Poppy and I completely stop.”
Allerton is part of the Channel Mum network and be seen vlogging at: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqYu0GJ_UGMlwX89RXxANtbe5EEp9wpoc.