Coco Austin defends breastfeeding daughter until age six: “It was about bonding, not nutrition”

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TV personality Coco Austin is standing by her decision to breast-feed her daughter, Chanel, until the age of six. On the latest episode of the podcast Dumb Blonde hosted by Bunnie XO, Austin explained that whilst Chanel was solidly eating by about one-year-old, she allowed the extended nursing more as a “bonding experience” rather than a nutritional necessity.

“It wasn’t like I was feeding her because she needed a meal,” Austin said. “She was able to eat by a year… full, like, solids.”

She added that she let her daughter decide when to stop: “She’s not gonna be 16 on my boob… And that happened around 6… which was still [an] extremely long amount of time apparently. But in Europe, they’re doing till 7. Like, it’s nothing to them. I mean, Americans think that’s weird.”

Austin shared that the extended breast-feeding was mostly for comfort when Chanel wanted her around: “It was more of like a comfort thing with her… she wanted me to be there.”

She also noted that she received plenty of support for her choice, yet that many people reacted strongly. She remarked, “I got so many people that loved it… I was the only one speaking about it. And I’m like, why is this so hard? Like, people have been doing this for thousands of years.”

In possibly-unintended light-hearted comment, Austin revealed that her daughter remains “obsessed with boobs”—“not a big thing”, she said, adding that they share a relaxed, affectionate moment now, before Chanel hits the teenage years.

Whilst the topic of extended breastfeeding often sparks intense cultural debate—particularly in the United States, where six-year-nursing would be considered highly unusual—Austin frames her decision as a personal mother-child choice rooted in attachment, rather than judgment of others’ practices. Whether one agrees or not, she is firmly owning the narrative.