Why is breast feeding good?

Breast Feeding Is Good

When it comes to nutrition, the best first food for babies comes from breast feeding. Over two decades of research have established that babies breast feeding enjoy greater protection from illness. Breast feeding is good nourishment for infants, and results in fewer hospital admissions and ear infections, plus fewer instances of diarrhea, rashes, and allergies. Breast feeding is an excellent source of nutrition, since human milk contains just the right amount of fatty acids, lactose, water, and amino acids for human digestion, brain development, and growth.

Babies who are breast feeding have fewer illnesses because human milk transfers to the infant a mother's antibodies to disease. Breast feeding protects babies, in varying degrees, from a number of illnesses, including pneumonia, botulism, bronchitis, staphylococcal infections, influenza, and German measles. Plus, nursing mothers produce antibodies to whatever disease is present in their environment, making their milk custom-designed to fight the diseases which may be present in their babies’ homes.

Breast Feeding Tips

Here are some breast feeding tips and facts that may surprise you.

• Most doctors recommend that babies continue breast feeding for six to twelve months. As a supplement to babies’ breast feeding routine, solid foods can be introduced when the baby is 4 to 6 months old. However, babies should continue to drink breast milk or formula, not cow's milk, for at least one full year.
• Human milk contains at least one hundred ingredients not found in formula. Breast feeding babies cannot be allergic to their mother's milk, although they may have a reaction to something the mother eats. If she eliminates it from her diet, the problem resolves itself.
• Sucking at the breast promotes healthy jaw bone development. It's harder work to get milk out of a breast than out of a bottle, and the exercise strengthens the jaws and encourages the growth of straight, healthy teeth. The baby can also control the flow of breast milk by sucking and stopping, which is impossible with a bottle.
• Breast feeding may have psychological as well as nutritional benefits, creating an early attachment between mother and child. At birth, infants see only 12 to 15 inches, the distance between a nursing baby and its mother's face. Cuddling an infant closely many times during the day makes breast feeding more than a way to feed a baby; it's a source of warmth and comfort.

7/19/2007 11:16:01 AM