All of these benefits, and many more, come with nursing your infant, which is why it is advisable to do exclusive nursing for six months. Even once solid meals are given, they recommend continuing nursing for a year or longer as mutually desired by mother and infant.” However, if you need or choose to bottle-feed or formula-feed your baby, they are both excellent alternatives, and you should not feel any pressure to breastfeed your baby.

1. Nature’s best infant food is breast milk:

Milk includes antibodies that promote immunity and beneficial enzymes that scientists haven’t been able to recreate. Breast milk has several advantages for newborns.

During the first few days of your newborn’s life, he will receive his first dose of colostrum. Breast milk morphs to match your baby’s changing demands, unlike formula, which cannot modify its composition. Colostrum, or “premilk” is packed with antibodies that protect your newborn when you give birth. As it also contains more protein and less sugar than ‘full’ milk, a tiny bit can be enough for your baby.

2. It is easy to digest for your little bub:

When your full milk arrives typically three to four days after delivery, it has more sugar and volume than colostrum, which is just what your baby needs. A lot of energy is required to kickstart his rapid growth. Since your mature milk is easily digested, he will need to be fed frequently. Cow’s milk and plant-based milk formula proteins are more difficult for an infant’s body to break down than those in breast milk, so the longer you can delay switching to formula, the better.

3. It can help with your baby’s allergies:

Breastfeeding may be especially useful if your family or partner’s family has a history of allergies or eczema. The proteins in cow milk and soy milk formulae can cause allergic reactions, but the protein present in female breast milk is easier to digest. In addition, you may consider usingorganic crib sheets to keep allergens at bay.

4. Viruses, gastroenteritis, ear infections, and lung infections are all reduced

Because breast milk is filled with antibodies that protect your baby after delivery, the occurrences of pneumonia, colds, and viruses are reduced in breastfed newborns. However, ear infections, pneumonia, and lower respiratory tract infections are all more common in formula-fed newborns than in breastfed newborns.

5. Reduced risk of SIDS and Diabetes:

Breastfed newborns had a decreased chance of acquiring type 1 diabetes and becoming overweight or obese later in life, a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. In addition, breastfed newborns had fewer incidences of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) than formula-fed newborns, although the link is uncertain. Long-term nursing has also been linked to a lower incidence of juvenile leukaemia and lymphomas in studies.

6. They are less obese:

Breastfed infants are less likely to become fat later in life, according to some research. One explanation is that nursing women become aware of their baby’s fullness signals and do not overfeed. Because you can’t see how much your baby has eaten, unlike with a bottle, you’ll have to learn to interpret his satiety cues a bit better. To recognize when your baby is full, you must rely on your intuition and your baby’s behaviour. In addition, you may want to consider wearing Organic clothes on your baby to prevent tightness.

Benefits of breastfeeding for mothers

1.Enhances Bonding

Breastfeeding enables many mothers to experience a physically and emotionally rewarding connection with their baby. (This is not to say that you won’t bond with your child while bottle-feeding. You might do so in a slightly different way.)

2.Aids postpartum recovery.

As your baby suckles on your breast, oxytocin is released, a “feel good “hormone that encourages the uterus to shrink back to its pre-pregnancy size. As a result, you experience less blood loss as your lochia flow is reduced. 

3.Promotes Weight loss

As breastfeeding burns about 300 to 500 additional calories per day, it may help you lose the baby weight faster and help you maintain a healthy weight later. According to a study, breastfeeding mothers tend to achieve their pre-pregnancy weights six months earlier than moms who nurse their babies using formula. Despite that, they still have lower body fat levels a decade later.

4.A longer period-free span

After giving birth, most breastfeeding moms start ovulating between four and six months afterwards, but some women experience a long period – in some cases, as long as nine to 18 months. However, breastfeeding should not be used as a form of contraception. It’s ideal to talk to your OB/GYN about your birth control options before giving birth unless you expect to become pregnant very soon again.

5.Possible health protections

A recent study suggests that breastfeeding could lessen your chances of developing breast, uterine, or ovarian cancer at a later date. In addition, it may reduce your future risk of chronic diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Author Bio

I am Andrea Micheal, a post-graduate in humanities and communications and an inquisitive person who loves writing. I’m working for Tiny Twig and my forte is digital marketing and everything that has to do with phones and screens. I believe that one person can make a change, and that’s precisely why I took up writing, which is the best tool to communicate these days. I have a decade of experience in writing and marketing, and I still find myself learning new things about it, which I want to share with my readers.