The battle between exclusive breast feeding and formula feeding has been in existence since the invention of baby formula. But we won’t be discussing that today. We will get into that later. Today we will be focusing on the benefits of exclusive breast feeding for both the mom and the baby.
Making the decision to breast feed exclusively is a personal one and as much as everyone around you has a loving advice and useful opinion, you need to decide what works best for you. We’ll try to help you as much as we can.
Benefits of exclusive breast feeding for your baby
1. Breast feeding reduces the risk of pneumonia, colds and viruses. Gastrointestinal infections are also less likely in breast fed babies. So your baby stays healthy and strong and you can sleep better at night.
2. Breast milk has the perfect mix of vitamins, protein, carbohydrates and fat, everything your baby needs for optimum growth and development. So you don’t need to look for nutritional supplements.
3. Babies who are breast fed exclusively for the first 6 months have fewer risks of ear infections, respiratory illnesses and diarrhea.
4. Breast feeding lowers your babies risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) by 50%. SIDS is a condition that occurs at random in babies.
5. Babies who are breast fed have been known to have a higher IQ and generally do better in their academics when they get older.
Now to the benefits of exclusive breast feeding for mom
1. Nursing your baby allows you to bond intimately with the baby and reduces the chances of post partum depression in women.
2. Studies show that breast feeding reduces the risk of breast and ovarian cancer in women. So you can take a breather and not worry so much about cancer.
3. Women who breast feed have a lower risk of post menopausal osteoporosis because during breast feeding a woman’s body absorbs calcium faster.
4. Breast feeding helps you lose the excess weight gained during pregnancy. When a woman breast feeds, her metabolic process increases and her body burns calories faster than normal.
5. Finally, your pocket will thank you. You’ll save a lot of formula preparation time and money if you opt for breast feeding and get complete nutritional value for your baby.
So if you decide to opt for exclusive breast feeding you now have enough information to know just how much you’re helping your baby.
