Sunday, May 6, 2012

To Breastfeed or not to.



As a child, I once watched my cat gave birth to her six kittens in an empty cardboard box. After cleaning them up with her tongue, she lay down and breastfed the six of them. This she continued for days until they were able to join her in feeding from her daily spoils.

When I gave birth to my babies, like I did to an 8.4 pounds baby boy three months ago, breastfeeding just feels like the right thing to do even without considering the benefits of breastfeeding. Making a decision to breastfeed or formula feed your baby is a personal one, but we already know that the benefits of one outweigh the other.  Like grandma would ask, ’why give the food made for a cow to a human?’

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended breastfeeding as best for babies for its defense against infections, prevent allergies and protect against a number of chronic conditions.

Often called the ‘perfect food’ for baby’s digestive system, breast milk contents are easily digested by the newborn’s immature digestive system therefore breastfed babies have fewer incidences of diarrhea or constipation.

Rich in many of the vitamins and minerals that a newborn needs, many of which commercial formula companies can not exactly duplicate, breast milk provides perfect nourishment for babies and great is the bonding experience between the breastfed baby and the mother.

Breastfeeding is not only cheap, many researches has found that breastfeeding protects babies from infections and frequent hospitalizations than formula fed babies. Imagine not having to take frequent permission from work to take a sick child to the hospital and also having to save the money that would have been used for hospital bills.

The benefits of breastfeeding your babies far overshadows any challenges you may have doing it. http://infantnutritioncouncil.com/breastfeeding/
Let the only reason for not breastfeeding be a specific medical condition that the mother might have.
Did you breastfeed or currently breastfeeding or know someone who is? Share any challenges you had/ are having in the comment section below.

24 comments:

  1. Not currently breastfeeding but indeed, the pros to breastfeed are really high. :)

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    Replies
    1. Yes! Breastfeeding babies is very important. Good to have you here Myne.

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    2. Hi,
      I love this infomation on breastfeeding. I am having difficulty in getting my 7 month old accept other foods apart from breast milk. Someone told me that its common with babies that are exclusively breastfed for 6months.Do you have any suggestions that will help?

      Efe.

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    3. Hi Efe,
      Am glad you stopped by.
      First, let me congratulate you for successfully breastfeeding your baby exclusively for six months. In spite of its superiority, breast milk cannot provide all the nutrients and calories that your baby needs to thrive after six months. Continue to breastfeed your baby for atleast the first one year and preferably for the second, but still give your baby other nutritious foods which you will have to introduce gradually and patiently. Your question have inspired the next blog post. Do try and read it, it promises more clarification to your concern.

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  2. Mother always need a good presentation of calcium in their body.
    Calm Natural Vitality

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  3. You are right John, breastfeeding mothers have great need for calcium. This they can get from dietary sources like milk, cheese, yogurt etc and supplements. Thanks for stopping by.

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  4. Breastfeeding is better than buy animal milk... Recommend for mother to breastfeeding. only avoid if she get danger disease

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  5. I breastfed all 4 of my children and am very glad I did. They were rarely ever sick and to this day (they are now adults) they are still very healthy and even if they do catch a little cold, it doesn't last long. My daughter, on the other hand, had a baby 4 months ago and had a very difficult time breastfeeding. I encouraged her to do it as long as possible. After 2 months she was out of milk and ended up giving the baby formula. She still feels a lot of guilt about that but I told her everything was fine and that her baby is healthy---that's all that matters. At least the baby got some of the breast milk!!

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    Replies
    1. Am glad you stopped by. What a strong breastfeeding advocate you are! Good that your grandchild got the most important part of the breastmilk- colostrum.

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  6. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  7. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  8. Yes - I agree, this post is awesome and your website design rocks! Please keep it up.

    I still believe that mother's milk is best and yes, I designed http://www.goldtree.co.za

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  9. Back Pain is a common problem now a days.The ebook, The Back Pain Choice is written by Jon V. Monos. A back pain suffer for over 35 years. Diagnosed with all of the following: scoliosis, sciatica, herniated disc, facet joint syndrome, degenerative disc disease,
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    ReplyDelete
  10. Back Pain is a common problem now a days.The ebook, The Back Pain Choice is written by Jon V. Monos. A back pain suffer for over 35 years. Diagnosed with all of the following: scoliosis, sciatica, herniated disc, facet joint syndrome, degenerative disc disease,
    arthritis and bulging disc.

    You can choice some Back Pain related book from here

    Ebookonbackpain.com
    ---Instant relief for sciatica and chronic back pain guaranteed! Simple, Effective, Life Changing!

    Thebackpainchoice.com
    ---Fast, Easy, GUARANTEED RELIEF of most types of back pain

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think breast feed is must.. If I'm married, I will advice my wife to breastfeed my babies

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    Replies
    1. you will be a good father. Am glad you stopped by.

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  12. Your site is very wonderful and share very affective information.
    Technology, Free Software and Best Tutorial
    Keep it up.Your research is very informative
    God Bless You

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  13. wow ... it's an amazing experience, according to the research, breastfeed is good for children brain development.

    A little writing about health

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  14. Hi nutritionalert. I definitely feel like breast feeding is the way to go. I just see life from the simple avenue. Women were given breasts to feed their babies. I wrote in an article about the health benefits of coconut oil. Coconut contains lauric acid which is found in mother's breast milk and it and several other acids in breast milk fight against infections in babies. Breast milk is very important for baby's immune systems.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Henry,
      Am glad you stopped by. Yes! breast feeding is the way to go.

      Delete