Women always are in the dilemma whether to breastfeed their baby or to start with bottle feed. No matter how convenient it is or whether you work or not, breastfeeding wins hands down.As a matter of fact most governments these days are organizing mass movements to encourage the practice of breastfeeding in the light of better health. In most countries it is the norm to breastfeed the child till the age of 2.
Don’t think too much, breastfeed your baby. If you’re still not convinced, read the top then reasons why you should do so below:
- Bonding-When you breast feed your baby, a wonderful hormone called oxytocin is released in both your baby’s brain and yours. This wonder hormone is triggered by skin to skin contact and is said to let your baby develop calm feelings and give you both the feelings of wanting to be held and further contact.The best part is that apart from producing his or her oxytocin, your baby also absorbs extra oxytocin from your breast milk. This hormone is sure to leave your baby loving you and make both of you closer to each other.
- Source-Breast milk is fed directly from the source. It does not require packaging or transfer or sterilization. On the other hand we have formula milk that is made in a factory.God knows what processes it has gone through or whether it can come in contact with outside elements. History has shown us that many formulas available in the market have been recalled because of the presence of chemicals or bacteria or some other harmful reason.Breast milk is more hygienic as it comes directly from the source that is you.
- Speedup postpartum weight loss-Breast feeding is a miracle weight loss process. It can make you lose as much as 500 calories per feed. So if you are suffering from excessive weight gain after child birth, what better way can there be than losing weight by feeding your baby to a healthy future.It’s a win-win situation. You lose the weight and your baby gets the health benefits too.As you feed, the suckling of the baby actually helps the uterus to shrink more quickly to its previous state.
- Convenient and costs nothing-I’ve often seen mother s who bottle feed their babies lugging around bags of bottles, formula and other stuff. With formula feeds you even have the headache of sterilization of milk bottles. The best part about breast feeding is that you need not carry anything.As your baby grows the more formula you might need to buy. Formula isn’t all that cheap. Imagine how much you can save by just switching to breast milk.
- Added benefits for the mother-Research has proved that breast feeding protect mothers from contracting breast, endometrial and ovarian cancers. It also can help prevent your uterus that has expanded from child birth from hemorrhaging. So the longer you breast feed your baby, the more health benefits you also get in return.
- Increased immunity-Breast fed babies enjoy a boosted protection or immunity. Your breast milk helps your baby fight against all the viruses and other infections in the air.Breast fed babies are less likely to develop infections easily and they even have the power to fight off more serious infections too such as cancers and heart issues.
- Poop doesn’t stink as much-As crazy as this sounds, millions of mothers swear by the fact that poop of babies who are breast fed stink less. The fact is that formula milk can’t be completely digested by your baby as breast milk does. So the left behind particles add mass and stench to the poop.
- Good oral health-Babies who have been breast fed land up having less dental problems. Breast milk is the only beverage that a baby can consume without the having the worry of rotting the teeth. Bottle feed has been shown to cause teeth decay in the long run.The suckling action of the baby while breast feeding actually development of the face and jaw, thereby giving less chances for need to go in for orthodontic treatments in future.
- Higher IQ-Babies who have been breastfed have been shown to have higher IQ levels as compared to those who have been bottle fed. Breast milk is rich in healthy fats, good cholesterol and other brain boosting nutrients that help in the growth and development of nerve tissue that in turn stimulates brain development.
