Breastfeeding gives your baby the best start in life. It provides them with important nutritional and immune factors, as well as a feeding of closeness and well being.
Benefits for your baby
Your breast milk is specially designed for your baby and contains everything needed for healthy growth in the first 6 months. It contains antibodies and immune factors, which are passed from you to your baby to help fight infection, Colostrum, which is produced in the first 2 – 4 days, is high in proteins, rich in antibodies and is easily digested.- Breast milk is easier to digest than formula milk for your baby, decreasing the incidence of constipation, stomach upset and diarrhoea. A breastfed baby’s nappies are more pleasant to change!
- Breastfed babies are less likely to develop gastroenteritis and ear infections.
- Other proven or compelling benefits include better brain development, a lower risk of allergy in those with family history and possibly,protection against diabetes. Breastfed babies may also have lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and lower chance of becoming obese later in life.
Benefits for you
- Breastfeeding brings you closer to your new baby and gives you quiet times in the day and night to get to know each other. It can be very satisfying experience for the both of you.
- Breastfeeding helps your womb to contract and gets you back into shape more quickly, as the extra fat in your body during the pregnancy stages is now converted into energy to help produce breast milk.
- Women who breastfeed are at a lower risk of ovarian cancer, breast cancer and osteoporosis in later life.
- Breast milk is very convenient; it’s sterile, always available wherever you are and at the correct temperature, even in the middle of night. It is also free 🙂
You may experience some discomfort when you start to breastfeed, and the breastfed babies require more frequent feeds because breast milk is quicker to digest. Newborn babies are very demanding! Once breastfeeding is established you may want to express your breast milk on occasion so that your partner, family or friends can help.