As a mother, breastfeeding would be the biggest gift you can give to your infants. By breastfeeding to your baby, you can provide them with all essential nutrients required for their health and development. It is the most ideal food for your baby and plays crucial role in building your kids immunity and in keeping them away from infections, allergies and other diseases. The major benefits of breast feeding is any food cannot be replaced by any other supplements.
Breastfeeding is not only beneficial for your baby, but is also beneficial for you. Let us know a little about the advantages of breastfeeding for both mother and the baby.
Benefits of breastfeeding to baby
Your breast milk is the perfect blend of all valuable nutrients and vitamins which your little one needs and is also easily digestible. Especially your milk is made of live cells and it contains antibodies, fats and other proteins which help in development both body and brain. All essential proteins and nutrients present in your milk provides long term benefits for your infant. They protect your kid from several infections, allergies and also from several other chronic disorders.
Soon after your kids birth, mostly within 2-3 days after delivery your breast secrete colostrums (milk that is in yellow colour). This colostrums, first milk (usually called) is very beneficial for your kid and helps in building strong immunity and also promotes digestion. This yellowish milk, after few days slowly changes into normal breast milk.
Breastfed babies are at reduced risk of several health problems like respiratory problems, ear infections, type 2 diabetes, diarrhea, vomiting, obesity, cancers and several other chronic disorders. Breastfed children also have high IQ levels than kids who depend on supplement foods.
Physical and emotional bonding between mother and child is improved through breast feeding. Babies who are breastfed have superior sense of different tastes and flavours, as the taste of breast milk changes based on their mother’s diet.
Your breast milk provides long term protection to your kids, makes them healthy and reduces their risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). It also reduces kid’s risk of gastroenteritis and tooth decay.
Benefits of breast feeding to mother
Breastfeeding is not only beneficial for infants, but is also very beneficial for mother. There are several advantages of breast feeding for mother. Mother can lose their extra weight through breast feeding, as more calories are burn while you breastfed your baby. While you breastfed your baby, a hormone called oxytocin is released which helps your uterus to contract and return to its normal size, it also helps to control uterine discharge (haemorrhage) after delivery.
You can reduce your risk of breast and ovarian cancers through breast feeding. It further reduces your risk of obesity, osteoporosis and also cardiovascular diseases.
As explained initially, it improves bonding between you and your baby and gives you a feel of satisfaction and calmness. It also helps in delaying menstrual cycle and acts as contraception. By breast feeding your baby can avoid the complications of cleaning your feeding bottles and other equipments.