Of course you want to give your baby the best start in life and breast feeding is the single most important thing you can do to protect your baby and help to promote his good health. Another of the many benefits of breast feeding is that it costs absolutely nothing!
While breast feeding can save you a lot of money on buying formula, it can also help with your doctor’s bills. Statistics show that breast fed babies get sick less often than formula fed babies. When they do succumb to illness they usually have a milder form and recover much quicker. Bottle fed babies suffer more often with respitory infections, ear infections and other medical problems.
This can be even more true if your family has had a history of allergies. When a baby is breast fed, the antibodies pass on from the mother to the baby, helping to protect against illness and allergies. As your baby’s system matures, his body will begin to make it’s own antibodies and he’ll be more equipped to handle sensitivities of food.
Sucking on the breast will also help with the development or jaw alignment and the development of the cheekbone. For this very reason, there is less of a need for costly orthodontic work when the child gets older.
Breast milk is more convenient. It is available 24/7 and is always at the correct temperature for feeding. Breast milk also contains all the necessary nutrients in the way of vitamins and minerals for a growing baby.
Breast feeding also offers many benefits for the mom as well. The baby sucking at the breast will cause contractions right after birth, leading to less bleeding for the mom, and helping her uterus to it’s shape before pregnancy much faster. Breast feeding will also burn calories, so a mom can lose weight much faster than if she fed her baby with a bottle. Breast feeding will also create a special bond with the mother and the baby – which is one thing formula simpy cannot do.
It must be said however that not all mums are able to breast feed. If this is the case for you there is no need to feel guilty. Bottle feeding will still give your baby a good start in life. Baby formula has been considerably improved and now contains most of the components of breast mild including omega 3 and pro-biotics.