The most important factor that influences a mother’s decision to breast feed her baby, as discussed in the previous article, is perhaps the nutritional benefits of breast milk. However, there are a number of other advantages of breast feeding that should be taken into consideration.
Immunological Benefits
Every time the human body is attacked by a disease, it develops immunity against it i.e. some special cells become sensitized to a particular type of virus or bacterium. The next time that disease attacks, there are cells that can fight it off. If the immunity is strong enough, the body may not catch that disease again.
When a mother breast feeds, much of the immunity she has developed herself is passed on to the baby through the antibodies present in her milk. For many years, doctors thought that breast-fed babies contracted fewer infections, compared to bottle-fed ones, because breast milk, coming directly from the mother, was free of any bacteria whereas bottle milk had higher chances of contamination. However, it was observed that even when infants were given formula milk in sterilized bottles they contracted more gut, ear, respiratory or urinary infections.
According to Jack Newman, a mother’s milk is not only safer for a child; it also contains Antibodies (immunoglobulins) that help to develop a child’s immune system. An infant is not born completely helpless against foreign diseases; during pregnancy the mother passes her antibodies to the child through the placenta, however, after birth, breast milk helps strengthen the immune system by delivering antibodies and a battery of other infection-fighting agents. (Click for source) Specific components of breast milk kill harmful bacteria and virus cells, while promoting the growth of helpful ones. A mother’s milk also delivers hormones for speedy maturation of the child’s digestive track.
As recorded in Consumer Reports, breast-fed babies are reported to develop fewer lifelong allergies that are mostly caused by dairy products. They are also at a lower risk of suffering from allergic skin conditions such as eczema. Babies receiving breast milk have fewer colds and stomach upsets (saving them from life-threatening forms of diarrhea.) The antibodies in the milk help the body to fight against mumps, measles, chicken pox, tetanus, pneumonia, meningitis etc. Breast-fed babies also have a lesser chance of becoming overweight adults. They run a lower risk of developing diabetes, appendicitis, arthritis or multiple sclerosis later in life.
Breast feeding a baby does not guarantee that your child will never get sick, but it does lower the chances by equipping the baby’s immune system to fight with the disease.
Benefits to the Mother
Breast feeding helps a mother to lose the extra high-energy fat that she has gained during pregnancy. According to Dr. Spock, it also helps the mother’s uterus to return back to its normal size. When the baby nurses, the muscle wall of the uterus contracts vigorously to hasten its return to its normal position and size.
Research has also shown that breast feeding can reduce the chances of breast, uterine and ovarian cancer, or osteoporosis after menopause for the mother. The younger you are when you breast feed and the longer you do it, the lower the chances become. Women who breast feed their child often do not menstruate during those months, which acts as an aid to birth control.
Practical Benefits
Breast feeding is also practically convenient. It saves a lot of time because there are no bottles to wash and sterilize, no measuring of formula and water to prepare the milk and no worries of refrigeration and proper storage. Breast milk is not only safer because it does not require protection from bacteria, measuring, mixing and storing, it is also more convenient as it is available anywhere the mother is.
There are also economic advantages to be considered. As breast feeding does not require any bottles and formula, an infant’s parents save money. Also, as discussed before, it reduces the chances of the child contracting diseases; it also saves the parents’ money on hospital bills and medical treatments.
Closeness between Mother and Child
Breast feeding an infant is the best way to develop closeness between a mother and a child. For a mother this bond stems from the knowledge that she is truly the source of nourishment for her growing infant. This feeling is concertized when she sees her baby’s response, his fondness for feeding and his satisfaction expressed by smiling, giggling or general having a content demeanor.
Dr. Spock, in Baby and Child Care, evidences mothers who have breast-fed and express their views about the satisfaction that comes with breast feeding and knowing that they can provide their baby with something no one else can. It is a misconception that a mother feels close to the baby because he was born to her. The development of this closeness, the time when she really feels joyous for being a mother, is when she is feeding her baby. She becomes a real mother when she’s taking care of her child. It is for this reason that breast feeding, after the first few weeks of nursing, becomes pleasurable for the mother; a time for relaxation and bonding between her and her baby.
