Still Small Voice
Benefits of BreastfeedingThe American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding at least one year and to continue as long as mom and baby are comfortable nursing. The World Health Organization recommends nursing for at least 2 years and then as long as mom and baby are comfortable nursing. Breastfeeding has many benefits, not just for baby, but for mom, dad, and our society as a whole. Benefits for baby: Breastfeeding helps protect babies from Allergies, Crohns disease, Diaper rash, SIDS, Diarrhea, Urinary tract infections, Asthma (for best protection, exclusively breastfeed for the first 4 months), Obesity, LEUKEMIA, Diabetes, and many other problems. Babies fed breastmilk have been shown to score an average of 6-9 points higher in IQ tests than babies fed formula. Benefits for mom: Breastfeeding helps mom recover from childbirth quicker and helps the uterus to clamp down on itself better to help prevent postpartum hemorrhage. Breastfeeding reduces mom’s stress level (which is also a benefit for dad!). Breastfeeding decreases your chance of breast and ovarian cancer. Breastfeeding decreases your chance of Osteoporosis. It takes longer to loose weight if you formula feed. Formula feeding is harder (you have to wash bottles, buy and prepare it.) Buying
formula costs $1200-$2500 per year! That is not including the
increased doctors visits. Benefits for society: $1.3 billion more is spent by insurers, including Medicaid, to cover sick-child office visits and prescriptions to treat the three most common illnesses—respiratory infections, otitis media (ear infections), and diarrhea—in the first year of life for formula-fed infants versus breastfed infants. $3.6 to 7 billion excess dollars are spent every year on conditions and diseases that are preventable by breastfeeding. Every 10 percent increase in the breastfeeding rate among WIC recipients would save WIC $750,000 per year. $2 billion per year is spent by families on formula. (statistic provided by http://www.usbreastfeeding.org/Issue-Papers/Benefits.pdf) Formula production and preparation uses energy and resources. Breastfeeding also requires no packaging, therefor there is less impact on the environment.
Preparing to Nurse: breast changes during pregnancy, bras, nursing pads, and more. Making Milk: the hormones of Lactation Hunger Cues and Normal behavior the first few weeks . How to know baby is getting enough
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