Benefits of Breast feedingOctober 26, 2019

Many women struggle with the choice between breast feeding and bottle feeding. After speaking to some lactation consultants in Ernakulam, we have listed some of the notable benefits of breast feeding:

1. Fastest way to burn calories

It makes it easier to lose that pregnancy weight (you burn up to 500 extra calories a day nursing). 1 feed for a new born is roughly about 30 ml or 1 ounce. Breast milk contains 20 calories per ounce. If you feed your baby 600 ml a day, that's 400 calories you've swept out of your body.

1. A period holiday

Exclusively breastfeeding your baby around the clock will delay ovulation, which means delayed period. Breastfeeding causes the release of prolactin, which keeps estrogen and progesterone at bay so ovulation isn't triggered.Even if you do breastfeed exclusively, your prolactin levels will eventually drop over the course of several months. Many moms who solely nurse will see their periods return between six and eight months after delivery; others don't for a full year.

1. Reduces the risk of breast cancer. Women who breastfeed reduce their risk of developing breast cancer by as much as 25 percent. The reduction in cancer risk comes in proportion to the cumulative lifetime duration of breastfeeding. That is, the more months or years a mother breastfeeds, the lower her risk of breast cancer.
2. Reduces the risk of uterine and ovarian cancer. One of the reasons for the cancer-fighting effects of breastfeeding is that estrogen levels are lower during lactation. It is thought that the less estrogen available to stimulate the lining of the uterus and perhaps breast tissue also, the less the risk of these tissues becoming cancerous.
3. Lessens osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens bones causing them to break easily over time. Non-breastfeeding women have a four times greater chance of developing it than breastfeeding women and are more likely to suffer from hip fractures in the post-menopausal years.
4. Promotes emotional health. Not only does breastfeeding benefit a mother’s body, it also benefits her mind. Studies show that breastfeeding mothers show less postpartum anxiety and depression than do formula-feeding mothers.
5. Cheaper and lighter. A 400 gm pack of formula costs about Rs.600/-. If your baby is exclusively bottle fed, you are looking at about 5-8 such packs a month. That’s about Rs.70,000 annually. It’s not just the cost. Washing and sterilizing bottles, lugging water, formula, water and other things while travelling with a new born.  

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