Undoubtedly mankind has found it difficult, if not impossible, to improve on Mother Nature in many facets of our lives, and breast milk is no different. A mother’s breast milk therefore has all the nutrients, vitamins, and, probably most importantly, the anti-infection antibodies that the newborn baby requires to get a good start in life.
Breast fed babies have fewer infections and illnesses according to a whole host of studies that have been published. This is not to say of course that all breast fed babies are healthy, and that all formula fed babies are at an obvious disadvantage, but, taken as a group, breast fed babies tend to suffer from fewer medical problems than their formula-fed counterparts.
There is also an acknowledged closer bond between the baby and the mother when breast feeding. The warmth of the mother’s breast coupled with the skin to skin contact helps to provide a comfortable and safe environment for the child that is simply impossible to replicate with a bottle.
There are a number of studies that suggest that breast feeding is beneficial for the mother in the areas of weight control and even as a cancer preventative.
While formula milk certainly provides the infant with a good range of necessary vitamins and other nutrients that are needed for the infant’s development, a mother’s breast milk simply has everything that the child needs in one convenient package.
Mother’s milk is more easily digested by the infant than formula milk. Remember that a baby’s digestive system is still somewhat immature, so it is much easier for the baby to break down and absorb the minerals and nutrients contained in mother’s milk over formula milk. Because breast milk is easier to digest, your baby will suffer less from constipation and diarrhoea.
Mother’s breast milk reflects what the mother eats, and the taste of breast milk is often affected by the types of foods that the mother has recently eaten. This provides the baby with subtle differences in the taste of the breast milk and, as they say, variety is the spice of life.
Breast feeding is free and the milk comes in a convenient, easy to carry, container! While saving money should not in any way solely influence your decision to breast feed or not, there’s no escaping the fact that breast feeding can save parents significant amounts of money over the first few months of a baby’s life, and is infinitely more convenient. Breast feeding is also much more convenient insofar as there is no need to clean bottles, warm the milk or any of the other activities associated with bottle feeding and there is very little danger of the food running out.
