Pregnancy Lounge

Tag: breastfeeding

  • Breastfeeding or Bottle Feeding: Advantages and Disadvanges

    The choice is yours. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of breastfeeding and bottle-feeding. Remember, you don’t have to opt exclusively for either the breast or the bottle alone. Many parents find that a combination of both methods works well and lets them enjoy the advantages of each.

    Advantages of Breastfed Babies

    Breastfed babies are less likely to become ill in the first year of life, because breast milk provides your infant with antibodies to fight off some common childhood illnesses. Plus, immune factors in breast milk help protect your baby until his or her own immune system has developed. Living cells in breast milk, such as white cells, fight infection and are important in helping your baby stay healthy. Babies who are strictly breastfed , with no added formula, until at least four months of age, suffer half the number of ear infections as those who are never breastfed.

    It’s more convenient. It can be done anywhere, at any time, whenever your baby shows signs of being hungry. No bottles to prepare, no sterilizing and breast milk is always just the right temperature; you never have to keep your baby waiting.

    Breastfeeding has been shown to reduce a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer and also ovarian cancer. When breastfeeding for three months or longer, the risk is cut in half.

    Nursing helps speed the shrinking of the uterus back to it’s pre-pregnancy size; helping your body recover more quickly from giving birth. Hormones, such as oxytocin , are released when your baby sucks, which causes your uterus to contract a bit each time your baby nurses. You can also lose weight more quickly if you breastfeed, because nursing uses up the fat you stored up in pregnancy.

    << Breastfeeding (continued) >>

    << Advantages of Bottle-feeding >>

  • Should I Breastfeed or Bottle-Feed?

    Experts agree that choosing to breastfeed your baby is the best choice for both mother and child. Here are six great reasons to choose breastfeeding.

    • Breast milk is easier to digest than cow’s milk or commercial formulas. The proportion of protein is lower in mother’s milk, making it easier for babies to handle. Breast milk also contains one-third less mineral salt, making it easier on baby’s kidneys.
    • Because of the easier digestibility of breast milk, babies that are breastfed are almost never constipated and they also rarely have diarrhea.
    • Breast milk is less likely to cause your infant to become overweight and also decreases the chances of obesity later in life.
    • Virtually no baby is allergic to breast milk (although some babies can have allergic reactions to certain foods in their mother’s diets). Breastfeeding can actually protect your baby from allergies, eczema and asthma and can also help make allergies less severe, if they do develop.
    • It is less expensive than bottle-feeding. There are no bottles, sterilizers and expensive formula to buy.
    • Breastfeeding brings mother and baby together, skin to skin, at least six to eight times a day. It can feel warm and comforting to you as well as your baby. The emotional gratification and intimacy, can be very fulfilling. Some believe breastfeeding leads to a closer bond between mother and baby. Also, many women feel a great sense of pride in seeing their baby grow strong and healthy on their milk alone.

    << Advantages of Bottle-feeding >>

  • 6 Advantages of Bottle-feeding

    Bottle-feeding is best when you are advised not to breastfeed because of either your health or the health of your baby. Such health concerns are include serious infections, illnesses or certain medications taken by the mother, abnormal shape of your newborn’s mouth (such as cleft lip or cleft palate), which would make it difficult for your baby to latch on, and rare disorders in your newborn that make digesting breast milk practically impossible.

    • Bottle-feeding doesn’t tie the mother down to her baby. She’s able to work outside the home, shop, go out with friends and even sleep through the night (sometimes), because someone else can feed the baby. Although expressing milk with a breast-pump can enable others to take over some feedings.
    • Bottle-feeding allows the father to share the feeding responsibilities more easily and not feel left out.
    • Bottle-feeding doesn’t interfere with a couple’s sex life (except, of course, when the baby wakes up for a feeding at the wrong time). Breastfeeding can, because the lactation hormones can make the vagina dry and also leaky breasts during lovemaking can be a turn-off for some couples.
    • Bottle-feeding doesn’t cramp your diet or eating habits. You can eat all the garlic, spicy foods and cabbage you want! Whereas with breastfeeding, you are really still eating for two, just as you were during pregnancy, so you still need to continue eating nutritiously.
    • Bottle-feeding may be more preferable for a woman who is more comfortable bottle-feeding than breastfeeding their baby in public. Some women feel squeamish about the possibility of nursing in public and some feel it would be too embarrassing.
    • With bottle-feeding, you can see exactly how much milk your baby has taken, but with breastfeeding, you are merely guessing by how long your baby has nursed & how many wet diapers you have changed.