Breast milk is all that the baby needs for the first six months. Breast milk is an ideal food for your baby because it contains all the nutrients that a baby needs for first 6 months of life. It is quickly and easily digested and it contains fat, lactose, protein, vitamins, minerals (including iron), immunoglobulins, and water which are necessary for growth of your baby.
Before your baby is born he is protected within your womb from all infections and after birth breastfeeding takes over the protection process. The milk which you secrete for the first few days known as colostrum should be given to your baby as it provides resistance to your baby against various diseases and infections.
Your milk is made especially for your own baby. It is the right nutrition for the growth of your baby. It is easy to digest and it contains protective substances which help prevent infection especially loose stools. You can give it even when you are ill, pregnant or menstruating.
1. Like all mothers you can successfully breastfeed your baby, which is the most natural way to feed babies.
2. Mother’s milk is complete nutrition for the baby for first 6 months and your child should be exclusively breastfed during this period of time. No other milk, food, drink or even water is required.
3. Your baby should be breastfed immediately after birth preferably within 1/2 to 1 hour of birth.
4. Your baby should be breastfed unrestrictedly and on demand.
5. Your baby must be given Colostrum – the first yellowish mother’s milk during the first 2-3 days after birth.
6. Nothing should be given before the first breastfeed.
7. No pacifiers should be given to the baby.
8. You can continue breastfeeding during your sickness without any harm to the baby and yourself.
9. You should continue breastfeeding for two years or beyond.
10. Bottle-feeding is not necessary and even harmful for your baby. It is the leading cause of loose stools in babies.
11. Solid foods should be introduced only after 6 months of age.
12. Home-made, family food is better than commercial food for your baby.
13. Commercially available powder milks are always inferior to mother’s milk is recommended that all infants should be fed exclusively on breastmilk until they are six months of age and continued to be breastfed till 2 years or beyond. Breastfeeding is advantageous for all – you, your baby and the society.
Benefits your baby enjoys:
Breastfeeding provides numerous benefits to your baby which are as follows
1. Breastmilk contains adequate calories and provides the right kind of proteins, fats, lactose, vitamins, iron, minerals, water and enzymes in the amounts necessary for your baby.
2. Breastmilk contains iron, water soluble Vitamin D, Vitamin A, C and E more than cow’s milk.
3. Breastmilk is clean, free from bacteria and has anti-infective properties.
4. It also contains substances which prevent harmful bacteria from growing in intestines and causing loose stools.
5. It is ready to serve when the baby wants it, needs no preparation and it has the right temperature. It is economical and free from contamination.
6. Breastfeeding enhances the emotional bond between the child and the mother and provides warmth, love and affection and is more than food.
7. Breastfeeding protects the child against several infections including respiratory infections.
8. Breastfed babies are less prone to have diabetes, heart diseases, eczema, asthma and other allergic disorders later in life.
9. Breastfed babies have been shown to have a higher IQ (Intelligence Quotient) and develop better mathematical abilities than infants who are not breastfed.
10. Breastfeeding enhances brain development. There is better visual development and visual acuity leading to learning readiness.
Benefits you enjoy as a mother:
Breastfeeding has many advantages to the mother, which include the following
1. It reduces post-delivery bleeding and chances of anemia.
2. Obesity is less common among breastfeeding mothers as it helps the mother regain her normal figure.
3. It has a contraceptive effect .
4. It has a protective effect against breast and ovarian cancers.
5. If you exclusively breastfeed your baby, you will have better adjustment with your baby.
Benefits the society enjoys:
Breastfeeding lowers health-care costs by reducing illness and deaths of children under five years of age and thus reduces the strain on the family budget. It helps in reducing absenteism of mothers from work as exclusively breastfed children are less prone to diseases. Thus, it will prove less costly to the employer.
Colostrum-The first few days of breastmilk
During the first few days after delivery you produce special milk known as colostrum which is thick, sticky and yellowish in colour. It is easily digestible, contains anti-infective elements to protect your newborn against infections. It stimulates your baby’s immature intestines to develop, in order to digest and absorb milk and to prevent the absorption of undigested proteins. Colostrum also has a mild “gut clearing effect”, which helps your baby’s gut to pass the first, very dark stool called meconium. It also helps to prevent jaundice by clearing the bilirubin from the gut. Although colostrum is secreted in small quantities (30-90ml), it is sufficient to meet the energy needs of a normal newborn during the first few days of life.
Mature milk:
During the two weeks that follow the colostrum stage, the milk increases in quantity and changes in appearance and composition as per your baby’s needs, the protein content decreases while the fat and sugar content increases. At this time, your breasts may feel full, hard and heavy.- Mature milk is thinner and watery but contains all the nutrients essential for optimum physical and mental development of the baby. The mature milk consists of hind milk and foremilk.
During the two weeks that follow the colostrum stage, the milk increases in quantity and changes in appearance and composition as per your baby’s needs, the protein content decreases while the fat and sugar content increases. At this time, your breasts may feel full, hard and heavy.The milk which comes at the start of the feed is called foremilk. Foremilk, which is watery and bluish in color, has a low level of fat and is high in lactose, sugar, protein, vitamins, minerals and water. It satisfies your baby’s thirst and is produced in large amount than hind milk. You may sometimes worry that your milk is too thin. Milk is never “too thin”. It is important for you to give both foremilk and hind milk to provide complete meal and water that your baby needs.
Hindmilk is the milk which comes later in a feed, is richer in fat and this extra fat makes it look whiter than foremilk. It satisfies the baby’s hunger and supplies much of the energy required. Therefore, it is important not to take your baby off the breast too quickly.
Breastfeeding is the most natural thing for every mother. It is a unique experience to be cherished. Sometimes certain simple problems faced by mothers result in stoppage of breastfeeding or giving of supplements of animal milk/commercial infant formula to the baby. Problems may be like flat nipples, inverted nipples, breast engorgement, swelling, sore nipples or not enough milk etc. These problems are preventable if due care is taken from the pregnancy period to prepare for breastfeeding.
