advantages and disadvantages of breast feeding over bottle feeding?
The main advantages of breastfeeding for your baby: * Breast milk is the only food specifically designed, by nature, to meet your baby's individual needs. * It contains the right balance of nutrients in a very easily digestible form. * Antibodies are passed on through breast milk to protect your baby from all kinds of infection. The longer you can feed your baby the better but if you breastfeed for the first three or four months this protection can last for up to a year. * Your baby is much less likely to need to be admitted to hospital. * Your baby is less likely to develop diarrhoea or constipation. * Breastfeeding reduced the incidence of allergies such as eczema and asthma. * Breast milk contains growth factors and hormones to help your baby's development. These cannot be reproduced in formula milk. Children who have breast fed for eight months or more have been shown to achieve more at school than those who have been bottle fed.
The main advantages of breastfeeding for you: * Breastfeeding helps your body to return to normal after the birth and burns up to 500 calories a day. * Breast milk is always ready and it costs nothing * Women who breastfeed often feel a special bond with their baby and may be less likely to develop postnatal depression. * Breastfeeding may offer you some protection against developing ovarian cancer, breast cancer and hip fractures.
The main disadvantages of breastfeeding for you * Blood borne viruses such as hepatitis B or HIV and some medication can be passed on to your baby in breast milk. * Some women find breastfeeding painful, stressful and tiring * You are unable to measure the amount of milk your baby has consumed, this can be a disadvantage if your baby is having problems putting on weight. * It can be difficult for a breastfeeding mother to leave her baby for more than a couple of hours as no one else can feed baby unless she leaves expressed milk. http://www.askbaby.com/breastfeeding-advantages-disadvantages.htm
I breast fed for 9 months and it was the best! I was gutted when I could only feed my second for 2 months...
but the benefits of established breast feeding are amazing! (note the word established!!)
steph gave the pro's and con's well, but when I have another one (which I will once I have qualified) I will breast feed come hell or high water.
you can be recited pros and cons all the time, but when it comes down to it, it is the best way to feed the baby ONLY when the mum eats well, rests, plenty of non alcoholic fluids and is relaxed. otherwise, the mum should bottle feed...a healthy happy mum ismore important than a stressed mum...
im the mother of identical twins 18 years old,girls,and one older girl.I breast fed them all.my body was happy about that.the twins were premeies and they are perfectly healthy beauty queens now.no health issues and the doc told me he thinks its because I breast fed them.the only problem I had was when I went to work in our fine countrie economy.I had a problem with finding time to express milk but I eventually had a system worked out on breaktime and the dont drink bottle in staff fridge.lol I dont regret it now.
I only breast-fed for about 3 weeks, well, I pumped only. I think I took it for granted because about 3 weeks after I stopped I was very sad that I did. I was told that would happen, but you don't know until you experience it. It is something only you can do for your baby, even if you do just pump and bottle feed like I did. It is also a great way to get rid of baby weight! I lost 20 pounds from breast feeding, and when I stopped it was hard to lose more. Formula is also very expensive.
you have to eat and drink very healthy stuff... like vegetables, fruit and water. no soda, coffee, pizza, alcohol, smoking, etc... whatever you consume, your baby will get in the milk... if you eat well and breast feed, your baby will get the nutrients he/she needs so it would be good. I work at a day care and the mother was eating all the stuff she shouldn't eat, and the baby had trouble digesting the milk,burping, which caused colic. good luck!!!=D
I love the bond that I have with my 10 month old through Breastfeeding. She's very happy and healthy. Being able to soothe her immediately when she gets hurt or is upset is great. Bottles can't do that. Bottles are just meant for eating, whereas with breastfeeding the baby can suckle for comfort. I love breastfeeding and singing her to sleep.
it has natural passive immunity w/c means it can keep your baby from getting sick or anything w/c a bottle feeding doesn't have..
