5 Benefits of Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding provides custom-made nourishment for your baby. If you can breastfeed, your baby will benefit – but so will you. Choosing whether or not to breastfeed is up to the mom and is very personal. Discuss the option thoroughly with your care provider. Also, consider these possible pluses when making your decision.

• Breastfeeding means better healing for mom:* As your baby nurses, you release a hormone called oxytocin. This hormone causes your uterus to contract, which helps reduce heavy bleeding in the weeks post delivery. Breastfeeding also helps your uterus shrink back to its normal size more quickly. You’ll recover in about six weeks versus 10 weeks if you don’t breastfeed.

• Breastfeeding boosts your baby’s health:* “When babies are born, their immune systems are not yet fully developed,” explains Janelle Cashmore, RN, BSN. “Breast milk contains antibodies that help provide babies with that additional immune system protection.” Babies who are breastfed also have lower incidences of infections and illnesses than non-breastfed babies. Cashmore also points out that breast milk offers a “lower risk of exposing your baby to contaminants that may exist in formula and the bacteria that can grow in bottles.”

• Breastfeeding means easier weight loss for mom:* Breastfeeding can help mom return to her pre-pregnancy weight sooner. Producing milk requires extra energy from your body – estimates are between 300 and 500 calories extra. This extra energy output results in pounds lost as long as you keep your calories and portion sizes in check. These weight-loss benefits are particularly true if you breastfeed for 6 months, or longer. If you don’t breastfeed, you’ll have to rely on exercise and diet to create the deficit and lose pounds.

• Breastfeeding enhances your baby’s brain development:* Certain compounds in breast milk just aren’t available in man-made formulas, including cholesterol, linolenic acid and taurine. These growth factors boost development of the central nervous system, specifically a process called myelination.
  
  Myelin is a sheath that surrounds nerves and helps their impulses travel faster. The process of myelination occurs throughout childhood, but most occurs in the first 6 months of life. Research in a 2010 issue of Pediatric Research confirmed that breast milk promotes this healthy brain growth.

• Breastfeeding is cost-effective and convenient:* Breast milk comes at no additional cost to the parents. Formula can run you between $58 and $198 per month, or up to $2,400 per year. You’ll also need bottles, nipples, and warming devices for the formula. Breast milk is always the right temperature and, if mom is nearby, it’s always ready.
  
  
  
  Andrea Cespedes is a professionally trained chef and a Certified Nutrition Therapist. With more than 20 years of experience in the fitness industry, she coaches cycling and running and teaches Pilates and yoga. She is an American Council on Exercise-certified personal trainer, RYT-200 and has degrees from Princeton and Columbia University. She’s the proud mom of two kids, who love dance, rock climbing and animals.