Breast-Feeding - Benefits to You and Your Baby

Breast Feeding

By nature's design, breast feeding is the best possible way of meeting your infant's nutritional needs. At the same time, it provides a warm, intimate relationship between you and your child, which is quite  important for his healthy psychological growth. Breast milk is the ideal food for infants. It contains all the nutrients a normal child needs to develop and thrive.

Benefits to your baby

Besides offering your infant a natural, complete diet, breast milk also provides a number of other important benefits. Its proper balance of proteins, carbohydrates, fats and minerals permits easier digestion with fewer intestinal problems such as diarrhea or constipation. Breast-def babies are less likely to become overweight. There is also less chance that your breast-fed infant will suffer from excessive water loss or other related disorders.

Breast-fed infants are less likely to experience allergic reactions or bacterial infections. In addition, breast milk provides the newborn with many natural immunities, because important antibodies are transmitted from mother to child through the milk.

Breast feeding also affords psychological benefits to the baby by allowing him to experience the close, physical warmth of his mother's body, to take pleasure in the sound of her voice and the sight of her face and, at the same time, to satisfy his sucking needs.

Benefits to you

As a breast feeding mother, you too will benefit by sharing a unique and satisfying relationship with your infant. The physical act of your baby's sucking will relieve the discomfort of your full breast. Breast feeding also helps you regain your figure more quickly, while permitting your uterus to return more rapidly to its normal non-pregnancy state. Furthermore, breast feeding is a convenient, economical means of feeding your child. A supply of milk, warmed to the right temperature, is available whenever your baby is hungry. Additionally, of course, breast feeding saves the time, effort and expense of formula preparation.

Some thoughts about breast feeding

Because breast feeding is unquestionably the best method if feeding your baby, you should talk with your doctor early during pregnancy so that you can develop a comfortable attitude toward it and prepare yourself physically for nursing. You may also want to discuss your decision with your husband, who can lend his full emotional support to your efforts.

 You must take proper care of your breasts and nipples both during and after pregnancy. During the final weeks of pregnancy you can begin to prepare your nipples for nursing by rubbing them once or twice a day with quick strokes using a towel or washcloth. Another helpful exercise involves rolling the nipple between your thumb and forefinger a few minutes each day. To prevent any unnecessary drying of the nipples, you should avoid soaping them while showering. Instead, allow clear water to run over them freely.

In order to breast feed successfully, you should eat correctly. A well balanced diet during your pregnancy, and especially while nursing, is important in order to supply an adequate amount of high quality milk. You will probably have to increase your daily food intake by 500 to 600 calories, paying particular attention to foods high in protein such as meat and eggs, as well as to green and yellow vegetables for vitamins and minerals. You should try to drink at least one pint of milk (approximately 1/2 liter) daily. Other liquids such as water and juices are also important for adequate milk production. 

Unless prescribed by your doctor, drugs of any kind should not be taken during your pregnancy, especially while breast feeding, since they can be transmitted to the baby through your milk. You must also avoid alcohol and cigarettes during this period.

A Simple Guide For Feeding Baby a Prepared Formula

Breast feeding may not be possible at all or there may be time when a bottle of prepared formula is necessary or desired. The following are general instructions for feeding baby a prepared formula. Your physician will tell you if there are special instructions for your baby.

It is recommended that the normal infant be fed as much formula as he desires, thus paralleling the dietary habit of breast fed infants.

Remember that each baby is an individual and may not adhere strictly to a feeding schedule. The time of feeding should be regulated to the baby's appetite, not to strict rule. The average length of feeding time ranges from 15 to 25 minutes, depending on the vigor of the infant. Sterile water may be given in between feedings.

Sit in a comfortable chair and hold Baby close to you so that he has a feeling of warmth and security. Hold Baby semi upright in your arms, as though you were breast feeding.

Raise the bottom of the bottle so that the nipple is full of milk. This prevents Baby from sucking air. If the nipple collapses, it may be necessary to take the nipple from Baby's mouth to let air into the bottle.

Nipple hole must be right. It should be just large enough to permit the milk to drop out freely without flowing in a steady stream. If the hole is too large, discard nipple and replace with a new one. If the hole is too small, enlarge with a hot needle held firmly with a cork.

The Reason Why Your Baby Smells So Good

We all know that our baby smells so good. Do you wonder why? Two words: No Sweat. The apocrine glands which are found in the armpits, breast, and groin and are associated with strong body odor, aren't active in puberty. Another reason she smells so good to may be because her scent is familiar. Each of us has our own odor print. Moms have been known to recognize their newborn by scent alone. One theory for this phenomenon: Olfactory cues from her baby may be circulating in Mom's bloodstream during gestation, giving her an early exposure.

Common Symptoms During Your First to Third Trimester

Your body will change dramatically during pregnancy, Some of these changes may be uncomfortable. Talk with your health care provider about the best ways to ease discomfort. You may have to try a few different methods before you discover ones that work best for you. While each woman's experience is different, the following symptoms are common during pregnancy.

FIRST TRIMESTER( 0 to12 weeks)

This is when most women experience morning sickness. You may need to urinate more often than usual, and you may feel tired and moody. Your breasts will begin to change now, and may be swollen and very tender. They may leak colostrum, a fluid the breasts produce as you prepare for lactation, although this is more common later in pregnancy. Any nipple discharge should be discussed with your provider.

SECOND TRIMESTER (13 to 28 weeks)

Many women experience a return to normal energy levels, and morning sickness will often disappear. Your breasts and belly will grow. You may experience leg cramps, constipation, and a faster heartbeat. During the fourth month of pregnancy, you may feel the baby movie for the first time.

THIRD TRIMESTER (29 to 40 weeks)

Since your baby is growing and your uterus is getting bigger, you may experience shortness of breath because the baby is crowding your lungs. You may have heartburn as your stomach is squeezed and hormones relax parts of your digestive system. Fatigue may return, mainly from the extra work your body is doing, carrying around a baby who is nearly full grown. You may also have backaches. Your legs and feet may swell, and you may have a difficult time sleeping.

Breast Myth

I have a friend who have just given birth to a healthy baby girl. and she would always tell me that every morning she would always drink plenty of milk so that she will produce more milk for her baby. We'll im kinda not sure of what she's telling me is true, so i did a research at the lib, and found a clippings about common myth about breastfeeding and saw the answer their, so i inform my friend so that she would know that what shes doing is not true. Here are 6 common breast myth i found on the clippings.

MYTH 1 Some women fail to produce sufficient milk.
FALSE: Most women do have enough milk supply. If a baby fails to gain(or even loses) weight, this is more likely the result of the baby not latching properly onto the breast or not feeding often enough. It is common for newborn to feed eight to 12 times in 24 hours.

MYTH 2 A mother must drink milk to make milk.
FALSE: A healthy diet of vegetables, fruits, grains and proteins is all that a mother needs to provide the proper nutrients to produce milk. Calcium can be obtained from a variety of nondairy foods such as dark green vegetables, seeds, nuts and fish. No other mammal drinks milk to make milk.

MYTH 3 Mothers who have had cosmetic breast surgery cannot breastfeed a baby.
FALSE: Many women who have had breast augmentation or reduction have gone on to breastfeed. It is important that women consider the issue of breastfeeding before going under the knife, as some procedures reposition the nipple and areola. In these cases, breastfeeding may have to be partial rather than exclusive.

MYTH 4 Mothers who breastfeed cannot consume alcohol or spicy food.
FALSE: Usually the body digest and processes all the food a mother eats before the body makes the breast milk. An occasional glass of wine or beer would not hurt a nursing baby and the same goes for spicy foods. There is also no conclusive research to support the theory that mothers who consume gassy foods(such as beans and broccoli) will have a colicky baby.

MYTH 5 Breastfeeding is a great alternative for birth control.
FALSE: While in many instances ovulation is suppressed during breastfeeding, only abstinence will ensure that no little surprises happen. Nursing mothers can safely take low dose birth control pills or use barrier methods of contraception without harming their baby.

MYTH 6 A breastfeeding mother should space her feeding so that her breast will have time to refill.
FALSE: A lactating mothers body is constantly making milk. Her breasts function in part as "storage tank" some holding more than the others. The faster the breast emptied, the faster the body makes milk to replace it. Conversely, the fuller the breast, the more production of milk slows down. If a mother consistently waits until her breast are full before she nurses, her body may get the signal that it is making too much and may reduce overall production.