Breastfeeding Pros and Cons, Important Things to Know: Breastfeeding is a great time in every mother’s life, it is not only healthier and more useful for you and your baby, but it also aids in the development of a strong and lasting relationship between mother and child. You will cherish these memories for the rest of your life, but it may also be challenging to manage sometimes.
Breastfeeding Pros
Breastfeeding is good for the health of both the mother and the infant. Take a look at the advantages of breastfeeding for both mother and child.
For Baby/Infant
Highly nutritious:Â Breast milk is rich in nutrients and vitamins that your baby requires to grow and remain healthy, particularly during the first few days when nutrient-dense colostrum is produced. So breast milk is considered the healthiest food for your baby.
Fight illness-Â Breastfed babies are less likely to suffer diseases including meningitis, ear infections, lower respiratory sickness, stomach viruses, and others than babies.
Boost immunity-Â Breast milk helps your infant have a healthy digestive system and strengthens your baby’s immune system.
Also Read: 6 Things to Care After Having a Baby, Postpartum Care
Boost IQ:Â Breastfed babies, especially breastfed newborns, may have a little higher IQ than formula-fed kids, according to research Trusted Source.
Prevent SIDS:Â Breastfeeding lowers the risk of sudden infant death syndrome and protects against other health issues like Asthma, allergies, and diabetes.
Furthermore, we must not overlook the fact that breastfeeding is also advantageous to mothers even additional reasons to breastfeed:
Helps in physical recovery: It can help your uterus return to its pre-pregnancy size more quickly. The baby’s suckling activity causes the uterus to contract involuntarily, protecting the mother against post-partum hemorrhage.
Breastfeeding lowers uterine bleeding:Â According to various experts, breastfeeding is a proven strategy to lessen uterine bleeding after childbirth.
Breastfeeding reduces the risk of some cancers: Breastfeeding can help you lower your risk of malignancies including ovarian cancer and breast cancer.
Weight loss may be aided by: Milk production burns additional calories in your body. A reliable source that can help you lose pregnancy weight. Breastfeeding boosts the synthesis of oxytocin, a hormone that helps the uterus recover to its pre-pregnancy size. It also reduces the risk of developing iron-deficiency anemia.
Breastfeeding Cons
Breastfeeding has several disadvantages, even though it is beneficial to you and your baby. Don’t be discouraged if it takes some time to get it right. Here are a handful of the most common problems of breastfeeding
- The first few weeks of breastfeeding are usually the most difficult. You could feel a little uncomfortable at first, especially in the first few days or weeks. Because there is no method to quantify how much your child eats, there is no way to tell.
- Some women also have less milk in their breasts, which makes feeding the infant more challenging. Apart from that, soreness or a crack in the nipple might be a concern. Serious breast infections, such as mastitis, are a risk for certain women.
- Breastfeeding causes a woman’s physique or breasts to loosen or deform. It has an impact on the personalities and self-esteem of women. While pumping breast milk, some women may suffer pain.
- The veins in the nipples are extremely sensitive. Nipples may stiffen as a result of milk pulling.
- There is no way to know how much your baby is eating because there is no way to measure it.
- You’ll need to monitor your food habits, coffee intake, and alcohol consumption. Some substances that enter your body make their way to your baby through your milk.
- Because newborns eat often, it may be difficult to stick to a feeding plan if you need to return to work.
