To Breastfeed or to Bottle-feed

Choosing to breastfeed or to bottle-feed your baby is a mother's personal choice. But the World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and the American Dietetic Association recommends breastfeeding as the best for babies. They recommend that babies should be breastfed exclusively for the first six months until at least 12 months or longer if both mother and baby are willing.

So why are these health organizations recommending breastfeeding? The advantage of breastfeeding to babies is that nursing can be a wonderful experience for both mother and baby. This will provide the nourishment and special bonding experience between mothers and babies.

Breastfeeding can also help prevent infection. Antibodies can pass from the mother to her baby through breastfeeding. And this lowers the occurrence of certain conditions like ear infections, diarrhea, respiratory infections, and meningitis. It can also increase the infant's immune system by increasing the barriers to infection and decreasing the growth of organisms like bacteria and viruses. Thus, breastfeeding can also help prevent allergies, asthma, diabetes, obesity, and sudden infant death syndrome.

Another advantage of breastfeeding is that babies can easily digest breast milk. It also contains many of the vitamins and minerals that the baby needs. Another advantage is that breast milk doesn't cost a cent unlike chemically prepared milk formulas. And it is always fresh and available. There's no need to do last minute run to the stores or warm up bottles in the middle of the night. And lastly, studies have also shown that breastfed babies have slightly higher IQs than children who were formula fed.

Though there are benefits that breastfeeding gives, some women are not capable of breastfeeding for comfort, lifestyle or health reasons. But mothers who do not breastfeed should not feel so guilty. They can still give the nutritional needs of their baby through chemically prepared formula. Though breastfeeding is considered the best nutritional option for babies, it is not right for every mother. Breastfeeding can be too difficult or stressful to some mothers.

Commercially prepared infant formulas are also a nutritious alternative to breast milk, and even contain some vitamins and nutrients that breastfed babies need to get from xyz supplements.

Mothers usually choose bottle-feeding for several reasons. Convenience, with bottle-feeding either the parent or a caregiver can feed the baby a bottle at any time. This allows the mother to share the feeding duties with her partner. And let her partner feel more involved in the crucial process and the bonding that comes with it.

Bottle-feeding can also give flexibility. Mother can leave her baby to her partner or caregiver without worrying that their babies are not fed. And mothers won't need a private place to nurse their babies in public. And formula fed babies usually need to eat less often than breastfed babies because formula digests slower than breast milk. And lastly, women who bottle-feed their babies do not need to worry about the things that they eat or drink that could affect their babies.

By Christina Taylor