Breastfeeding is significant for a child once they are born. Many new mommies aren’t aware of how important it is.
I wish to share my ideas, opinions, and real-life experience of how we achieved benefit, as it will be helpful for many mommies who are doing their research on it.
“The child will receive not only the food to satisfy his hunger but also the loving presence of the mother. He will be offered information as to how to fill an empty stomach and how to enjoy a human relationship with its many sensory inputs (such as a face to observe, a voice to listen to, and the warmth of bodily contact), which become food for the mind.”
by Dr. Silvana Montanaro, Understanding the Human Being
Breastfeeding Importance:
The importance of Breastfeeding, hit me after my baby was born and when she was kept away from me in NICU on her 2nd day after birth and when I dint have a sufficient milk supply.
Being new to motherhood, I was completely blank about the importance of Breastfeeding and was shy to discuss the topic with my friends and family.
I came across lots of research, with many scattered pieces of information which I found helpful, I am willing to combine and present to mommies in this article.
I would like to discuss the following topics
What is breastfeeding?
Breastfeeding is the process of extracting the milk from the mother’s breast directly by infants or pumping out the milk storing it in a bottle and bottle feeding them. A survey from the World health organization(WHO) and UNICEF states that “Breastfeeding intention (90.0%) and initiation (90.3%) rates were high, although exclusive breastfeeding rates at 6 months after birth (14.4%) were lower than desirable” https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-536X.2009.00309.x.
Benefits of Breastfeeding for mothers:
Have you ever wondered why breastfeeding the baby has this many advantages? Then there is the list for you.
- It helps you find fulfillment both physically and psychologically when you breastfeed your baby because the hormones prolactin(helps in the chill-out and focus on the child) and oxytocin(promotes love and bonding)that is released while feeding the baby.
- Breastfeeding moms tend to recover faster compared to those who don’t.
- It helps to increase your bonding with your baby.
- Research also indicates that breastfeeding moms are less prone to breast and ovarian cancer.
- Breastfeeding can also delay the mensuration after birth which aids a time or gap between pregnancies.
- Breastfeeding moms can lose their pregnancy weight drastically.
- It is the healthiest and most inexpensive way, as milk is naturally produced by the mother, whereas formula milk is expensive and artificially produced.
- Nighttime sleep will not be disturbed as in bottle feed (there is no need to get in between night and make milk ready).
- Breastfeeding moms usually have a lower postpartum depression rate when compared to those who don’t.
Benefits of breastfeeding to a child:
- Breast milk is rich in antibodies.
- Colostrum is the first milk produced after birth. It has an enormous amount of nutrients.
- Breastfeeding helps in reducing the risk of diseases like
- Ear infections
- Respiratory infections
- Cold infections
- Sudden infant death syndrome(SIDS)
- Gut infection
- Bowel disease
- Allergies
Foods for increasing breast milk secretion:
The food that we include in our diet during this period helps a lot in the secretion of breast milk. We have to be more conscious about what we eat must be clean and healthy.
Always have a focus on the quality of food you eat rather than the quantity.
Foods to include when you breastfeeding are as follows:
- Include protein-rich food in your diet like poultry, fish, dairy, egg, seeds, and nuts.
- Drink plenty of water and stay hydrated as it helps in the secretion of milk.
- Including 2 cups of vegetables in your servings like green leafy and yellow vegetables usually help.
- Including garlic in your food helps in increasing your breast milk.
- Include Omega3-rich foods like salmon, walnuts, and sardines, as it plays a significant role in child brain development.
- Consumption of foods like dairy products, and green leafy vegetables helps increase calcium levels which is essential to avoid deficiency of vitamin D in new moms.
- Expose yourself and your baby to the sun for 10-15 min every day as it provides vitamin D naturally.
- Including 2 cups of fruits like avocado, banana, mango, apricot, muskmelon, and oranges in your servings help ease constipation for a mother who experiences it after childbirth.
- When food cannot provide you with enough nutrients, taking supplements with the consultation of your doctor can help.
Foods to avoid when you breastfeed are as follows:
- Cut caffeine and alcohol.
- Avoid taking fish high in mercury like king mackerel, tuna, swordfish, marlin, and tilefish.
- Avoid eating spicy foods.
- Avoid eating junk and fried foods.
How to Understand, moms diet is perfect for the baby:
- You can know whether your baby is getting a healthy food supply through the behavioral changes in their body.
- If your baby shows any symptoms of
- Bloody stools
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea.
- Wheezing.
- Congestion.
- Excessive gas.
- Abnormal fuzziness.
Then it shows alteration necessary in our food chart, which your baby cannot tolerate as an infant.
- We can include spicy items in the diet with the consultation of a pediatrician as it becomes tolerable as they grow up.
Tips for new mommies:
- Understand your baby’s desire.
- Let your baby determine how often and duration to nurse.
- Choose a comfortable position while nursing.
- A stress-free or relaxing environment is preferable.
- Don’t panic because leaking is natural, as it will decrease and stops when your baby frequently nurses.
- Take care of your skin.
- Prevent engorgement.
- Drink plenty of water, and stay hydrated.
- Calm down if you don’t have enough milk supply initially, as it will increase following healthy food habits and frequent nursing.
Myths about Breastfeeding:
- If breastfeeding in babies starts to be difficult, then everything goes worse.
- Babies should be allowed to nurse one breast at each feeding.
- Production won’t get affected by skipping the feeding.
- You should not take medications while breastfeeding.
- Continuing to breastfeed a child at the age of 2 or 3 is difficult to stop.
- You should start weaning if you want to go back to work.
- Breastfeeding should occur naturally.
I hope you enjoyed reading this post. As a new mommy, nothing to panic about, Be relaxed and enjoy each part of your motherhood journey.
I’m Asha nirmala, the mom of a 5-year-old girl. To get more updates on motherhood, homeschooling, parenting, and DIY activity ideas for kids, you can follow me on Instagram @ashanirmala.co
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