Breastfeeding Vs Bottle Feeding – Which is Best?

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Breastfeeding your baby offers both health and emotional benefits for the mother and the child.  While infant formula is safe for your new baby, offering breast milk gives unique benefits that cannot be found in formula.  Nursing is not always easy, but it is the healthiest way to feed your child and give him the best start in life.

Benefits for the Baby

Unlike baby formula, breast milk changes to meet the baby’s nutritional needs.  Just after birth, breastfed babies get colostrum rather than milk from the breast.  Colostrum is a thick, yellow liquid often called liquid gold because it contains antibodies to protect the baby’s fragile immune system.  These antibodies help prevent diseases that can be dangerous for a newborn.

As your newborn gets older, colostrum is replaced by milk by about the third day of life.  Your body creates the perfect milk with just the right amount of nutrients to help your baby grow.  Any antibodies that your body makes will also be passed along to the baby through your milk to protect him from diseases.  These antibodies reduce illnesses such as cold, flu, ear infections and diarrhea.

Infant formula is derived from cow’s milk, so it is not easy for all babies to digest.  Human milk is made especially for human babies, so it is easier for their stomachs and digestive systems to break down the proteins.

Health Benefits for the Mother

Breastfeeding also has many health benefits for the mom.  Close contact with your baby, especially skin-to-skin contact, releases the hormone called oxytocin in the mother’s brain.  This hormone helps the woman feel calm and relaxed during the stressful newborn period.  Nursing also forces the mother to sit down and relax during feeding which can reduce stress levels.

Breastfeeding is also liked to lower rates of some cancers and other diseases.  The following have been proven to have lower instances for nursing mothers:

• Breast cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Type 2 diabetes
• Postpartum depression

Breastfeeding may also lower the risk of osteoporosis and speed up weight loss after the childbirth.

Additional Benefits of Breastfeeding

There are also many reports stating additional benefits of breastfeeding above the commonly known benefits. Look at this video below that shows a connection between breastfeeding and breast cancer.

Study Concludes Breastfeeding Reduces Breast Cancer Odds by 59%

Breastfeeding is harder than bottle feeding at the beginning, but it quickly becomes easier.  There are no bottles to wash, formula to prepare and you are ready to feed your baby no matter where you are.

Infant formula is very expensive, but breastfeeding is free.  New parents can expect to spend about $1,000 in formula in the first year.

Breastfed babies are sick less often than formula fed babies.  The powerful antibodies protect the child’s immune system and help fight off infections.  This means fewer trips to the doctor for the child, and less missed work for the parents.

Breastfeeding reduces the risk of SIDS, although the exact link is not known.

Making milk for a baby requires about 500 extra calories per day.  This means the mother will burn off baby weight faster than if the child were drinking formula.

Breastmilk is always the right temperature.  You do not have to wait for a bottle to warm up in the middle of the night before your child can eat.

Penny For Your Thoughts

We would love to know your thoughts and experiences about breastfeeding vs bottle feeding. Leave a comment or use the contact form to share your thoughts with the Save A Ranch team and community.