The Breast Milk Advantage

by Midas

breastfeeding

Ever since, I really love to see a mother breastfeeding her child. Few days ago while me an my friend, who is a Pediatrician, is watching a television her phone rung. Her mom-client is asking if the claim of a certain brand of milk is really true, that it can increase child’s IQ up to +7. My friend smiled and I lessen the volume of the television to give way to the mom, on her inquiry.

Breastfeeding is universally endorsed by the world’s health and scientific organizations as the best way of feeding infants. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) joins other organizations such as the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Dietetic Association (ADA), and the World Health Organization (WHO) in recommending breastfeeding as the best for babies.

According to World Health Organization, breastfeeding is the ideal way of providing young infants with the nutrients they need for healthy growth and development. Virtually all mothers can breastfeed, provided they have accurate information, and the support of their family and the health care system. Colostrum, the yellowish, sticky breast milk produced at the end of pregnancy, is recommended by WHO as the perfect food for the newborn, and feeding should be initiated within the first hour after birth. Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months of age.

Breast feeding is usually advised because it provides the most suitable food for babies, human milk. Breast milk generally provides the only nourishment needed by an infant for the first six months of life. Human milk is nature’s perfect design for helping your baby’s body and brain grow and develop. No formula can be made exactly the same as human milk because we do not know all the ingredients of human milk.

Commercial formulas do a good job of trying to duplicate the ingredients in breast milk but haven’t matched their exact combination and composition. Because some of breast milk’s more complex substances are too difficult to manufacture and some have not yet been identified.

Breast milk is the most complete form of nutrition for infants. A mother’s milk has just the right amount of fat, sugar, water, digestive proteins, minerals, vitamins, and hormones that is needed for a baby’s growth and development. Most babies find it easier to digest breast milk than they do formula.

Breast milk has a higher carbohydrate content. Formula milk is higher in protein content, but the protein found in breast milk has a higher digestibility and assimilation, and therefore less is required.

Cow’s milk, as an alternative, by itself is inappropriate for infants less than one year old. The infant may develop an allergy to dairy products if given cow’s milk too early in life. Although cow’s milk contains most of the same components as breast milk, these components are not in the same amounts.
For babies with allergy on dairy products, commercially prepared formulas may be based on non-fat cow’s milk, whey protein, or soy protein are given as an alternative for breast milk. In order to provide a balanced diet for an infant, formulas must be fortified with carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and vitamins.

Breast milk not just supports baby’s optimal development of the infant’s brain, with effects on both cognitive and visual function but also contains valuable antibodies from the mother that protects children against acute and chronic illness.. These antibodies can never be added to formulas. Formula milks lacks the immune factors (antibodies) that help protect infants until their own immune system fully develops.

Since breast milk contains an ideal balance of nutrients that the infant can easily digest due to its digestibility, breastfed babies are rarely constipated. The stools of breastfed babies are mild-smelling.

Several studies have found that breastfeeding for six months or more makes it less likely that your baby will go on to develop food or respiratory allergies. Scientists think that the fatty acids and immune factors such as IgA in breast milk prevent allergic reactions by stopping large foreign proteins from getting into a baby’s system. (Proteins in cows’ milk are one of the most common allergens, which is one reason that babies who are fed cows’ milk-based formulas tend to have more allergic reactions than breastfed babies.)

Breastfeeding, even for short periods, was clearly associated with lower incidence of wheezing prolonged colds, diarrhea, and vomiting.
Source: Merrett, T.G., “Infant Feeding & Allergy: 12 Month Prospective Study of 500 Babies Born into Allergic Families”. American Allergies, 1988.

Children who had consumed mother’s milk by tube in early weeks of life had a significantly higher IQ at 7.5 to 8 yr.. than those who received no maternal milk, even after adjustment for differences between groups and mothers’ educational and social class.
Source: Lucas, A., “Breast Milk and Subsequent Intelligence Quotient in Children Born Preterm”. Lancet 1992;339:261-62.
Experts say that the emotional bonding that takes place during breastfeeding probably contributes to some of the increase in IQ level, but that the fatty acids in breast milk may play the biggest role in a baby’s brain development.

The psychomotor and social development of breastfed babies clearly differs from that of bottle-fed ones and leads at the age of 12 months to significant advantages of the psychomotor and social capabilities.
Source: Baumgartner, C., “Psychomotor and Social Development of Breast Fed and Bottle Fed babies During their First year of Life”. Acta Paediatrica Hungarica, 1984.

Among breastfed infants, the longer the duration of nursing the lower the incidents of malocclusion.
Source: Labbok, M.H. “Does Breast Feeding Protect against Malocclusion? An Analysis of the 1981 Child Health Supplement to the National Health Interview Survey”. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 1987.

Children who are artificially fed or breastfed for only 6 months or less, are at an increased risk of developing cancer before age 15. The risk of artificially fed children was 1-8 times that of long-term breastfed children, and the risk for short term feeders was 1-9 times that of long term breast feeders.
Source: Davis, M.K. Infant Feeding and Childhood Cancer. “Lancet 1988.

Breastfed infants grow exactly the way they should. They tend to gain less unnecessary weight and to be leaner. This may result in being less overweight later in life.

Moms, why waste of money buying the best milk for your precious child while the the excellent milk is free and easily available- your breast milk. Breastfeeding does not just nourish your child physically but the emotional bond between you and your child develops too.