Breastfeeding is a process necessary to keep your baby alive. But in addition to the main function, it also has an important psychological significance in establishing a connection between a mother and a child. Babies raised on breast milk grow up calm, healthy and prone to empathy.
In recent years, more and more scientists are talking about the undoubted benefits of breastfeeding. It is not only convenient and cost effective, but also extremely useful for the mental and physical health of the mother and baby. Natural feeding is recommended by the WHO: pediatricians are encouraged to motivate mothers to breastfeed up to 2 years old, and exclusively breast milk is shown to children under 6 months of age.
Solid benefit
Even when viewed from a purely physiological perspective, breastfeeding has tremendous health benefits for both mothers and babies. It has been proven that women who breastfeed are less likely to develop breast, ovarian and cervical cancer, as well as type 2 diabetes. In addition, a nursing mother is much easier and faster to return to her "pre-pregnant" weight.
As for the benefits for the baby, it is undoubted! If a baby is applied to the breast immediately after birth, he or she receives a unique composition of the first milk (colostrum), which contains a record amount of antibodies to protect against all kinds of diseases. Breast milk contains all the substances that meet the unique needs of the baby in the first six months of life: some essential polyunsaturated fatty acids, milk proteins and iron in an easily digestible form.
In addition to the physiological need, breastfeeding also has a psychological background. After all, this is an effective way to calm and support a child - a kind of an island of warmth and absolute safety in an unfamiliar world. That is why it is so important to apply it to the breast on demand - in the first months of life, the interval between feedings can be 10-30 minutes. In Western Europe and most of the American states, a woman's right to breastfeed in public places is supported by appropriate anti-discrimination laws.
Understand without words
The intuitive connection between mom and baby that allows you to understand the needs of the little person without words is called bonding. And according to research by scientists, bonding is installed easier and faster in breastfeeding mothers. Indeed, feeding is a much more complex process than just eating food.
Some public institutions are beginning to equip special areas for mother and child. However, now you can easily feed the baby on a park bench or in a shopping center. Recently, even the Pope urged mothers not to be afraid to breastfeed their babies in public, including in church. After all, the more babies receive their mother's milk, the healthier the new generation will be in all respects!
