1) It's what boobs are ACTUALLY for.
2) I burn 500 extra calories a day just from sitting on my butt and cuddling my newborn...Hello!? Who doesn't want that!? Especially when you have baby weight to lose.
3) It's totally free!!! Who says babies have to be expensive!?
4) I never have to wash a single extra dish! No bottles, no bottle scrubbers, no sterilizing, no mess! My baby won't even take a pacifier so I don't have to wash those either. YIPPEE!!
5) It's soooo easy. I never have to pack a bottle, warm a bottle, or make a bottle. Breastmilk is ready-made and even warmed to the perfect temperature for my baby!
6) I never have to worry about how much is enough or how little is too little. Breastmilk increases or decreses as babies demand more or less. If the baby is going through a growth spurt he/she will breastfeed more regularly, up the milk supply, and grow accordingly. It also reduces chances of baby developing obesity later in life.
7) It is a beautiful bonding experience between mother and child. The skin-to-skin, the warmth of baby and mommy cuddling, the ability to nurture your baby in such an important and life-sustaining way, watching how comforted and soothed your baby is by the experience... yeah. Need I say more?
8) Breastfeeding grows healthy babies! This one is a biggie! No formula can compare to the benefits of breastmilk. Read any study on it (one's that aren't done by the formula companies of course!) Breastmilk gives babies a much higher chance of thriving and surviving in life! This one could be a post of it's own. Breastfeeding puts babies at lower risk for pretty much every awful thing (respiratory diseases, ear infections, diabetes, crohn's diseases, allergies, and SIDS... and a million other things too) while increasing chances of thriving in terms of health and development both physically and cognitively (like higher IQ scores).
9) Breastfeeding makes healthy MOMMY'S too!! Breastfeeding your baby not only burns hundreds of calories a day, contracts your uterus back to it's original size, and burn the baby fat... It also puts you at lower risk for developing many cancers including breast and ovarian cancer!
10) NO PERIOD!! WOOHOO!! The more frequently you breastfeed the longer it takes for your period to return. Enough said. I choose breastfeeding.
Before I end I just have to throw in three "did you know's?" ...
Did you know that you can breastfeed adopted babies even if you have never been pregnant before!?! WOW! I just learned this today and I was so amazed! Google it!
Did you know that the World Health Organization recommends TWO years of breastfeeding, not one? No one told me this before and I always assumed that one year was best for babies but actually studies show that two is much better. I'm not saying you have to or even that I will. I'm just saying that women deserve to make informed choices about these things. I always thought I'd be superwoman if I made it to a year but as it turns out it gets easier and easier to breastfeed as the baby gets older and by the time they are one year old they are only feeding like once a day! How easy is that? And they still get all the nutrients and benefits.
Did you know that if your milk supply is low there are other things you can try before supplementing with formula? Skin-to-skin time, pumping between nursing sessions, eating a nutrient dense and healthy diet, etc... (Do this under medical direction of course but it's worth a try right!?)
Finally, the next time someone asks me about breastfeeding with that "how-awkward-is-that!? look on their face I just want it to be known that I think THEY'RE the crazy one, not me. ;)
Loved it. It's all so true. I would love to see the day when all babies get what is best for them. No matter the sacrifice (big or small) mom has to make to do it. Even with having to restrict my diet tremendously to keep Addison's tummy happy, I've never thought twice about not breastfeeding her. If I hadn't breastfed her, with all her special dietary needs, I would be spending $50 A CAN on formula. A CAN! Also, breastfeeding acted like a buffer between her and the milk and soy proteins that bother her tummy. If she was getting the milk and soy proteins directly from formula she would have been worse off. Aside from the dietary necessity, I love bonding with my baby through breastfeeding. As busy as my life is, if I wasn't breastfeeding, I dont think I would spend as much time with Addison as I do now. Breastfeeding forces me to stop and take time to get to know her, nourish her, nurture her, and love on her. I love it! Breast is best!
ReplyDeleteWell said!! Great post! :) Amen to all of it!
ReplyDeleteI think we have a La leache League volunteer on our hands. Great post and great info to share. I have a pin on my pinterest about all the benefits of breastfeeding toddlers and it was really interesting. I have loved breastfeeding my babies and toddlers (joviah until 26 months and tadeo is still loving the Milkies!)
ReplyDeleteLove you!
I totally agree that Breast is Best!
ReplyDeleteI really struggled though with breast feeding (you would think with as big as mine are there wouldn't be). I was just not producing enough. I did everything I was told and researched (drank plenty of water, pumped constantly, changed my diet, met with a lactation specialist and followed her advice to a T...) Unfortunately despite what I did I still dried up at 6 months (I also had some weird thing where instead of breast feeding helping me lose weight it was making my body go into a starvation mode and kept every ounce of fat!)
I did have a great and amazing doctor. When I went into him at that month mark crying because I felt horrible that I was not able to breast feed James they way I wanted, he looked me in the eyes and said "You did amazing and you have given James such a wonderful opportunity and you have nothing to be ashamed of!"
With this pregnancy though I am already "leaking" and the lactation nurse said that this time around might be completely different (hopefully!) (I just want to make it to at least the 1 year mark!)