If you are pregnant

Did you know?

Breast Feeding

Breast Feeding

Advantages to the baby

• Breast feeding is best nutrition for newborn and it establishes an emotional bond between mother and child.

• When a mother cuddles her baby and feeds, the baby gets nourishment, fulfillment and contentment.

• Breast milk has all the necessary vitamins, minerals and proteins in the right proportion for proper digestion. It has immunoglobulins to help the baby fight many infections.

• Breast milk is available at right temperature and is free from contamination.

Advantages to Mother

• It is a natural means of contraception, because as long as the mother breast feeds, she does not menstruate and ovulate. (However, this may not be true in all cases and therefore it not a very reliable method of contraception.)

• It helps the mother in prevention against breast cancer.

• It helps the mother in resuming her figure much faster.

When NOT to breast feed your kid?

• Certain diseases in mother in which breast feeding is not possible and not is recommended, eg.
  • Nephritis
  • Eclampsia.
• If mother is taking certain drugs like
  • Anti Cancer Drugs.
  • Anti TB drugs.

( these drugs are secreted in milk and are harmful to baby )

• Certain problems in the newborn too, because of which the baby can not accept feeds, eg.
  • Septicemia
  • Tetanus
  • Meningitis.

Authors:

Dr. Vaijayanti Bhoraskar