Consultancy Corner: 'Breastfeeding beneficial for mothers in more than one way'

Breast feeding offers a multitude of benefits and protective immunity against a variety of issues as far as women are concerned. 

Breast feeding ensures rapid weight loss and getting back into shape. It helps the womb to revert back to the original size due to the release of oxytocin and thereby reduces blood loss. This in turn ensures lesser risk of anaemia during nursing. 

Fertility is on the decline during breast feeding and breastfeeding alone acts as a good spacing method of natural contraception at least for six months (usually over six months it cannot be claimed to be reliable). This is known as lactational amenorrhoea method of contraception. In the long term, mothers who nurse have a lower risk of developing ovarian, breast and uterine cancer. 

They also have better bone density and have lesser risk of osteoporosis later in life. As far as the new born baby is concerned the nutritional value is incomparable. 

The breast milk is enriched with higher protein content but low in sugar and thereby imparts passive immunity to the baby due to innate antibodies in the milk.

This in turn reduces bacterial load in the baby’s gut and there are lesser chances of diarrhoeal diseases. 

Breast fed babies have lesser risk of colic too. Babies who feed on their mother’s milk have lesser chances of developing allergies dermatitis, eczema and asthma. 

Exclusive breastfeeding, which acts as a natural method of contraception, warrants the mothers to feed the baby only breast milk, even during nights with no top up food and results in the absence of periods for at least six months. This is due to hormonal influences that stops ovulation (egg release) and thereby helps space pregnancy. However, beyond six months, it’s not reliable.

Not only does breast feeding protect the infant from diarrhoeal diseases but also a multitude of other disorders including respiratory infection, nectrotising enterocolitis, otitis media (glue ear), Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), Type I and II diabetes, leukaemia and childhood obesity.