Every gynecologist and pediatrician asks the new moms to breastfeed their children. Breastfeeding is good for both the new born and its mother. Some women feel afraid of breastfeeding because they think it might ruin the shape of their breasts. The truth is much different. Women who breastfeed find it much easier to lose weight and their breasts stay shapely as well.
Breast do not become saggy due to breastfeeding. The breasts are made of fat and not muscles. Excessive fat storage and gravitational pull is the enemy of your beautiful curves. Breastfeeding gives health benefits to new moms and it is economical too. In the following the benefits of breastfeeding have been discussed.
Your baby is healthier
The feeling of being a mother is overwhelming and suddenly you find that the well being of your children is far more important than that of yours. Breastfeeding is necessary for the good health of your baby. It gives the baby all the nutrients that it needs and helps it get accustomed with the environment. The yellowish milk that a mother feeds her baby just after delivery is like elixir of life. It enhances the immune system of the children.
Children who drink their mother’s milk are less likely to have gastrointestinal infections. Breastfeeding not just protects the baby during its childhood but protects the child from several chronic diseases like Type I diabetes and celiac disease in the long run.
Women who breastfeed have stronger bones
Doctors and scientists have found that women who breastfeed their babies have stronger bones. Their risk of being affected by postmenopausal osteoporosis gets reduced. Scientific studies show that women who breastfeed and lactate can absorb more calcium from their foods. This helps in the development of the bones. The bones in the hips and spine which are less thick before pregnancy becomes thicker and stronger after just 6 months of breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding burns calories
Women are often worried about their bodyweight after giving birth to a baby. Breastfeeding helps them in losing some calories, which in turn reduces their body weight. Nursing a child can use up to 500 calories per day even without any workout. Every ounce of breast milk contains 20 calories. By feeding 20 ounces of breast milk to your new born you can burn 400 calories per day.
Fast post-pregnancy healing
When you nurse your baby, oxytocin is released inside your body. This chemical helps the contraction of the uterus and decreases the chances of post delivery blood loss. This way your health is healed faster and you can enjoy normal life sooner. Breastfeeding also indirectly reduces the size of the size of the uterus. In six weeks your uterus will be healed like 10 weeks have passed.
Less risk of Cancer
The time period when you feed your children breast milk the estrogen levels in your body gets reduced. Lactation decreases the estrogen levels. The less estrogen works on your uterus lining and breast tissues the lower will be your risk of contracting cancer. The stimulation estrogen provides to the sex organs is one of the causes behind cancer.
Better emotional health for women
A woman has to go through several physical and psychological changes during pregnancy. This makes her feel vulnerable after child birth. Emotional instability and fear of the unknown can make a mother depressed. Post natal depression is quite common among women of all ages. Breastfeeding helps a mom connect emotionally with her child and strengthens the bond between them. It helps in reducing both postpartum anxiety and depression.
Breast milk is a gift that only a mother can give to her children. It protects the new born from diseases and enhances its immunity. Breastfeeding also protects the mother from future health damage and mental stress.