The Benefits of Breastfeeding for Infant Nutrition and Bonding
Tauheed Ahmad Nawaz
Benefits of Breastfeeding for Infant Nutrition and Bonding
Right after the baby is born, most mothers forget about the labor pains but feel a strong maternal instinct. Thanks to it, even women who give birth to a child for the first time intuitively know how to breastfeed. After birth, the baby feels best in your surroundings while you give it a sense of safety and comfort. It easily finds its way to your breast and turns its face towards you.
Breastfeeding appears to help strengthen your baby’s immune system and reduce their risk of contracting certain infections. Breastfeeding appears to help strengthen your baby’s immune system and reduce their risk of contracting certain infections.
To address the nutritional demands of babies who are not breastfed, HiPP Baby Formula is carefully made to offer critical nutrients for babies between the ages of 0 and 12 months. It comes in a range of different flavors. Research indicates that babies who are breastfed experience fewer hospitalizations and generally have better health, which translates into fewer sick visits to the pediatrician. Do you know the advantages of breastfeeding for your baby’s physical and mental health? Keep reading to learn more.
Nutritional Benefits of Breastfeeding
Breast milk contains carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, as well as numerous enzymes responsible for its digestion. It is also rich in mineral salts: magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, calcium, sodium, and phosphorus. Breast milk also contains all the vitamins necessary for the baby’s development:
Vitamin A is responsible for the development and proper functioning of the retina, skin, and mucous membranes.
vitamin D, essential for bone growth.
vitamin E, which protects against free radicals contained in pollution and solar radiation.
Breast milk is a source of amino acids and enzymes with anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties. The fat in milk provides about half of a child’s daily caloric needs. It also protects the baby against viruses, fungi, and bacteria, improves visual acuity, and affects the development of connective tissue, the lungs, and the nervous system. Healthy fatty acids allow the child to develop cognitive abilities.
The carbohydrates contained in breast milk are equally important for the baby. We are talking primarily about lactose, which is responsible for the proper development of internal organs and the formation of the nervous system. Thanks to lactose, the body can absorb calcium from food.
The mother’s milk also contains nutritional oligosaccharides, which provide the baby with a balance of bacterial flora in the digestive system. Another important ingredient is cholesterol, which is used, among other things, to build the brain and shape proper metabolism.
How Breastfeeding Affects Bonding Between Mother and Newborn
Breast milk is not limited to just food that nourishes the baby. The relationship established during breastfeeding and the closeness the baby feels form the basis of unconditional love that develops intensively in you right after giving birth.
Scientists confirm that close contact with the mother’s body, which occurs during breastfeeding, causes positive changes in the baby’s brain and leads to the more efficient functioning of this organ. When the mother attaches the baby to the breast, her pituitary gland releases oxytocin, the hormone of love and attachment.
Thanks to it, a strong emotional bond is created between a woman and her newborn. Let us remember that a proper relationship with the mother is of great importance for the emotional and mental development of the child. In the future, this will lead to the ability to build friendships and relationships with other people. Mother milk is available without requiring you to bring additional supplies, so you can breastfeed almost anywhere without having to worry about making formula or preparing bottles.
If, for various reasons, you cannot breastfeed, use the safest infant formula and remember to hug, touch, and kiss your baby often. All these gestures and warmth that a baby feels, combined with safety and comfort, stimulate the development of the brain and neural connections necessary for memory, empathy, and bonding.