Breast milk is the ideal food for your
baby. The baby till 4-5 months of age requires no other food. You may have heard of women
who didnt seem to have enough milk or who had other serious problems in nursing.
This mostly happens because the mothers dont really understand breastfeeding. This
is not surprising since most of us dont have a chance to learn about breastfeeding.
Indian mothers secrete 450-600 ml of milk daily with 1.2gm protein content. The energy
value is 70 Kcals per 100ml.
Advantages of breastfeeding:
- Safe, hygienic, cheap and available to infant at correct temperature.
- Fully meets the nutritional requirements of the infant in the first few months of life.
- Contains antimicrobial factors such as macrophages, lymphocytes, secretory IgA,
anti-streptococcal factor, lysozyme and lactoferrin that provide protection against
diarrhoeal diseases, necrotising enterocolitis respiratory infections in first months of
- Easily digested and utilized by both normal and premature babies.
- Promotes bonding between mother and infant.
- Helps development of jaws and teeth of baby due to suckling.
- Protects babies from tendency to obesity.
- Prevents malnutrition and reduces infant deaths.
- Natural family planning by prolonging period of infertility