Advantages of Breast Feeding

• Breast milk is convenient- natural sterile and the correct temprature.
• Breastfed babies are less susceptible to stomach upsets and constipation.
• Breastfeeding lowers the dental problems by encouraging the facial development.
• Breast milk gives the protection from the inflammatory bowel disease and allergies.
• Breastfeeding gives the newborn baby everyhing he or she wants-physical contact with the mother, warmth and food.
• Breastfeeding causes release of hormone called oxytocin, which helps uterus to contract and return to its normal size.

What Breast milk contains

Human breast milk contains all the nutrients your baby needs, in the right proportions. It has:

• Carbohydrate, in the form of lactose, for energy.
• Vitamins and minerals
• Antibodies, which makes the baby's less susceptible to bacteria and protect against a number of serious illnesses.
• Water to quench the thirst
• Protein for body building
• Fat for energy and growth.

Expressing breast milk

You can express milk from your breasts either by hand or with a manual pump, the latter method being much faster and easier. Expressed milk should be kept in a bottle with a tight fitting lid and refrigerated until needed. Store in for up to a couple of days in a refrigerator, or for up to six months or so in a freezer.

Bottle Feeding

The commonest formula milk is cow's milk that has been modified to make it suitable for infants. About one in ten infants is allergic to cow's milk formula. Soya and hydrolysate formula milk offers an alternative, but they have less in common with human milk than cow's milk. To prepare the formula milk, never add more powder than instructed inthe hope of making feed more nourishing, as this will give your baby too little water and too much protein and fat. You must bil and cool the water before preparing formula.