Breastfeeding vs Bottle-feeding: Which is best for baby and mother?

Many new moms struggle to make a well-educated decision about whether to breastfeed or bottle-feed their baby. There’s no doubt that breast milk supplies the essential nutrition for your newborn. But breastfeeding might not be the right choice for all moms. Both breastfeeding and bottle-feeding have their own advantages and disadvantages. Read on to learn what is really safe for your baby.

Baby health and Breastfeeding

The mother, after delivering her baby has colostrums secreted in her breast for nursing the newborn. Colostrums act as a natural laxative for the newborn because it is rich in protein and low in fat and sugar. The colostrums also contain antibodies that help the baby to develop strong resistance to infections.

After few days the milk changes to mature milk. Initially, this milk is thin like water with a light blue tinge that is enough to quench the infant’s thirst. After several seconds of feeding, the milk that flows will be rich in fat and satisfies the baby’s hunger. Breast milk gets easily digested, so the baby won’t have problems like constipation, respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. They also get a well-balanced nutrition. The infant meets all her requirements relating to vitamins and minerals through breast milk.

A breast feeding mother loses weight quickly. She is protected against breast and ovarian cancer. In addition, she also develops a strong bond with her baby. Mothers who breastfeed their babies are expected to shed up to 500 calories in one day. By exercising regularly and following a healthy diet, the mother can lose weight faster and maintain it for a long period of time. Breastfeeding can be used as means of family planning because it postpones the onset of menstruation after the birth.

Cost of Breastfeeding

When it comes to cost, breastfeeding costs you nothing. You need to spend a small amount on nursing pads, nursing pillow and nursing bras, but the cost is very much low when compared to that of formula-related supplies. Bottle or formula feeding may cost you from $54 to $198 per month depending on brand. Working mothers may also need to buy a pump which can cost as much as $380 for an electric pump.

Problems of breastfeeding

In the case of a working mom or a busy mom with more than one child, she may not have enough time for breastfeeding her little baby. Only the mother has to take up the feeding job, or she must use a breast pump to store the milk for feeding the baby in her absence. In public places, she has to search for a place where she cans comfortably breastfeed her baby. A breastfeeding mother should watch the medications she uses because the medicines are likely to be transferred to the baby through the breast milk.

Benefits of Bottle feeding

Research has shown that bottle-fed babies don’t feel hungry for a long time because formula is not easy to digest. Everyone in the family can take part in bottle-feeding the baby, so the mother will be left with time to focus on other things.  Bottle-feeding can be tried anywhere unlike breastfeeding.

As far as dressing is concerned, a mother that bottle feeds can wear what she feels comfortable but a breastfeeding mother has to take care of certain things to make it comfortable for the baby to be fed.

Problems of bottle-feeding

In general, bottle-feeding is not recommended for babies until they are few months old because it doesn’t provide enough nutrition for the baby’s growing needs. It also lacks the antibodies resulting in a poor overall immune system.

Diana Maria is a freelance journalist who has been writing about mobile technology, customer relationship management and women’s health for more than a decade. These days she is busy to contributes on getamplify