Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding is when a mother feeds her baby with milk from her breasts. The baby puts its mouth onto their mother's nipple and sucks the milk out of the breast. Breastfeeding is the best food for most babies.^[1] Breastfeeding can also reduce the risk for certain health conditions for both babies and mothers. Baby formula is made of cow's milk.^[2] Breastmilk is able to help other parts of the baby's body grow. Most women can breastfeed their babies.

In some situations a woman with AIDS, tuberculosis, drugs or some other sickness will need to talk to their doctor about the good things and bad things of breastfeeding the baby. There are many reasons to breastfeed. Babies that breastfeed have a reduced risk for some diseases.^[3] Breastfeeding is less expensive than formula feeding. In both developing and developed countries, breastfeeding and not giving the baby any other drinks leads to fewer deaths from diarrhea.^[4] The World Health Organization recommends that

• mothers begin to breastfeed within one hour of birth;
• babies should be only breastfed for the first six months.^[5]
• breastfeeding should continue for up to two years or beyond.^[6]

Only 1 in 4 infants are exclusively breastfed by the time they are 6 months old. Low rates of breastfeeding add more than $3 billion a year to medical costs for the mother and child in the United States. Three-quarters (74%) of Black infants are ever breastfed, which is below the national average of 83%. Almost all women can produce enough milk for their babies.^[7] The World Health Orgaization recommendations are for babies to be breastfed for at least 2 years.^[8]

1. ↑ CDC (2023-04-04). "Breastfeeding is the best source of nutrition for most infants". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
2. ↑ Huggins, R.N. M.S., Kathleen (2010). The Nursing Mother's Companion 6th Edition. Boston: The Harvard Common Press. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-558-32720-7.
3. ↑ "Why breastfeeding is important". womenshealth.gov. US Department of Health and Human Services. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
4. ↑ Lamberti, L.M. (April 2011). "Breastfeeding and the risk for diarrhea morbidity and mortality". BMC Public Health. 11 (Suppl 3). Walker, C.L.F., Noiman, A., Victora, C., and Black, R.E.: S15. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-11-S3-S15. PMC 3231888. PMID 21501432. In comparison to exclusive breastfeeding, predominant (RR: 2.28), partial (RR: 4.62) and not (RR: 10.52) breastfeeding led to an elevated risk of diarrhea mortality among infants 0-5 mos of age.
5. ↑ "What are the recommendations for breastfeeding? | NICHD - Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development". www.nichd.nih.gov. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
6. ↑ "Breastfeeding". www.who.int. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
7. ↑ "Overcoming breastfeeding problems: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia". medlineplus.gov. Retrieved 2023-05-14.
8. ↑ "Infant and young child feeding". 2021-06-09. Retrieved 2023-09-29.