Breastfeeding vs. Bottle Feeding

Very few experts disagree with the fact that breastfeeding is the optimal choice for the infant. However, decreasing breastfeeding rates raise many questions as to why mothers are not choosing the best nutritional choice for their children. Despite breast milk being the obvious choice for infant feeding due to the health, psychological, and economic benefits, many mothers still decide to feed their infants formula due to lack of knowledge and support, difficulties with breastfeeding, and social embarrassment. Changes need to be made with formula companies, medical professionals, and the public opinion of breastfeeding in order to give nursing mothers the support they deserve.

The main factor in encouraging breastfeeding is the emphasis on the major health

benefits for both the mother and the child. Many researchers have concluded that breast milk helps improve overall infant health and reduces risks of some diseases and cancers for the infant as well as the mother. According to Newman and Pitman, there are numerous health benefits for a breastfed infant. They describe that breast milk contains anti-bodies that keep a child from getting ill, and that the milk’s composition changes as the child grows to better protect and benefit the immune system and growth of the child (Newman, Pitman 19). The most immediate health benefit for the infant is the reduction of the chances of an infant dying from sudden infant death syndrome, more commonly known as SIDS or crib death (Newman, Pitman 11). More long term benefits are reductions for the chances of a child developing diabetes, asthma and other respiratory diseases, ear infections, and even cancer development during childhood. There is also evidence of a reduced chance of a breastfed child developing Crohn’s disease or forms of heart disease, as well as minor health problems such as allergies and eczema (Newman, Pitman 11-12). Newman and Pitman also write that children who were breastfed show signs of more enhanced brain development and tend to score higher on tests than those children who were formula fed, due to the fact that breast milk is made for humans by humans and therefore already contains the nutrients that are essential to brain development (10). As is the case with infants, breastfeeding also contributes to health benefits for the mother. In an article published in the Journal of Women’s Health, God...

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Foss, Katherine A., and Brian G. Southwell. "Infant Feeding And The Media: The Relationship Between Parents' Magazine Content And Breastfeeding, 1972-2000." International Breastfeeding Journal 1.(2006): 1-9. Academic Search Complete. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.

Godfrey, Jodi R., and Ruth A. Lawrence. "Toward Optimal Health: The Maternal Benefits Of Breastfeeding." Journal Of Women's Health (15409996) 19.9 (2010): 15971602. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 Jan. 2013.

Newman, Jack and Teresa Pitman. The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of Answers. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2006. Print.

United States. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding. Washington: GPO, 2011. Print.

Weimer, John P. United States. Department of Agriculture. Economic Research Service. The Economic Benefits of Breastfeeding: A Review and Analysis. Washington: 2010. Web. 27 Jan. 2013.