Breastfeeding Friendly Practice

One recent study found that if 90% of families in the United States breastfed exclusively for 6 months, this would prevent 911 deaths and save the country $13 billion per year.
What are the advantages of giving you baby breast milk?

Ready to serve
Easily digested
Breast milk has all of the calories, fluid and nutrients a baby needs. (A daily infant vitamin is also recommended to benefit the vitamin D and iron stores in the child.)
Protects against:
- Diarrhea and vomiting (gastrointestinal infections)
- Pneumonia
- Ear infections
- Eczema (Atopic dermatitis)
- Bacteremia
- Respiratory tract infections (RTI); higher risk of severe lower RTI with formula vs. breastfed
- Asthma; with and without a family history
- Urinary tract infections
- Sudden infant death syndrome
- Type 1 and type 2 diabetes
- Lymphoma
- Leukemia (higher risk in formula fed infants vs. breastfed)
  - Acute lymphocytic leukemia
  - Acute myelogenous leukemia
- Hodgkin’s disease (higher risk in formula fed infants vs. breastfed)
- Overweight and obesity
- Preterm infants
  - Necrotizing enterocolitis
  - Late-onset sepsis
Nursing burns more calories enabling mothers to lose weight
Reduces mothers risk of ovarian and breast cancer

Contraindications:

In the US, mothers who have HIV
Infants with classic galactosemia

Remember; feed your newborn 8-12 times (every 2-3 hours) per day. Ounces of breast milk should not be expected until day 3-5. It is normal for you to only make drops of milk each feeding for the first few days.