Breast-fed babies get a better start on life

<p>Most pregnant women will do anything to ensure a healthy child. Women quit smoking, quit drinking alcohol, and start seeing a health care provider regularly. They strive to eat well and take vitamins daily. They want their baby to get the best start in life. This is what good parenting is about - taking responsibility for personal choices that will affect their child.</p><p>So why do so many mothers make the choice to give processed chemical formula to their babies?</p><p>Formula was invented for those rare occasions when a woman is clearly unable to breast-feed. For example, some babies have galactosemia , a genetic abnormality that prevents digestion of any lactose; these infants must be given alternative nutrition. Mothers infected with HIV should not breast-feed. Women taking certain medications that can be passed to babies by breast-feeding should not nurse. And of course, a mother who uses cocaine or other recreational drugs should not nurse her baby when she is using. But otherwise, breast milk is the way to go.</p><p>Need further convincing? Read the formula ingredients list sometime: It is full of unpronounceable chemicals. Formula is also missing some essential health factors, including those that fight viruses, bacteria, parasites and allergies. Breast milk is the only way to give a baby vitamins and minerals made just right for maximum absorption, and it has unique essential fatty acids that promote brain growth.</p><p>Breast-fed babies have a lower risk for many ailments, among them some forms of cancer (Hodgkin's disease and childhood leukemia), diabetes, childhood obesity and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). They score higher on cognitive and IQ tests in school.</p><p>With all these health benefits, it appears that providing breast milk is a fundamental part of parenting. But fewer than 30 percent of infants in the United States are breast-fed for even a minimal six months. Why?</p><p>Some think it is too hard to breast-feed. Actually, nursing is easier over the course of the first year or two of a child's life. The first five or six weeks are intensive, but after th at breast-feeding begins to take less time and work than formula feeding. There is nothing to buy, make or clean. After awhile, pumping milk and storing it allows others to feed the baby so mom can have some independence.</p><p>These skills are not hard to learn, and our community offers plenty of support for any mother who needs assistance. Lactation consultants are eager to help with issues such as milk supply, sore nipples or other concerns. With a little help, almost any mother will find that breast-feeding is an easy pattern to establish and maintain.</p><p>Some mothers must go back to work after a few weeks, but this is no longer a reason to switch to formula feeding. The California Lactation Accommodation Law took effect on Jan. 1, 2002, requiring workplaces to accommodate women who are breast-feeding .</p><p>There should be a clean, quiet place for working mothers to pump and store milk. Continuing to commit to what is best for the child is important, even if a mother cannot be with them during the workday. Feeding a child is part of parenting, and storing milk allows a mom to think about her child regularly during the day. It reminds her to make healthy decisions that affect both her and the baby.</p><p>Breast milk is customized for each individual baby. It is convenient, being the original fast food, always ready and always at the right temperature. Moms benefit, too: Breast-feeding mothers are more likely to return to their pre-pregnancy weight and have a lower risk for ovarian and breast cancer.</p><p>Good for baby, good for moms, breast-feeding is the healthy choice that lasts a lifetime.</p>