Infant Healthy Eating

Healthy eating starts at birth, and that means that you should be sure that your infant is getting all of the nutrients he or she needs to grow properly. One of the largest debates in the health community is whether it is better to breast-feed or formula-feed your child, and there are many schools of though on this issue. Whatever you choose, remember that your child is too innocent to make good food choices. It is up to you to do that for him or her, and so learning about infant nutrition is very important.

Breast-feeding is by far the advantageous way to make sure your infant is getting all of the nutrients he or she needs. No matter how advanced formulas become, they are still not as good as the natural option, breast-feeding. When you breast-feed, you are allowing your baby to naturally build some of the same antibodies that you got from your mother. These antibodies fight things such as ear infections, meningitis, and other medical conditions. If you don’t breast-feed, your child will have to build these antibodies on his or her own. Breast milk can also help protect a baby from allergies, asthma, diabetes, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Breast milk is also free. When you have to purchase formula for your baby, you must invest in high-quality brands that will be as close to breast milk as possible. Breast milk is called by some the perfect food, because it has all of the great nutrients a child needs without additional foods. To get as close to this as possible, you may be spending thousands of dollars in formula every single year. It also helps to pay the bills because women who breastfeed have to take off less time from work to deal with a sick infant.

However, there are also disadvantages to breast-feeding. Of course, many women feel a bit uncomfortable with the breast-feeding process. Physically, this can be a bit demanding, especially when a child is teething or when your own hormones cause your breasts to be sore. For many, breast-feeding can also be uncomfortable in the sense that you must breast-feed at all times of day, which includes in public in some cases. Timing can also through a woman off. If your child is breast-fed, you’ll have to wake up many times during the night to allow your child to eat, especially during the first few months, instead of trading this time with daddy, who can prepare formula just as well as you can. The solution for many women is to get a breast pump, but these can be expensive and breast milk still cannot be stored for long periods of time.

Obviously there are both good and bad things about breast-feeding and formula. Your personal choices should be what are best for your baby. If you need help, a doctor can explain to you more about the advantages and disadvantages of both methods.

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