World Breastfeeding Week 2007: Mama Knows Breast: The Pros and Cons of Breastfeeding
excerpted from Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner’s Guide to Breastfeeding
Breasts are everywhere. You just can’t escape them. They’re all over billboards and magazines, movies and television shows. We worship the cleavage. In fact, it seems like everyone is on “boob watch.” Guys are hard-wired to stare, and even women check each other out to see how they “stack up.”
Click Continue Reading for the Top 10 Best Things and Worst Things about breastfeeding and to read/post comments.
Despite all the attention, it’s easy to forget that breasts serve areal purpose. We’re mammals, and mammals breastfeed to keep their kidsalive. Of course, because of science, formula feeding is an option aswell.
As you’re contemplating all this information, remember thatbreastfeeding is a highly personal experience. Some women love it;others hate it. How will you feel? No way to know until you give it atry and consider the pros and cons.
The 10 Best Things About Breastfeeding
1) Breastfeeding is best for your baby’s health. Breast milkis full of antibodies and nutrients. Research shows that breastfeedingprotects a baby from a range of infectious illnesses and diseases.
2) Breastfeeding is good for your health. It helps you lose weight and can reduce the risk of Type II diabetes, ovarian and breast cancers, and possibly osteoporosis.
3) Breastfeeding gives you time to bond with your baby. Isn’t it pretty cool that you can nourish another human being with your own body?
4) You can feed your baby anywhere, anytime. You can go to a restaurant or on a plane without having to remember to pack bottles and formula.
5) You don’t have to prepare a bottle. When the little guy is hungry, all you have to say is, “One boob, coming right up!” and the crying stops.
6) You don’t have to clean or sterilize bottles. Who wants to add to the mess piling up in the kitchen sink?
7) You might not get your period for a while. But be careful—breastfeeding is not perfect birth control.
Breastfeeding costs a lot less than formula. By some rough estimates, formula can cost as much as $3,000 per year.
9) Breastfeeding is good for the environment. If you useformula, you’ll be sending bottles, nipples and empty formula cans to alandfill. Plus, manufacturing and transporting formula require fuel.
10) You’ll still have that big-boobed maternal glow.
The 10 Worst Things About Breastfeeding
1) No one else can do your job. If you are exclusivelybreastfeeding—in other words, if you’re not supplementing with bottlesof formula or pumped breast milk—you’re always on call.
2) Sleep deprivation. Newborns eat around the clock, so there is norest for the weary, especially if your baby doesn’t take a bottle.
3) The breast pump. You’ll have to make time to pump if you plan to be away from the baby for more than a few hours.
4) You’ll have to get used to feeding in public. You’ll invariablyfind yourself in the middle of a department store or the supermarketwhen it’s snack time.
5) Alcohol and caffeine in moderation. The occasional drink is fine, but excessive alcohol is not good for your baby.
6) Leakage. Some women leak breast milk. Not everyone faces thisproblem, of course. But if you do, you’ll need to wear pads inside yourbra.
7) Your husband or partner has to share your boobs with someoneelse. Let’s face it—if the baby is hungry and crying, she comes first.
Your husband or partner can feel left out of the baby-bondingprocess. If so, he can still take care of the burping, diapering,bathing, clothing, swaddling, cuddling, reading, strolling, andplaying. Guaranteed, he’ll feel better.
9) Discomfort. If your baby is latched on well, breastfeedingshouldn’t hurt. But for some women, there’s no getting around a bit ofdiscomfort. If so, get help from a lactation consultant as soon aspossible.
10) You will need help! Although your friends and family may havegood tips, it’s often better to get advice from a professional—alactation consultant.
Copyright © 2007 Quirk Productions, Inc., Reprinted with the permission of Andi Silverman and Quirk Books
You can pre-order Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner’s Guide to Breastfeeding at Amazon. In the meantime, check out Andi’s blog, MamaKnowsBreast.com.
If you’re a breastfeeding mama, which is your favorite pro and least favorite con?
Tags: Andi Silverman, Breastfeeding, Mama Knows Breast, nursing, World Breastfeeding Week
- Posted on Aug 13, 07 at 3:10PM
- Permalink
- 17 Comments
August 13th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
I haven’t yet been a breastfeeding mother. However, I have heard of some types of post-pardum depression being linked to breastfeeding. Is this true?
Note from Danielle, CBB Publisher:
Here’s a response from Cathy Genna, IBCLC:
Breastfeeding usually reduces the risk of postpartum depression. BUT, if breastfeeding is going poorly, and the mom is already depressed, it can add to the severity of the depression. Experts (Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, IBCLC is one of the foremost experts in the area of mental health and breastfeeding) recommend good breastfeeding help for depressed mothers, as well as effective treatment for their depression. Breastfeeding also ameliorates the effects of PPD in the mother on the baby. Breastfed babies are far less vulnerable to the effects of maternal depression than artificially fed babies are.
You can find Dr. Kendall-Tacket’s book Depression in New Mothers on Amazon.com and in bookstores, and she also has a recent article in the open access International Breastfeeding Journal, on the beneficial effects of certain omega-3 fats on PPD.
August 13th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
I like all of the Pro’s, but here’s another… I was able to breastfeed my daughter for a year AND donate 300 ounces to the milkbank which in turn provided it to the preemies in the NICU!!
All the time spent pumping didn’t go to waste, instead I was able to help other babies that needed it to survive.
August 13th, 2007 at 5:03 pm
Those are all so true! For sleep (I know I shouldn’t) I feed my son in bed. Usually I wake up in the morning with no memory of feeding him yet my bra is unhooked and my pad is next to his head!
My most favorite pro has got to be the cost (of course health ranks up there!) And least favorite con is the leakage. I leak (and spray!!) everywhere. Lansinoh pads are the best though!
August 13th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
ann-
breastfeeding actually helps regulate your hormones after pregnancy and promotes bonding, two important things that actually prevent ppd.
and aren’t all newborn parents (and most parents to kids under 5) sleep deprived?
i love that this site promotes breastfeeding so much, but some of those cons are part of being a parent, not only a breastfeeding parent.
August 13th, 2007 at 6:38 pm
The best part? When you are feeding your baby, and they look up at you, mouth full of milk, and smile!
I asked my son how I fed his sister and he tapped my chest, and said “from your heart”…. so true!
August 13th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
What the list doesn’t mention–and there are lots of things that it doesn’t for the pro category…
Breastfeeding greatly reduces the risk of automimmune diseases such as Lupus and Crohn’s for your child later in life. It also reduces(and continues to reduce the longer you breastfeed) the chances that the mother will develop breast cancer. Babies who are breastfed tend to have higher IQ’s than those who do not. Kids who are breastfed also tend to have less chance of being overweight later in life.
As for the post partum depression thing…I don’t know where that info came from, but I can find no evidence whatsoever to support this. My guess is that it’s one of those crazy things that people hear regarding breastfeeding that has nothing to do with reality (it was common to hear 20 years ago that breastfeeding was unsanitary, for instance). It does help regulate hormones, return your body, and the bonding you experience is incomparable. I’ve nursed with my kids for over 4 years combined, and I will be adding to that total when my son is born in a month and a half. I never had a problem with sleep deprivation. I just rolled them on up to the milk station and fell back asleep. You can’t do that with a bottle. Of course, more care has to be taken when they are tiny newborns…I was paranoid that my boob would suffocate them, so I was really careful the first couple of months. I had a whole deep freezer stocked exclusively with my pumped breastmilk, too, so if I was in class my husband could feed the baby.
It was/is the best thing I have ever done! There’s nothing more beautiful and gratifying than seeing this little person grow and blossom, knowing that the milk your body made for them was solely responsible for their growth. It’s empowering!
August 13th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
Kim, I am right there with you! I was so anti-nursing in bed with my first child, but with the second, she always seems to end up in our bed during the night, and by morning my bra is undone and the baby is full and I have no real memories of her nursing … It’s really nice to be able to be lazy once in a while since most baby related matters do NOT allow for laziness!!!
August 13th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
For the pros I would add to it dream feeding.
For the cons, biting.
August 13th, 2007 at 8:58 pm
I can understand the bit about breastfeeding and sleep deprivation. After I had my twins, I was beyond exhausted. I had every intention of breastfeeding, but after 3 miserable, unsuccessful weeks of almost round-the-clock feeding attempts, a poor (VERY painful) latch, and being so tired I could fall asleep sitting in a chair (rare for me!), I gave up on bf’ing. Once I was able to get some half-decent sleeps (because hubby and my parents could do some of the feedings), I was a lot happier and better able to cope. To anyone who hassuccessfully breastfed twins (and I know it’s possible!), my hats off to you! I just couldn’t do it.
August 13th, 2007 at 9:58 pm
Not everybody gets all of those pros! I got my period back two months after I gave birth and I was actually unable to lose weight until I weaned. Of the pros I did experience, I’d say that being able to feed anywhere/anytime and always having food on you (pun intended!) was so handy. I also loved the bonding. One pro not listed is the ability to calm a baby down right away with a quick nurse. It always seems to make them feel better and my friends and I call it the “secret weapon” against fussiness.
Those cons are all true, though I’d say more than having your husband have to share your breasts with your baby, the breastfeeding process made me a little squeamish about having my husband touch me there. It’s kind of a strange mental shift to have to think of your breasts as sexual and as nutritional in the same day. Also, when you’re in the beginning months of nursing, the baby is on them all the time, and I just didn’t feel like having anybody else grope me there. Also, breastfeeding hormones diminish your sex drive and make you feel dry during sex.
That said, breastfeeding was very hard but totally worth it for me. After all the hard times I had adjusting, I actually cried when it was time for the last breastfeeding.
August 13th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
kim, there’s nothing wrong with nursing baby in bed! we’ve coslept since our son was born & indeed, i get alot more sleep than i would if i had to get up in the middle of the night to mix/heat a bottle! good for you! viva la leche!
August 13th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Ah yes, I forgot: TEETHING is my least favorite part of BFing because at the moment, my son will only eat while I’m either walking or bouncing on the bed. Does not allow me much CBB time! Lol
And I really do love cosleeping, but I’ve read reports of how you shouldn’t be asleep while feeding for lack of bonding or some BS along those lines. But if I didn’t I don’t think I’d ever sleep!
I really don’t know how I forgot the goofy milk-filled grin except maybe the fact I get more screams than smiles lately. C’est la vie!
August 14th, 2007 at 10:58 am
My favorite pro for sure is the big milk filled grin that you get from them….so sweet. I also like the instant calming effect you get from a quick nurse!
Definite con would be the pumping. I pumped for a year and work to supply my daughter with milk for daycare and that was stressful! Between the pumping at work and getting the stuff ready for pumping and remembering it! It’s very time consuming!
August 14th, 2007 at 11:45 am
Pros for me was weight loss!! I really did hate the breast pump – you are right about that!
August 14th, 2007 at 3:03 pm
Pro: Convenience –any time, anywhere
Con: Low milk supply, despite visits for weeks to a LC, herbs/teas, round-the-clock feeding/pumping, massage, healthy diet and tons of water, and eventually Rx medication, all to no avail.
I could only persevere for 4 months with my colicky daughter, and for 1 month with my son. It was one of the most disappointing aspects of new motherhood I went through. My babies were hungry and I felt like such a failure! This was so natural and “right” to do and it wasn’t working for me. I thought with my daughter screaming for 6-7 hrs. every day due to colic, that it would be easier with my 2nd baby. Unfortunately low supply was no different with my son and I had to cut nursing short again.
I truly envy those mommies who have no problems whatsoever and their babies thrive on “cream” –mine must have gotten just drops of skim milk, lol!
August 21st, 2007 at 5:12 pm
I am a 22 year old, first time Mother and I breastfeed. And I love it! For me, breastfeeding was the only option… no reason why, it just was. I feel as though at my age, I am a small percentage of breastfeeding Mothers. It’s hard for me to see young Mothers avoid breastfeeding, whether it be because they’d rather go out drinking or because they think it will hurt. (it didn’t hurt for me when my son didn’t have teeth and now that he has his first tooth, it still doesn’t hurt!) I just wish more women my age would try it. It’s so much healthier for your baby, it’s easy, it’s cheap, it’s better for yourself… there are so many good things about it! I don’t know why women chose not to! (I’m not saying it makes you a bad Mother, I just don’t see why some women are opposed to it)
September 9th, 2007 at 3:57 pm
I still think you get more sleep breast feeding as you don’t have to walk to the kitchen organise the bottle then feed the baby. With breastfeeding you just lift your top attach the baby and snooze yourself!! Too easy!