Nutrient by nutrient why breast is best

Breastfed babies get hungry sooner than babies who are formula-fed because human milk proteins are digested so efficiently. Frequent feedings also ensure that human babies get lots of attention from their mothers. Fat is a valuable source of energy for babies, so the presence of lipase makes the fat in human milk more available. This is one of the reasons human milk is so good for premature babies, who need lots of energy to grow but whose digestive systems are very immature.

A changing nutrient for changing needs. The fat content of human milk changes constantly. Typically, fat levels are low at the beginning of a feeding and high at the end. Babies nurse eagerly to get the low-fat, thirst-quenching foremilk, then slow down and linger over the high-fat dessert at the end of their meal.

Babies who nurse again soon after the end of the last feeding get more high-fat milk, so babies who breastfeed more frequently during a growth spurt get more calories.

Longer intervals between feedings bring down the fat content of the milk stored in the breast. This nutritional fact of human milk is one of the many reasons why the rigid 3 to 4 hour scheduled style of feeding is biologically incorrect. Smarter fats. The special kind of fat in human milk is important to brain development. As newborn babies grow, the nerves are covered with a substance called myelin which helps the nerves transmit messages to other nerves throughout the brain and body.

To develop high-quality myelin, the body needs certain types of fatty acids—linoleic and linolenic—which are found in large amounts in human milk. The vitamins and minerals listed on the formula can are no match for those in the milk made by mom, even if milligram by milligram comparisions suggest otherwise. When formula researchers want to know how much of a particular vitamin or mineral babies need each day, they look first at how much of that nutrient is present in human milk and how much milk a baby of a given age takes in a day.

More important than the amounts of nutrients in the milk is the amount that is available for the infant to use, a nutrient principle called bioavailability. The bioavailability of a nutrient is influenced by many factors, including its chemical form and the presence of other substances. Babies nurse eagerly to get the low-fat, thirst-quenching foremilk, then slow down and linger over the high-fat dessert at the end of their meal.

Babies who nurse again soon after the end of the last feeding get more high-fat milk, so babies who breastfeed more frequently during a growth spurt get more calories.

Longer intervals between feedings bring down the fat content of the milk stored in the breast. This nutritional fact of human milk is one of the many reasons why the rigid 3 to 4 hour scheduled style of feeding is biologically incorrect. Smarter fats. The special kind of fat in human milk is important to brain development. As newborn babies grow, the nerves are covered with a substance called myelin which helps the nerves transmit messages to other nerves throughout the brain and body.

To develop high-quality myelin, the body needs certain types of fatty acids--linoleic and linolenic--which are found in large amounts in human milk. See "Breastfeeding Builds Brighter Brains". The vitamins and minerals listed on the formula can are no match for those in the milk made by mom, even if milligram by milligram comparisions suggest otherwise. When formula researchers want to know how much of a particular vitamin or mineral babies need each day, they look first at how much of that nutrient is present in human milk and how much milk a baby of a given age takes in a day.

But just doing the math doesn't tell the whole story. More important than the amounts of nutrients in the milk is the amount that is available for the infant to use, a nutrient principle called bioavailability. The bioavailability of a nutrient is influenced by many factors, including its chemical form and the presence of other substances. The three important minerals calcium, phosphorus, and iron are present in breastmilk at lower levels than in formula, but in breastmilk these minerals are present in forms that have high bioavailability.

For example, 50 to 75 percent of the iron in breastmilk is absorbed by the baby. With formula, as little as four percent of the iron is absorbed into baby's bloodstream. To make up for the low bioavailability of factory-added vitamins and minerals, formula manufactures raise the concentrations.

Sounds reasonable, right? If only half gets absorbed by the body, put twice as much into the can. Yet, this nutrient manipulation may have a metabolic price.

Baby's immature intestines are required to dispose of the excess. Meanwhile, the excess unabsorbed minerals especially iron can upset the "ecology of the gut," interfering with the growth of healthful bacteria and allowing harmful bacteria to flourish. This is another reason formula-fed infants have harder, more unpleasant smelling stools.

To enhance the bioavailability of nutrients, breastmilk contains facilitators - substances that enhance the absorption of other nutrients. For example, vitamin C in human milk increases the absorption of iron. Zinc absorption is also enhanced by other factors in human milk. In an interesting experiment, researchers added equal amounts of iron and zinc to samples of human milk, formula, and cow'd milk, and fed them to adult volunteers. More of the nutrients in the human-milk sample got into the bloodstream compared to the formula and cow's milk.

As breastmilk has natural antibodies, whenever my son has an open wound or infection, I slather some fresh breastmilk hoping the antibodies will support the healing process. The best baby formula option is homemade baby formula. There are raw milk formula recipes, goat milk formulas, liver-based formulas, and other nutrient-dense baby food options.

You can get all the details here. I highly recommend visiting the site as the Weston A. Price Foundation founder of nutrition! Most women in the US stop breastfeeding before the 6-month mark.

If you are physically able to breastfeed for longer, I recommend doing so as it can set your child up for success. If our bodies can produce breastmilk even when the child is 7 , maybe breastfeeding and extended breastfeeding is something we should all partake in. If breastfeeding is causing you severe stress, anxiety and even resentment, you may want to find alternative options.

Solid mental health of the mother trumps any amounts of breastfeeding. If anything, you have 20, meals to make up for it. This is awesome information! Thanks for the content! Thank you! Kelly mom is great! I am still breastfeeding my now 4 year old and when I first started my mommy adventures, I leaned on Kellymom.

Need to get it out soon!! What a lovely idea! Working on my own health at present! Your email address will not be published.