Pros and Cons of breastfeeding

Lisa Horton wrote:

Should I breastfeed my little one when he arrives?

Heck, yes!

Is there any downside to it?

I can't think of any. It's superior nutrition, plus it's totally
convenient and economical. You might even enjoy it. It takes some
getting used to, though.

You might experience sore nipples at first. That's a fairly common
problem. Check out what La Leche League has to say. They have a
terrific book, _The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding_, that I highly
recommend.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...51252?v=glance

Here's their web site.

http://www.lllusa.org/lllusa/index.html

"Lisa Horton" wrote in message
om...
Should I breastfeed my little one when he arrives? Is there any downside
to it?

I cant believe all the pro "Breast is best" hype on this newsgroup. If you
breastfeed Dad or grandma cant help and you breasts feel like balls of lead.
Cracked, bleeding nipples, leaking all over the place. My wife found
breastfeeding painful, uncomfortable and messy. We were both relived when
she switched to the bottle. She had enough to deal with with sleepless
nights without having to deal with aching breasts as well. It was nice to be
able to take the load off her once in a while. And despite the pro breast
lobby, most women aren't to happy when you whip your breasts out in their
home in front of their husbands / teenage sons or in a public place.

If you want to breastfeed, fine, but don't feel guilty if you cant or just
don't settle in with it. Giving a child a bottle is not the end of the
world.

One of there reasons my wife was so unhappy about giving up breastfeeding
was all the hype she had hears about "breastfeeding comes naturally" and is
"easy" It didn't come naturally to her and she certainly found bottle
feeding far easier. All this pro breast feeding talk makes women like my
wife feel like failiures, which my wife certainly isnt.

"teapot" wrote in message
om...
(Lisa Horton) wrote in message
. com...
Should I breastfeed my little one when he arrives? Is there any downside
to it?

well, if you breastfeed you won't have to get up in the middle of the
night to prepare a bottle, you will save lots of money on formula, you
will be giving your child the best start in life and some say it will
help you to get your figure back.

downsides? nope, can't think of any that would make formula
worthwhile. breastfeeding can be diffocult to begin with but once you
have the hang of it its a doddle

My wife certainly didnt "get the hang of it" When our baby was getting more
blood from her sore cracked nipples than milk, she knew it was time to call
it a day.

Rhyanon wrote:

"Lisa Horton" wrote in message
om...
Should I breastfeed my little one when he arrives? Is there any downside
to it?

Make sure he gets at least used to using a bottle sometimes; the major
downer for me was my firstborn refusing bottles at all times, and it made
weaning hell.

Whaaat?

None of my kids ever had a pacifier or a bottle. Why bother? FWIW,
they also never sucked their thumbs.

Weaning was a breeze for my kids. We just resorted to the breast less
and less. We tapered off gradually, and eventually they all just
stopped.

The business about giving the child a bottle at all for any reason
really confuses me. Why bother? I don't get it. If daddy wants to
help with the baby, he can help by changing diapers, by rocking and
walking, by bathing... there's lots of things that he can do to bond
with the baby, and be helpful. In our household, daddy had the honor of
cutting the cord, of introducing the first solid foods, and helping with
the first walking steps... things of that nature.

There's nothing wrong with being the mommy and having a special
breastfeeding relationship with your infant. In fact, it's a beautiful
thing. There is no need for any bottle, ever. The idea of doing both
breast and bottle in IMHO a bit preposterous.

Many times women feel they must return to work immediately after having
their baby, and in cases like that, maintaining a breastfeeding
relationship becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible. My heart
goes out to anybody who is stuck with such a painful choice. I might as
well state straight out that I think it's a horrible choice to have to
make, and I wouldn't wish it on anybody.

When you are breastfeeding, it's necessary to stay near to your baby.
Being so tightly tied to your baby might seem inconvenient, but it's
only for a little while. You just have to be a good soldier about it.
Our babies are very helpless and utterly dependent at first, and we just
have to be there for them. That's part of the deal.

ToolPackinMama wrote:

Many times women feel they must return to work immediately after having
their baby, and in cases like that, maintaining a breastfeeding
relationship becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible. My heart
goes out to anybody who is stuck with such a painful choice. I might as
well state straight out that I think it's a horrible choice to have to
make, and I wouldn't wish it on anybody.


Allow me to clarify that returning to a conventional job can totally
interfere with your breastfeeding relationship, but that doesn't mean
you can't work and make a living. I worked at home: that's one
solution. Some breastfeeding mothers are fortunate to have a flexible
work situation, where they can bring the baby with them, for example.

Lisa Horton wrote:
Should I breastfeed my little one when he arrives? Is there any
downside to it?

Breastmilk is the best nutritional choice for a baby so that is really all I
needed to know.

The downsides really depend on the person and their situation. Some people
don't see any downsides at all. Others apparently see more then they care
to deal with. Formula certainly isn't problem free either.

In my mind the downsides of breastfeeding, if there are any, mostly impact
the mother. The downsides of formula, if there are any, mostly impact the
baby.

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (2)

ToolPackinMama wrote:

Many times women feel they must return to work immediately after
having their baby, and in cases like that, maintaining a breastfeeding
relationship becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible.

For others reading I worked and breastfed and know lots of women that do so.
It takes some planning but it wasn't extremely difficult and it is far from
impossible.

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (3)

Nikki wrote:

In my mind the downsides of breastfeeding, if there are any, mostly impact
the mother. The downsides of formula, if there are any, mostly impact the
baby.

Good point.

"Jim" ) writes:
Giving a child a bottle is not the end of the
world.

Actually, it is, for a lot of people! I think
UNICEF or somebody was estimating a few years back that
each year a million and a half babies died who would
not have died if they'd been breastfed. These are
not all in third-world countries. Just about every
childhood illness, common or rare, mild or
life-threatening, infectious or degenerative, is
more common in children who are not breastfed.
Many of them are many times more common.
--
Cathy

"Rhyanon" ) writes:
Make sure he gets at least used to using a bottle sometimes; the major
downer for me was my firstborn refusing bottles at all times, and it made
weaning hell. Of course, she is an unsuaually stubborn person, so maybe it
was just her. My second was totally bottle - fed and had *less* ear
infections than the first child, so don't let the La Leche Zealots and their
propaganda / guilt trip bull**** delude you into thinking you aren't a good
mom if you bottle feed. It's YOUR body, YOUR baby, YOUR choice.

A sample of two is not statistically significant. There are
statistically significant studies showing higher rates of
many illnesses ON AVERAGE for non-breastfed babies.

Maybe if you'd breastfed the second, he/she would have had
no ear infections at all.

My kids never had bottles at all. If it's important to you
to get your baby to drink from a bottle, you may get more
success with that if you start early; but if it's more
important to you to breastfeed, it's safer to avoid bottles
for as long as possible. The sooner you introduce bottles,
the more likely they'll interfere with breastfeeding.

There are cases of babies having their first bottle at about
3 months of age where the baby started insisting on having
bottles and breastfeeding soon stopped. This is more likely
to happen when bottles are given to even younger babies.

Some babies seem to switch happily back and forth from
breast to bottle, but I believe many of these wean at
a younger age than they would have if they weren't having
bottles. Some insist on the breast. Some insist on the
bottle, once they're introduced to it. If it's important
to you to maintain the health and nutrition benefits
of breastfeeding, it's best to avoid bottles and pacifiers.
Any supplements
you decide to give can be given by cup or spoon or
eyedropper. Even a newborn can be fed from a cup.
These other feeding methods don't involve the
"supranormal stimulus" of the artificial nipple which
all to often wreaks havoc with breastfeeding.

Most important: don't let hospital workers give
a bottle or pacifier in the first few days, especially
not before the first nursing. Many cases of sore
nipples and other difficulties with breastfeeding could
have been avoided with this advice.
--
Cathy