Times have been changing and lately, mothers are trying to go the natural way of feeding their babies. There are many benefits of breastfeeding for both the baby and mother. It is no wonder why it is catching on quickly.

Do check out 14 things that no one tells you about breastfeeding as well to help prepare you.

What are the benefits of breastfeeding?

Cost less

One of the biggest benefits that bring women to breastfeed is that it cost basically nothing compared to formula. The biggest cost of breastfeeding is food for you to eat healthily. Or potentially a pump.

Pumps can be paid for by insurance sometimes and you don’t always have to pump. You can even get a small handheld manual pump which is cheaper than an automatic one.

More natural than formula

Formula was created for women who were not able to breastfeed for reason like breast cancer or other illnesses. It also helped with babies that had lost their mothers.

It is not natural to have formula. Cows milk is usually used in formula or some have soy milk and cornstarch. These are not natural for a baby to have which makes it harder for them to have.

Easier for baby to digest

Breast milk is easy for babies to digest since that is what they were made to have. Cows milk, on the other hand, is hard on their stomachs to digest. It can even give them more gas and tummy aches.

Having breast milk can give them their nutrients without having to work too hard for it. It will start digesting even while still breastfeeding.

Helps baby’s immune system

When you breastfeed your milk passes on antibodies that help fight illnesses. The more you feed baby breast milk the more antibodies baby gets. This leads to them strengthening their immune system every time they nurse.

A healthy baby is a happy baby.

Less chance of ear infections

Breastfeeding has shown that it reduces the chances of ear infections. Formula will settle to the back of their throats and can drain into their ear canals and cause an infection.

Breast milk doesn’t tend to pool at the back of the throat which makes it less likely to drain into the ear canal and cause an infection.

Helps shrink mother’s uterus back to size

Each time you breastfeed a baby your body creates hormones. These hormones help contract your uterus and will start to shrink it back down to size. This makes it easier for mothers who breastfeed to heal after birth.

Helps mothers lose weight

When you breastfeed your body is taking nutrients from you to make breast milk. The more breast milk you make the more your body needs and in return, you are losing weight.

This is one of the benefits that mothers love most because they can return to their pre-pregnancy weight quicker than if they weren’t breastfeeding.

There is a special bond between mother and baby

Babies bond with parents and family members through eye contact. Mothers who breastfeed actually create a special bond with baby because of the skin to skin contact with baby during feedings. They also bond from the dependency baby has on their mother feeding them each time.

This is just a special bond that mothers can get from breastfeeding because of the feeling of truly being needed to care for the baby.