What are the health benefits of breast-feeding?
Breast milk is the perfect food for your baby. It is the only food your baby needs until about 4 to 6 months of age. You do not need to give your baby other food, water, or juice, except for vitamin D each day. Breast-feeding lowers your child’s risk for some illnesses and diseases. These include: • Diarrhea and upset stomach. Breast-fed babies have fewer bouts of diarrhea than babies who are not breast-fed. • Ear infections. • Urinary tract infections. • Illnesses that affect the respiratory tract or breathing. • Less chance of needing hospitalization because of infection in the first year of life.1 Breast-feeding may also protect against other health problems later on, such as asthma, diabetes, obesity, eczema, and high blood pressure.2 3 4 5 You may recover from pregnancy, labor, and delivery sooner when you breast-feed. For example, breast-feeding makes your body release a hormone called oxytocin. This hormone helps your uterus bleed less and return to its normal size after pregnan
