Breast Feeding

Breastfeeding

One of the most effective strategies to ensure a child’s health and survival is to breastfeed. It’s important to note that less than half of newborns under 6 months old are exclusively breastfed, despite the strong recommendations from the World Health Organization.

Breast milk is the best food for newborns. It is secure, hygienic, and loaded with antibodies that help fend off a host of common kid ailments. For the first few months of life, breastmilk supplies all the energy and nutrients an infant requires.

It also meets up to half or more of a child’s nutritional demands in the second half of the first year and up to one-third in the second year of life.

Breastfeed children have higher IQ scores, are less likely to be overweight or obese, and are less likely to develop diabetes later in life. Breastfeeding also reduces the risk of breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

According to WHO and UNICEF recommendations, breastfeeding should begin within an hour of delivery and continue exclusively for the first six months of a child’s life without the introduction of any other foods or beverages, including water.

Breastfeeding should be done whenever the infant requests it, day or night. Pacifiers, bottles, or teats are not necessary.

Children should start consuming safe, sufficient supplementary foods at six months of age and continue to be breastfed until they are at least two years old.

Nandhini – Pearl Hospital, a leading Muti speciality hospital in Velachery, Chennai, has been dedicated to women’s wellness for over 35 years, offering comprehensive gynaecological, fertility, cancer care, and specialty care treatments for women. Our team of expert obstetricians has safely delivered over 50,000 babies.

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