Studies show that infants who are breastfed have a smaller number of instances of diarrhea, ear infections and bacterial meningitis. It is also possible that breastfeeding helps offer your baby protection against SIDS, diabetes, obesity and asthma later in life. Likewise, breastfeeding also has benefits for mom including reducing the possibility of ovarian and breast cancer, and possibly a decreased risk of hip fractures and osteoporosis in the postmenopausal period.

The policy recommendations include:

• Exclusive breastfeeding for approximately the first six months and support for breastfeeding for the first year and beyond as long as mutually desired by mother and child.
• Mother and infant should sleep in proximity to each other to facilitate breastfeeding;Â
   
• Self-examination of mother’s breasts for lumps is recommended throughout lactation, not just after weaning;Â
   
• Support efforts of parents and the courts to ensure continuation of breastfeeding in cases of separation, custody and visitation;Â
   
• Pediatricians should counsel adoptive mothers on the benefits of induced lactation through hormonal therapy or mechanical stimulation.
• Recognize and work with cultural diversity in breastfeeding practices
• A pediatrician or other knowledgeable and experienced health care professional should evaluate a newborn breastfed infant at 3 to 5 days of age and again at 2 to 3 weeks of age to be sure the infant is feeding and growing well.

It is important to establish a good breastfeeding relationship with your baby from day one and to continue to breastfeed for as long as possible. The large majority of experts today agree that breastfeeding your baby is best for the first year and that the longer you breastfeed your baby the more your baby will benefit for it. If you are having trouble breastfeeding your baby you can contact a member of the La Leche League for support, or ask someone in the hospital after you deliver.

Breastfeeding, has long been considered the healthiest option for babies, and has been recently found to reduce the odds of children growing up obese.

While chubby babies are cute a fat baby is not necessarily a healthy baby, there are limits.

One possible explanation of the link between bottle-fed babies and obesity is that parents may tend to keep feeding a baby until a bottle is empty. Babies on the bottle may be developing larger appetites. Bottles are an easy solution when attempting to quiet restless babies, when hunger might not be the problem.

Breastfed babies also have greater control over the amount of milk they consume, choosing whether or not to nurse, which may lead to better appetite control in the future. Another guess is that breast milk could contain ingredients that program the baby’s metabolic rate.

Normal amounts of weight gain in a newborn baby, after the mother’s supply of milk has increased, is anywhere from one-half to one ounce per day until the baby reaches three months of life, after which weight increases should gradually taper off.

Parents should follow clues such as restlessness and sucking on fingers to let them know when a baby is hungry, rather than feeding them too much from a bottle. A good guideline for breastfeeding newborns is once every two to three hours, for a total of 8 to 12 feedings in 24 hours.

Breastfeeding should be used exclusively for the first six months of life and should continue for at least one year, slowly introducing juice and solid food. Up to your baby’s first birthday breast milk should make up 80% of your baby’s diet.

Breast milk protects against a number of other illnesses in babies besides obesity, including type-1 diabetes, ear infections, lymphoma and diarrhea. In order to inform and teach people about the benefits of breastfeeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics designates each August as National Breastfeeding Month.