You may be under the impression that the decision to breastfeed or bottle-feed is simply a matter of personal preference. Don't let anyone fool you into believing that breast milk and formula are equally good--they are not. Without a doubt, mother's milk alone promotes optimum health and development for babies. It is uniquely designed to meet the complete nutritional needs of the growing human infant. It also protects the infant against illness throughout the entire first year and beyond, as long as nursing continues.
Although babies do grow on processed infant formulas, formula manufacturers are continually challenged to include all of the nutrients in breast milk that scientists are gradually identifying as important to infant growth and development. But artificial infant milks, whether based on cow's milk or soybeans, will never be able to duplicate nature's formula. Human milk contains proteins that promote brain development and specific immunities against human illness. In contrast, cow milk contains proteins that favor muscular growth and specific immunities to bovine disease. Babies, like all young mammals, do best with milk from their own species. Babies on a formula diet are at greater risk for illness and hospitalization. Diarrheal infections, respiratory illnesses, and ear infections are more frequent and serious among these babies. Formula-fed infants also have higher incidences of colic, constipation, and allergic disorders. In fact, a significant number of babies are allergic to formulas, both those based on cow milk and those based on soy. There is also new evidence that artificially fed infants more often experience learning disorders and lower levels of intellectual functioning.
Bottle feeding with formula more commonly leads to overfeeding and obesity, which may well persist into childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Tooth decay, malocclusion (improper meeting of the upper and lower teeth), and distortion of the facial muscles may also directly result from sucking on bottles.
Some studies suggest the benefits of breastfeeding also extend into adulthood. Breastfed babies have lower cholesterol levels, on average, when they become adults. Although asthma rates are not significantly different between breastfed and non-breastfed babies, there is a lower rate of asthma in adults who were breastfed. Babies have a smaller chance of developing diabetes and cancer of the lymph glands if they are breastfed. For all of these reasons, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants be offered only breast milk for the first four to six months after birth, and that breastfeeding continue throughout the entire first year.
Establishing a close bond and meeting the emotional needs of a child are certainly an essential part of mothering. The nursing woman is thought to produce hormones that promote a physiologic bonding between mother and child. And in what better way can a baby be nurtured, comforted, and made to feel secure than snuggled within his mother's loving arms, against the warmth of her breast? Although some rationalize that bottle-feeding mothers can capture a similar warm feeding relationship, in reality they do not. This is partly because bottle feeding doesn't require much human contact. The bottle-fed baby generally receives less stroking, caressing, and rocking than the breastfed baby. He is talked to less often and he spends more time in his crib away from his parents. Although it is unknown how prevalent the practice of propping bottles for the young infant is, probably the overwhelming majority of babies who are able to hold their own bottles become almost entirely responsible for feeding themselves.
