Bottle or breast - which is best? - By: Rodney J Smith

It can come as a shock to new parents that a battle of almost ideological proportions rages regarding the way you feed your baby! I'm referring of course to the perpetual bottle versus breast debate, with experts on both sides proclaiming unequivocally that their view is the only legitimate one. Without getting too caught up in the philosophical arguments, allow me to list some of the benefits of both approaches, then leave you to make up your own mind.

Breastfeeding
One of the most substantial arguments for breastfeeding revolves around the fact that human breast milk is 100% natural, and designed specifically for human babies (whereas milk formula is derived from cows' milk which is best suited to cattle!). Breast milk also contains antibodies which help your baby's fragile immune system to fight off infection.

Breastfeeding is also an enormously intimate act which promotes bonding between mother and baby - vital for your baby's wellbeing, and immensely helpful for motivating mom to care for little Johnny even when she is dog tired.

There are benefits for mom too, of course - producing all that milk burns a lot of calories and helps you shed any excess weight you may have picked up during your pregnancy.

In my opinion, breastfeeding is also extremely convenient - no lugging around all kinds of odds and ends, and no danger of being caught short. It's also less of a hassle to whip out a breast for baby's midnight snack than to have to fiddle around mixing and warming formula.

Bottle feeding
Bottle feeding has its own advantages however. For instance, not all moms are blessed with the most abundant milk supply - in fact it can be a real struggle for some to ensure baby is getting enough to eat. A hungry baby is an unhappy baby, and you can be sure she's going to take it out on you! By feeding with a bottle you can keep track of exactly how much your child is eating.

Feeding with a bottle also means you can get others involved - let dad, older siblings and grandparents take their turn. It helps them bond with the new baby, and takes the pressure off of you - what's not to like? It also means you have the option of returning to work before weaning, if that's what you choose. You want to talk convenience, that's it right there. And with the bottle you also avoid those unpleasant cracked and bleeding nipples!

Bottle-feeding is a lot less of an ordeal than breastfeeding when you're out and about; no matter how liberated you are, there will always be some who object to you breastfeeding in public.

About the Author

These are the advantages of bottle versus breastfeeding. For many however, expressing your milk using one of the Avent breast pumps or Medela electric breast pumps for later bottle feeding is the ideal solution. http://www.electricbreastpumps.org.

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