Why Breastfeed?

Health Canada recommends "Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life for healthy term infants. Nutrient-rich, solid foods should only be introduced at 6 months with particular attention to iron. Breastfeeding should continue up to 2 years and beyond."

The Advantages of Breastfeeding

• Breast milk is perfectly designed to meet all of your baby's nutritional needs.
• Breast milk contains the nutrients babies need to grow and antibodies and other immune factors that help your baby stay healthy.
• Breast milk also coats the inside of your baby's digestive tract to prevent bacteria and viruses from attacking.
• Breast milk provides babies with growth factors and hormones that are essential to normal growth and development.
• Breast milk contains all fatty acids necessary for continuing nerve and brain development.
• Breast milk encourages healthy eating patterns as breastfed babies only take the amount of milk they need.
• Breastfeeding reduces the risk of a post partum hemorrhage and helps your uterus return to normal size.

"Imagine that the world had invented a new 'dream product' to feed and immunize everyone born on earth. Imagine also that it was available everywhere, required no storage or delivery-and helped mothers to plan their families and reduce the risk of cancer. Then imagine that the world refused to use it. Towards the end of this last century of unprecedented discovery and invention this scenario is not alas a fiction. The 'dream' product' is human breastmilk and is available to us all at birth yet we are not using it"

UNICEF, 1991