For outsiders, it's just a mother feeding her baby. For women and children, however, breastfeeding is a unique moment, a demonstration of love that is difficult to describe in words.
When we look closer, breastfeeding really has some charming features that sound almost like magic.
For example, did you know that a sick baby's saliva can stimulate the mother's body to produce exactly the antibodies it needs to recover, and make the milk contain more cells that fight infection?
This is just one of the facts that validates the WHO recommendation to breastfeed a baby until the age of two, but there are many other curiosities about this incredible act of love between a mother and her baby. Know more:
1. She starts early
Even if breastfeeding itself only happens after the baby is born, the body begins to prepare in the second month of pregnancy. The breast ducts begin to form and expand, and milk begins to be produced by small clumps of cells, protected by fat and connective tissue.
Read also: Breastfeeding: Ask questions and check out tips and reports from mothers
Sometimes milk production is complete even before the baby is born, which is why some women have to deal with leaking breast milk in the last weeks of pregnancy.
2. It is associated with hormones.
During pregnancy, estrogen and progesterone are responsible for the physical changes of this period. Prolactin, in turn, increases during pregnancy and is the hormone that induces the formation of breast ducts and the production of milk itself.
Finally, after the baby is born, oxytocin, known as the love hormone, comes into play. This hormone plays an important role in establishing the relationship between mother and child and is released in large quantities during breastfeeding.
3. She protects the mother
In addition to being essential for protecting the baby from disease and being the source of the best food available for him, breastfeeding also favors the health of the mother. This process decreases the mother's chances of developing osteoporosis and breast and ovarian cancer.
4. It adapts to breastfeeding frequency
Breastfeeding is a versatile process that adapts to a series of stimuli, and the main one is the baby's own suction. This action stimulates receptors in the breasts, which signal the body to increase production.
Also read: Baby Safety Care at Breastfeeding
Thus, as the baby grows and its need for milk increases, more milk is produced between breastfeeding intervals to meet this demand.
5. It is beneficial for diabetic mom
Women who are breastfeeding have their blood sugar levels naturally controlled, which is of great benefit to those who experienced a pre-existing worsening of diabetes during pregnancy or who suffered from gestational diabetes.
This control of blood glucose does not eliminate the need to administer diabetes medicines, but their dosage can be decreased.
6. She is good for the postpartum body
During breastfeeding, oxytocin increases uterine contractions, encouraging the uterus to return to its normal size even after the large expansion it experienced during pregnancy. Also, this hormone minimizes bleeding after delivery.
Prolactin, in turn, is a relaxation hormone that helps the mother cope with the stressful situations of the baby's arrival, preventing postpartum depression and helping the mother overcome it.
Read also: The benefits of breastfeeding for the mother
7. Breast milk changes during the day.
Mothers know: milk composition changes with diet, environment and time of day. Breast milk produced at night, for example, contains more substances that help the baby fall asleep. This milk contains more melatonin, which helps the baby develop its circadian cycle, getting into a faster wakefulness during the day and sleep at night.
In addition, the composition of milk also varies during breastfeeding itself. While milk released at the beginning of the breastfeeding contains more immune activating substances and gives less feeling of satiety, the late milk is rich in fat and calories, precisely to satisfy the baby's appetite.
8. Breastfeeding is affected by cigarette.
One consequence of smoking is decreased prolactin production, which is reflected in reduced milk production compared to non-smoking mothers. Nicotine, in turn, makes it difficult to get out of milk, making it impossible for the baby to feed.
Finally, cigarettes decrease the amount of iodine in milk, which may affect the supply of iodine to the baby.
9. It varies from woman to woman
Two women will never produce identical milks, although they can be equally nutritious. This is because production varies according to time of day, diet and environmental factors.
Read also: Why is oxytocin known as the love hormone?
Also, some chronic illnesses and continued drug use during a woman's life can affect milk production. So it is important not to compare yourself to other women who are supposed to have better milk? than yours? yes you are doing your best.
10. Suction pump increases milk production
Using the suction pump to remove the milk and store it when the mother cannot offer the breast for some reason helps to increase production. The pump mimics the baby's suction and causes the body to release more milk, replacing the amount that was removed.
11. Always have some milk left
The breast is never completely empty while the baby is still breastfeeding. However, as the reserve is small, the lack of milk stimulates the reflex that starts the production of more milk, because the amount left in the breast would not be enough to feed it in the next breastfeeding.
Even in women who breastfeed exclusively, it may take weeks or months to completely disappear.
12. Milk responds to baby's illnesses
Breastfeeding is so amazing that when the baby is sick, milk changes to help her recover. This is because the baby's saliva components stimulate the breast to produce disease-specific antibiotics by releasing them into the milk.
In addition, sucking a sick baby causes milk to become richer in leukocytes, the cells responsible for our immunity.
13. Milk is different for baby boys and girls
Studies conducted at Michigan State University and the University of Massachusetts have shown that mothers produce denser, higher fat milk when the baby is a boy.
In an animal study at Harvard University, it was shown that milk produced for baby girls contains more calcium, while baby milk contains more protein and less sugar. The results could not yet be extrapolated to humans.
14. Breast milk has the right microorganisms
Even if the mother is sick, the microorganisms that cause an infection are never transferred to the baby through breastfeeding because they are filtered before the milk reaches the breast ducts.
This, however, does not mean that the milk is sterile. In fact, breast milk contains probiotic bacteria, similar to those found in yogurt, that help the development of babies' digestive systems.
15. Malnourished mothers can breastfeed
Another magical fact about breastfeeding is that even malnourished mothers can feed their babies. Although the process can be exhausting, the quality of the milk is so good that it is able to nourish the child.
Also, because breastfeeding offers a number of benefits to the mother's health, does breastfeeding not endanger the already poor health of an undernourished mother? on the contrary. Even if the mother is deficient in vitamins or minerals, it is more appropriate to supplement her than for the baby, keeping it exclusively in the chest whenever possible.
15 Interesting Facts About Breastfeeding (April 2024)
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