About Breast Milk

The World Health Organization¹ and the American Academy of Pediatrics state that breast milk is the optimal source of nutrition for infants².

¹http://www.who.int/child-adolescent-health/NUTRITION/infant_exclusive.htm
²PEDIATRICS Vol. 115 No. 2 February 2005, pp. 496-506

Breast milk (and donor milk) have active agents (such as IgA and other immunological proteins) that may help in the development of the immune system in infants and may protect against infection.

Newburg DS (Ed) “Bioactive components in human milk”. Advances in Experimental Medicine and biology 501:2001

Children getting breast milk have significantly fewer episodes of gastrointestinal and respiratory infections than do those fed formula³.

³PEDIATRICS Vol. 115 No. 2 February 2005, pp. 496-506

Children getting milk rather than formula have been shown less likely to develop obesity⁴ and diabetes.⁵

⁴Grummer-Strawn LM, Mei Z. Does breastfeeding protect against pediatric overweight? Analysis of longitudinal data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System. Pediatrics. 2004;113(2) . Available at: www.pediatrics.org/cgi/content/full/113/2/e81 Stettler N, Zemel BS, Kumanyika S, Stallings VA. Infant weight gain and childhood overweight status in a multicenter, cohort study. Pediatrics. 2002;109 194 –199

⁵Gerstein HC. Cow's milk exposure and type 1 diabetes mellitus. A critical overview of the clinical literature. Diabetes Care. 1994;17 :13 –19 Kostraba JN, Cruickshanks KJ, Lawler-Heavner J, et al. Early exposure to cow's milk and solid foods in infancy, genetic predisposition, and the risk of IDDM. Diabetes. 1993;42 :288 –295

Breast milk (and donor milk) contains active factors which help in the development of the immune system in infants. This is particularly important in children who are at increased risk for a variety of infectious diseases.

Hanson LA. Immunobiology of human milk: How breastfeeding protects babies. Pharmsoft Publishing (Amarillo, TX) 2004

Additional information on the benefits of breast milk can be found on the following websites:

World Health Organization

American Academy of Pediatrics