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Welcoming a new life into the world can often have parents questioning their decisions related to their little one. Dummies or no dummies? Take them to creche or let them stay with family? Deciding whether or not you should breastfeed, or use a breast pump to extract the breast milk can also come up in conversation.
No option is strictly good or strictly bad as the decision is yours to make.
However, it is advisable to consider the advantages and disadvantages of both options, provided by Healthline.
Pros of strictly breastfeeding
- Allows bonding time with baby: Breastfeeding allows you to spend more time with your bundle of joy, promoting a sense of closeness and a special bond between the parent and child.
- Always available: There is no need to worry about whether or not your child’s next meal still needs to be prepared.
- Improved milk nutrition: Babies receive breast milk nutrients better when interacting with their parent. This is because breasts respond to the baby’s saliva content, producing antibodies for viruses or bacteria to which the babies are possibly exposed.
Cons of strictly breastfeeding
- Possible discomfort: Only sticking to breastfeeding can cause pain in the breast and nipple area, making feeding difficult.
- Foods and medications may be restricted: A breastfeeding parent will need to consider avoiding the consumption of certain medications, foods, and alcohol, as this can transfer to the baby via the breast milk.
- Lack of sleep: Babies frequently need to be fed during the first few weeks of their lives. Waking up every few hours can be physically and mentally exhausting.
Pros of strictly breast pumping
- Back-up milk: Extra pumping throughout the day allows you to have milk for occasions when you might not be available to breastfeed.
- Avoid pain: If you experience discomfort due to poor latching, biting, or other issues, pumping offers you a way to avoid this.
- Gauge the amount of milk consumed: Bottle-feeding your baby allows you to know the exact amount of milk your baby consumed throughout the day.
Cons of strictly breast pumping
- Not cost-effective: Equipment needed for pumping breast milk can be quite expensive.
- Cleaning up: It can be quite draining and time-consuming cleaning all the parts of the bottle and pump.
- Not always effective: Using the pump will not always be as effective as a baby’s mouth when attempting to get milk out of the breast. Depending on the person, only choosing the pumping method can result in less milk production than breastfeeding.
Also see: Woman explains why she breastfeeds her husband
