Breastfeeding, as one of the first factors of sustainable protection of the health of the child is encouraged by all health and early childhood professionals, but also by the PNNS and the WHO. Because breastfeeding has immeasurable benefits both for the health and development of the baby, but also for the mother.

Breast milk, produced 4 to 5 days after childbirth during the flow of milk, is a food whose composition constantly changes over time to adapt to the needs of the baby.

Thus, the characteristics of breast milk change over the day and month but also according to the rhythm of the feedings, and even during the feeding itself: it is gradually enriched in fats and proteins (micelles of casein) as the baby empties the breast.

Women’s milk is a tailor-made formula that fulfills many biological functions, ensures optimal growth and development of the baby while also protecting it from possible infections. Overall, it provides an average of 670 kcal (2 kJ) per liter.

Some water

Water is the main constituent of breast milk and represents 87.5% of the total volume. Women’s milk is therefore particularly thirst-quenching and makes it possible to meet the colossal water needs of the newborn.

Proteins

The protein content of breast milk is significantly lower than that of other mammals with protein in the range of 8 to 12 g / liter. But breast milk proteins are better assimilated and the amino acids present perfectly match the baby’s needs. Rich in soluble proteins and caseins, gastric emptying is favored and breast milk is easily digested. Among the proteins present, we find immunoglobulins which play a role of immune protection, but also growth factors and enzymes.

Carbohydrates

Overall, mature female milk has 75 g / liter of carbohydrates, including 63 g of lactose and 12 g of oligosaccharides, while cow’s milk contains only lactose.

The 130 oligosaccharides present constitute a major specificity of breast milk by acting as real prebiotics which participate in the establishment of the bacterial ecosystem in the baby’s colon. Breast milk thus constitutes real protection against digestive and extra-digestive infections.

Lipids

The lipid content (35 g / liter on average) in breast milk is close to that of cow’s milk, but their digestibility and absorption coefficient are much higher.

Woman’s milk is also significantly richer in cholesterol (2,6 to 3,9 mM / liter against 0,3 to 0,85 mM / liter for cow’s milk), which, for infants, constitutes a real asset. Cholesterol indeed plays an important role in the constitution of membranes and brain development but is also a hormonal precursor.

Vitamins, trace elements and mineral salts

Mineral salts, vitamin D and trace elements (2 g / liter) in breast milk play an essential role in the constitution of the skeleton and bone growth. Their quantity is specifically adapted to the possibilities of renal elimination of the baby whose organs (kidneys) are not yet mature.

Breast milk contains calcium, chlorine, copper, iron, iodine, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, sodium, sulfur, zinc but also a multitude of vitamins: A, B1, B2, PP, B5, B6, B8 , B9, B12, C, D, E, K.

The iron concentrations, although being very low, have excellent bioavailability. However, this will not be sufficient if exclusive breastfeeding is extended beyond six months. Food diversification or iron supplementation must then be implemented.

Vitamin K supplementation is also necessary from birth and throughout the duration of exclusive breastfeeding to prevent a hemorrhagic risk, admittedly rare but existing.

Enzymes, hormones and bacteria

Breast milk contains enzymes which allow, among other things, a better digestion of fats (lipase) and lactose (lactase) but also to protect the baby against certain bacteria (lysozyme). In addition, certain hormones contained in milk promote the growth and development of sexual organs.

Breast milk is also rich in various bacterial species that establish a real intestinal microbiota aimed at protecting the baby’s intestines from possible digestive infections.

Breastfeeding, in addition to meeting the baby’s very specific nutritional needs, allows skin-to-skin contact that closely meets the baby’s needs for warmth, comfort and security.

This intimate and privileged contact between mother and child strengthens their bond of attachment, although the latter is also very strong when the baby is bottle-fed in his mother’s arms, of course.

Beyond these benefits on the well-being of the child, breastfeeding has been the subject of numerous scientific studies as to its effects on health.

In the short term, breastfed babies would be:

• Less prone to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
• Less often affected by infections. Their risk of gastrointestinal infections – gastroenteritis and diarrhea, for example – is significantly reduced compared to babies fed formula.
• More protected against the risk of upper respiratory tract infection – colds, flu. Breastfeeding also decreases the frequency of bronchiolitis, pneumonia and ear infections.
• Less often affected by certain inflammatory diseases, like eczema, type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn’s disease. However, for asthma, food allergies and hay fever, the protective effect is less clear.

Better yet, the benefits of breastfeeding would last into adulthood. Thus, people who have been breastfed:

• Would be less prone to overweight, obesity and type 2 diabetes.
• Have lower blood pressure and cholesterol than bottle-fed babies.

In addition, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), and quite surprisingly, breastfed children would have better results in intelligence tests, probably due to an acceleration of cognitive development in early childhood.

Beyond the benefits for the child, WHO highlights the benefits of breastfeeding for the mother:

• In the event of exclusive breastfeeding, it constitutes a natural (but not infallible!) Method of birth control (contraceptive effect) by often leading to an end of periods: 98% protection during the 6 months following childbirth
• It reduces the risk of breast and ovarian cancer at an older age
• It also helps women lose weight after childbirth and regain their pre-pregnancy weight faster and thus helps fight obesity.
• Finally, breastfeeding reduces the risk of transmitting the AIDS virus: an HIV-positive mother (who can transmit the infection to her child during pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding) is less likely to transmit HIV to her. her child if she is taking antiretroviral therapy at the same time as breastfeeding her baby, according to the WHO.

Deciding whether or not to breastfeed your child is a very personal matter: it is up to you and your spouse only. The best choice is therefore the one that you will make with love for the well-being and comfort of your child.

Because of its virtues on the health of the baby, the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and the National Health Nutrition Program (PNNS), however, recommend exclusive breastfeeding until the last 6 months of the baby. child. Of course, breastfeeding can be continued beyond if the food diversification is well conducted.

But even if it is short-lived, breastfeeding is still very beneficial and widely encouraged by health professionals because breastmilk remains a milk with irreplaceable qualities and unique benefits.