The Importance of Breastfeeding and Its Role in Infant Development

While breastfeeding is not easy by any stretch of the imagination, it provides some very important immune essentials to the infant that may otherwise leave the child open for serious infection throughout life. These days mothers feel a great amount of social pressure against nursing due to social commitments and professional commitments, both of which make breastfeeding complicated. Time constraints from work, embarrassment due to public feeding, and the unease of learning how to breast feed, can cause a woman to opt for the use of formula. However, perhaps lack of proper education on the benefits of breastfeeding are also to blame for the discrepancy between mothers who breastfeed and mothers who don't.

At times breastfeeding may just seem like a motion that mothers have to go through in order to feed their child, yet a woman's breast milk contains vital nutrients that aid in protection again microbial invasion as well as the development of the child's immune system. According to Chiras (2005) "The incidence of gastroenteritis (inflammation of the intestine), otitis (ear infections), and upper respiratory infections is lower in breast-fed babies" (pg 266). Chiras further notes the lower incidence of lymphoma and other childhood cancers in breast-fed babies as compared to their bottle-fed counterparts. This difference is due to the fact that a mother's milk contains immunoglobulins, one of the most important being Colostrum.

Colostrum is an immunoglobulin that serves to prevent bacteria from adhering to the epithelium by coating the lining of the intestines. This creates a situation in which the newborn has a first line of defense again microbial invasion. This is especially important since a newborn's immune system is very poorly and inadequately developed. Another form of defense comes from lysozyme, an enzyme found in breast milk (from the mother's immune system). Lysozyme's job is to kill bacteria by dissolving their cell walls. Both of these advantages come only with a mother's breast milk, as formulas cannot provide these immune essentials.

Besides providing the infant with an immediate defense, breast milk also aids in the development of the child's immune system. While this is only a theory at this point, research suggests that "...the proteins speed up the maturation of B cells and prime them for antibody production. These soluble proteins may also activate macrophages, which play a key role in the immune system" (Chiras, 2005, 267).

Under these circumstances a mother must ask herself whether the risks of not breastfeeding are worth it. Higher risk of cancer and other health problems throughout life, in addition to the fact that formula is harder for the baby to digest, are ample reasons for a mother to opt for breastfeeding. Still, it is a choice each woman has to make. Unfortunately, too few are actually educated on the true role of breast milk in immunity and the building of the immune system. With far too many instances of childhood ear infections, childhood cancers, and respiratory infections, perhaps health organizations, such as the CDC, and educational systems, need to provide more complete and accessible information on breast feeding. This also includes classes and support groups for mothers that are having trouble. It is important for women to realize that breastfeeding is something that is learned. With better education, accessibility, and understanding, surely a woman would opt to breastfeed, or pump breast milk for use in a bottle so that their infant can benefit from the immune essentials present in the natural nourishment of early life.

Sources:

Chiras, D, D. (2005). Human Biology, 5^th Edition. Sudbury, Mass., Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Pg 266 - 267.

La Leche League International. (2008). Resources. Retrieved March 24, 2008, from http://www.llli.org/resources.html?m=0

Medline Plus. (2008). Breast Feeding. Retrieved March 24, 2008, from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/breastfeeding.html