Plastic surgery blog:Breast milk for first six months is better for baby

Breast feeding is best for baby but can take a toll on a woman's body

According news channel 8 In 2004, Galanakis and his colleagues looked at the feeding patterns and infection rates among nearly 1,000 Greek infants from birth to 1 year of age. All the infants had received their routine vaccinations and all were deemed to have access to high-quality health care.

The study authors found that at the 1-month mark, a little more than 60 percent of the mothers breast-fed their infants to some degree, but only about 25 percent did so exclusively.

At the six-month mark, only 17 percent continued to breast-feed, and only 10 percent did so exclusively.

Infection incidence — including respiratory and urinary infections, ear infections (otitis media), stomach upsets (gastroenteritis), conjunctivitis and thrush — were tracked at the one-, three-, six-, nine- and 12-month marks.

Analyzing the numbers, the researchers observed that the longer an infant was breast-fed exclusively, the lower the child’s risk for infection. Longer exclusive breast-feeding also appeared to translate into fewer visits to a doctor and fewer infection-related hospital admissions.

The finding, which has been seen in previous studies, held up even after accounting for other factors that can influence the frequency of infections, including exposure to cigarette smoke, ethnicity, the number of siblings in a household, and parental age and education.

This study proves what we have known for some time that breast milk is best for baby. Dr. Stuart Kincaid consults with mothers after they have finished breast-feeding who often complain about loose skin and loss of volume in their breast. Dr. Stuart Kincaid recommends a breast lift and an implant to restore the breast to their prepregnancy volume and shape. Patients are typically thrilled with the results.

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