Breastfeeding

 

Breastmilk is more than food. It’s a complex living substance, like blood, full of active germ-fighting and health-promoting ingredients. Breastfed babies experience fewer incidents of ear infections, allergies, diarrhea, bacterial meningitis, childhood lymphoma, sudden death syndrome, and diabetes.These benefits of breastmilk help protect babies against all kinds of infections, common and not-so-common. Breastfeeding is also sustainable and leaves behind no carbon footprint (Bartle, 2011). It is FREE, convienient, clean and safe, and always available at the right temperature when you need it (Pollard, 2012) .

 

The benefits of Breastfeeding

 

• Optimal Nutrition！

 

Breast milk is the natural first food for babies, it provides all the energy and nutrients that the infant needs for the first months of life, and it continues to provide up to half or more of a child’s nutritional needs during the second half of the first year, and up to one-third during the second year of life. (WHO, 2014).

 

• Boosting Immunity！

 

Breast milk is customed designed to protect a woman's baby. When a baby is exposed to a new germ, it's mother’s body manufactures antibodies to that germ. These antibodies show up in her milk and are passed along to her baby. Many a breastfeeding mother can tell the story of the entire familycoming down with the flu and the breastfeeding baby having the mildest case, or not getting sick at all.

 

• Boosting Brain Function！

 

New evidence shows that there are nutrients in breastmilk that enhance brain growth. Children who were breastfed have I.Q. scores averaging seven to ten points higher than formula-fed children. It’s important to remember that these numbers represent averages for hundreds of children, not the effect of breastfeeding on a specific individual. So, if you want to raise the intelligence level of an entire generation of children, breastfeeding would be a simple and cost-effective way to do it (askdrsears, 2013).

 

 

• Improving Maternal Health！
   

Breastfeeding provides benefits to the mother who breastfeeds as well as to her baby. Women who breastfeed reduce their risk of ovarian cancer, pre-menopausal breast cancer, and post-menopausal hip fractures; reduce postpartum bleeding and iron deficiency anemia; and delay ovulation as a natural means of child spacing (Godfrey & Lawrence, 2010; Henderson, 2010)

 

 

 

 

Breastfeeding Support Services in Wellington

 

 

• Newtown Breastfeeding Centre 
  Place:       Newtown Community & Cultural Centre,

                         Cnr of Rintoul & Columbo Streets, Newtown
        Time:        Monday 10.00am~12:30pm (term time only)
        Tel:           021 355041

 

•         The Breastfeeding Centre
            Place:       Tamariki Ora Whare at Ora Toa Health Unit

                             20 Ngatitoa Street, Takapuwahia, Porirua.
            Time:        Tuesday 10:00am~2:00pm
         

•         Plunket Family Centres (Breastfeeding Support)

                  Place:        19 Rotoiti Street, Johnsonville

                  Time:         Tuesday 10:00am~11:30am
                  Tel:            478 7918  

              

                  Place:        61 Freyberg St, Lyall Bay / Rongatai
                  Time:         Wednesday 9:00am~12:00pm, Thursday by appointment only
                  Tel:            387 7594

 

•         La Leche League

                  Place:        103 Owen Street, Newtown

                 Time:          First Wednesday of the month 1:45pm~
                  Tel:            Isa 473 2447

                                    Rona 021 535 479

                                    Leslie 970 3320

                                    Christine 976 7737

                                    or email lllnzwellington@gmail.com