Need for Mother's Love All Along

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Gautam_Belle]Gautam Belle
Who fed me from her gentle breast
And hushed me in her arms to rest,
And on my cheek sweet kisses prest?
My Mother.
~Anne Taylor
This quote hardly means anything to most women in this fast moving 21st century. Even though mothers will always love their children, they may not get enough opportunities to express it. Children need mother's love in every way from the very beginning of their life; from their conception by the mother. When in the womb, a foetus is said to respond to every thought of the mother; which is why anxiety or any kind of bad mental influence is said to affect the foetus. After the birth of the baby the mother bonds with her child through breastfeeding. Breastfeeding the baby is, indeed, the first step a mother takes to protect her child from the world. This is what it used to be like, in the old days. But today, our technical advancement may have led us to forsake our natural ways.
The importance of breastfeeding is not known to all. Most people see it as a genuine practice; a sort of thing that is done to feed a baby. This ill-knowledge has led people to believe that breastfeeding can be replaced with other milk or baby food without much adverse effects. On the contrary, it adversely affects both mother and child. According to physicians, mothers should start breastfeeding their babies within the first hour after the baby is born. This is very important for the long-term survival of the baby because at the end of pregnancy colostrum (yellowish, sticky breast milk) is produced in the mother. This colostrum is very nutritious and is the perfect food for the newborn baby. WHO (World Health Organization) recommends that mothers breastfeed their babies exclusively for 6 months and then with complementary foods up to 2 years of age or beyond.
It is essential for mothers to follow the breastfeeding regime that WHO has recommended. Initially, the breast milk content is rich in the nutrients mentioned in the above table. But after the first week the composition starts predominating in fat and lactose. Even in a single feeding, the milk produced becomes more fatty as the full breast empties. The fat in the breast milk has high nutritional importance. It helps metabolize (use up) the vitamins. Also, a specific fatty acid, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), is essentially required for brain development. This fatty acid is a long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LPC) and is found in huge amounts in our brain and retina. Depriving a baby of breast milk is depriving it from these essential nutrients and, thus, risking its normal growth and mental development.
A recent study conducted on the population of Tamil Nadu, India showed that many mothers fail to breastfeed their babies leading to the death of the babies within 5 years of age. "Nearly 1.65lakh children below the age of five years die every year in Tamil Nadu. A major reason for this is the lack of exclusive breast feeding during the first six months of the infant," said Dr D Gunasingh, Child Specialist, Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children, Chennai. The reason for this malpractice was found to be the increasing number of C-section deliveries of pregnant women. Apart from this, some women complained of lack of milk. According to Dr D Gunasingh there are solutions to both the problems without having to compromise the breastfeeding of the baby at any time. He says the mother can feed her baby by placing it on her abdomen after the C-section delivery. If it hurts, then the baby can be placed over the mother's shoulder upside down, while the mother is lying, with the help of another person and the feeding can happen. As for the lack of milk he says, "Frequent suckling and complete emptying is the way to ensure enough secretion of milk."
Even after all these efforts for awareness about breastfeeding, many women do not emphasise on practicing it. Major cause could be the lack of knowledge of its importance to them and their babies. They seem to give in too easily when confronted with some problems, as seen in the study discussed above. Studies have also shown that pregnant women can breastfeed their toddlers without any harm to their foetus. Some physicians might express doubt but it is safe. According to the La Leche League International Breastfeeding Answer Book, 3rd Edition 2003, page 407, uterine contractions maybe felt during such breastfeeding.
As has already been mentioned before, there are numerous benefits of breastfeeding.
For the baby,
Breast milk provides them initial immunity and strength to fight diseases. This is essential because a baby's immune system (a system of cells and organs in living beings that helps fight disease-causing organisms) does not develop fully till 6 months of age.
Studies have also shown that breastfed children have higher intelligence than children who have never been breastfed.
Also, breastfed children have less chances of suffering from childhood obesity, diabetes, and have less chances of being overweight later in life, according to certain other studies.

Similarly, there are benefits to the mother too.
Breastfeeding soon after giving birth increases the mother's oxytocin (a hormone that regulates production of milk in females) level, making her uterus contract more quickly and reducing bleeding.
The fat accumulated during pregnancy is used to produce milk. Extended breastfeeding can help mothers lose weight.
Breastfeeding may delay the return to fertility for some women by suppressing ovulation (the process of release of the human egg into the fallopian tubes which directs it to the uterus).
Reduces risk of certain cancers in breastfeeding mothers. Apart from this, breastfeeding mothers have less chances of suffering from rheumatoid arthritis depending on how long they continued.

The world would not see so many infant deaths if only mothers would make efforts to breastfeed their babies.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Need-for-Mothers-Love-All-Along&id=6536651] Need for Mother's Love All Along