10 Awesome Facts About Breastfeeding You Didn't Know

Breastfeeding is a magnificent thing! It helps moms and babies bond and it contains all the nutrients your growing baby needs. But there is much more to breastfeeding than simply feeding an infant. Read on to discover the weird and wonderful facts about breastfeeding that most people don't know!

Bounce back into shape quickly

Are you wanting to shed your baby weight quickly? Breastfeeding burns a whopping 200-600 calories per day, depending on how often they feed. Pumping breast milk also burns calories.

Breast milk is not always white

Did you know that healthy breast milk comes in a variety of different colours? That's right, breast milk can be yellow, blue, pink, orange and even green! This depends on what you eat and what type of milk is coming out (colostrum, transitional milk, foremilk or hindmilk).

Temperature regulation

Breastfeeding mothers are just like thermometers! They instinctually sense how warm or cool their baby is, and their body will change the temperature of their breast milk accordingly. On colder days, the breast milk will be warmer. On warmer days, the breast milk will be cooler! 

Breast milk varies in smell and taste

Your breast milk's smell and taste changes according to the different flavours of food and drinks you consume! Not only is it beneficial for you and your little one to consume a variety of nutrients, exposing babies to a variety of flavours from a young age often results in them being less picky once they're introduced to solid food. 

Each breast is unique

Each breast functions independently from the other. One breast may experience engorgement and the other one not. The milk from one breast may contain different nutrients or different tastes than the other!  

Size doesn't matter

A common misconception is that bigger breasts produce more milk. The amount of milk you're able to produce has nothing to do with breast size, as the size is determined by the amount of adipose or fatty tissue, whereas the amount of milk produced is determined by hormones and glandular tissue. Yup, this means that women with small breasts can produce more milk than women with big breasts! 

Bacteria feed off breast milk, too

Babies can't digest certain parts of human breast milk but the healthy bacteria in their digestive system can. This means that the mother is feeding both her baby and her baby's gut microbiome, helping to promote a healthy and balanced gut!

Prevents postpartum depression

Breastfeeding stimulates your brain's happy hormones! While you're breastfeeding, your brain releases prolactin and oxytocin (the "feel good" hormones) which not only helps you bond with the baby, but prevents postpartum depression, anxiety and even boredom.

Breast milk is not sterile

Human breast milk contains a plethora of non-nutritive bio-factors perfectly suited for the growing baby. In other words, human breast milk is not sterile and contains a multitude of bacteria! Per day, a breastfeeding baby will consume between hundreds of thousands to millions of beneficial microorganisms.

Speedy recovery

Not only does breastfeeding encourage the shedding of baby weight, but the hormones released during breastfeeding speeds up the healing process after childbirth, assisting the uterus to shrink back to its pre-pregnancy size.

Do you have any interesting breastfeeding knowledge or experiences? Let us know in the comments below!

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