Breastfeeding
Also known as nursing, the practice of providing an infant or toddler with nutrition from mother's milk via direct sucking on the breast.
Breastfeeding has nutritional, immunological, and developmental benefits for the child, as well as physiological and emotional benefits for the mother. Breast milk is a unique combination of fats, sugars, minerals, proteins, vitamins, and enzymes that lowers an infant's risk of infections, including diarrheal and urinary tract infections and pneumonia. It has been shown to lower infant susceptibility to atopic diseases, diabetes, the herpes simplex virus, lymphomas, Crohn's disease, and gastrointestinal problems. Breastfed babies have higher IQs than their bottle-fed counterparts. Women who
| Country | Percent of mothers who |
| | start breastfeeding | continue breastfeeding for 6 months or longer |
| Source: Baby Milk Action, Cambridge, England; Center for Breastfeeding Information, Schaumburg, Illinois, as quoted in Parenting (April 1997). |
| Sweden | 98 | 53 |
| Norway | 98 | 50 |
| Poland | 93 | 10 |
| Canada | 80 | 24 |
| Netherlands | 68 | 25 |
| Britain | 63 | 21 |
| United States | 57 | 20 |
breastfeed recover from childbirth more quickly, return to pre-pregnancy weight sooner, and are better able to space their natural born children due to the suppression of ovulation during lactation.
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