Does Breastfeeding Make You Lose Weight?

Does breastfeeding make you gain weight? That is a question asked by many new mothers who find that their breasts are growing slightly larger after giving birth. This often happens to first time mothers who have chosen to breastfeed rather than bottle feed. However, breastfeeding will definitely make you gain weight if you do not give it the appropriate nutrients. If you are not getting enough iron, protein or other nutrients, your body is going to begin to break down muscle rather than fat.

A recent study concluded that breastfed infants increased their daily caloric intake by five percent on average. The nursing mothers who continued to breastfeed for one year increased their daily caloric intake by an additional four percent and they lost ten pounds per month. This was a much larger weight loss than the eight pounds per month gained by bottle-fed infants.

There are numerous benefits to breastfeeding. One of them being the valuable use of mother's time. It takes more than twenty minutes of nursing time to give a baby their first meal. For some people, this amount of time may be difficult to commit to. Breastfeeding can help you accomplish this. It will help you save time by reducing the amount of times you need to prepare a meal and it can help you avoid empty calories or snack foods that usually contain zero calories.

Another reason to breastfeed is because breastfeeding helps you prevent weight gain. A recent study showed that women who breastfed were able to significantly reduce their risk of developing gestational diabetes after introducing solid food to their infants. The women who owned exclusively had much lower rates of becoming overweight or obese during their pregnancy and throughout the first months of their babies' lives. Their premature births also decreased, which was also a significant weight loss for the mothers.

Breastfeeding can also promote weight loss. Many studies have shown links between breastfeeding and greater weight loss in some people. Babies who are breastfed tend to weigh less at the onset of their first birthday than those who were bottle fed. These same babies also weigh less at six months of age and remain lean at 18 months of age. Studies have proven that breastfeed babies grow up with less obesity than do formula-fed babies.

As far as fitness, another reason to breastfeed is that it helps you develop better eating habits. Nursing babies require more attention and care than do formula-fed ones. This attention and care help, a nursing mother to learn what foods provide her baby with the nutrients that she needs to help him grow and develop properly. Many parents find that taking their baby out for more walks, jogging, or other forms of exercise helps them lose weight in a healthy manner. A mother who is interested in losing weight may find that breastfeeding her baby will encourage her to exercise.

Finally, breastfeeding may decrease your risk of developing diseases that cause weight gain such as diabetes and hypertension. Both of these diseases are more common in women who are overweight. Research has shown that breastfeeding decreases the risk of developing both of these diseases by as much as 48 percent.

When a mother chooses to breastfeed her child instead of using formula, she can be sure that her baby is getting the nutrition he needs to grow and develop healthily. He gets all of the vitamins and minerals that he would from breast milk alone. He receives much needed protein, which helps his body to produce hormones that help him grow. He also receives iron which helps with blood pressure. There are many other reasons why breastfeeding can promote weight loss.