Breast or Bottle feeding

Naturally you are free to choose between breast- or bottle-feeding. Research shows that breast-feeding is the best feeding for the health of both mother and child. Mother milk contains the most important nutrients and antibodies that will stimulate your baby’s growth and provides protection against infections. Moreover, the risk of developing allergies is reduced. Breast-feeding is a natural process that requires quite a lot of practice (mainly) in the first week. It is important to get the production of milk well underway and to learn to latch in the right way. The maternity assistant and the midwife will support you with this as well. We can also consult the lactation expert if needed. Starting with breastfeeding doesn’t always go smoothly, fortunately most issues are easy to solve and won’t last long, which makes the time invested well worth the effort.

There are also situations in which the parents are better off choosing bottle-feeding. For example in case of certain drug use, or if the mother is dreading breastfeeding. Eventually, a healthy mum, who feels at ease with what she does, is most important. Formula is available in various types and brands. If there are allergies in the family we recommend a hypoallergenic type of formula. Furthermore, it is important to keep using the same brand of formula. This will prevent change of flavour and colic as much as possible.

During the pregnancy you can always approach us with questions about breastfeeding or bottle-feeding.

In some cases it may be useful to contact the lactation expert already during your pregnancy. The lactation expert is a specialist in the field of breastfeeding. Guidance by a lactation expert will be (partly) covered by most health insurers.

For more information on breastfeeding we refer to the following website www.LaLecheLeague.nl.