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Wiktionary
breastfeeding

n. The activity of feeding a baby or young child milk from the breast of a lactating woman. vb. (present participle of breastfeed English)

Wikipedia
Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding or nursing is the feeding of babies and young children with milk from a woman's breast. Health professionals recommend that breastfeeding begin within the first hour of a baby's life and continued as often and as much as the baby wants. During the first few weeks of life babies may nurse roughly every two to three hours. The duration of a feeding is usually ten to fifteen minutes on each breast. Older children feed less often. Mothers may pump milk so that it can be used later when breastfeeding is not possible. Breastfeeding has a number of benefits to both mother and baby, which infant formula lacks.

Deaths of an estimated 820,000 children under the age of five could be prevented globally every year with increased breastfeeding. Breastfeeding decreases the risk of respiratory tract infections and diarrhea, both in developing and developed countries. Other benefits include lower risks of asthma, food allergies, celiac disease, type 1 diabetes, and leukemia. Breastfeeding may also improve cognitive development and decrease the risk of obesity in adulthood. Mothers may feel pressure to breastfeed; however in the developed world children generally grow up normally when bottle feed.

Benefits for the mother include less blood loss following delivery, better uterus shrinkage, weight loss, and less postpartum depression. Breastfeeding delays the return of menstruation and fertility, a phenomenon known as lactational amenorrhea. Long term benefits for the mother include decreased risk of breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, and rheumatoid arthritis. Breastfeeding is often less expensive than infant formula.

Health organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), recommend only breastfeeding for six months. This means that no other foods or drinks other than possibly vitamin D are typically given. After the introduction of foods at six months of age, they recommend continued breastfeeding until at least one to two years of age. Globally about 38% of infants are only breastfed during their first six months of life. In the United States, about 75% of women begin breastfeeding and about 13% only breastfeed until the age of six months. Medical conditions that do not allow breastfeeding are rare. Mothers who take certain recreational drugs and medications should not breastfeed. Smoking, limited intake of alcohol, and coffee are not reasons to avoid breastfeeding.

Usage examples of "breastfeeding".

Instead he walked into the living room, where he found Calliope sitting on an ancient sofa next to an attractive brunette who was breastfeeding an infant.

The smell that came off the blanket, a mix of sour milk and sweet baby, made her sad, and even though she had stopped breastfeeding months ago, her breasts ached for her son.

It is good for improving a sluggish metabolic rate, for reducing all swelling, especially fluid retention, for premenstrual tension, for aiding breastfeeding and for easing an infant's colic and restlessness.

Janey, who was well stuck into the Bellinger, was breastfeeding again.