Breastfeeding is not only the most natural way to provide nutrition for your baby, it is also the most complete way. There are many benefits of breastfeeding for mother and baby. The American Academy of Pediatrics (A.A.P.) recommends that for the first six months a baby should be breastfed exclusively and encourages mothers to nurse for at least the first of the baby's life. Breast feeding is important because it protects babies and supports long term health benefits. Nursing is also beneficial for the mother in numerous ways from physical health to psychological effects. There are benefits to society as well as in emergencies nursing is more beneficial. In this essay I will be talking about the benefits that come with the decision to breastfeed as opposed to formula feeding.

There are a number of ways nursing is beneficial to mothers long term and when presently nursing. The health benefits are only one of the reasons that a mother should make the choice to nurse her baby instead of formula feeding. Studies have shown that women who do not breastfeed are at higher risk for health problems such as breast and ovarian cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease among other serious health conditions. In a study that was done by Elanor Schwartz, the assistant professor of medicine, obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive science at the University of Pittsburgh it was shown that from 139,681 post menopausal women in the U.S. that breastfed for less than 12 months during their reproductive years had a higher risk hyperlipidemia and hypertension than woman who lactated for more than a year in total. Womean who had children and did not breastfeed has a 42.1% chance of developing hypertension and mothers who did breastfeed only had a 38.6% chance of developing hypertension. It was also shown that the longer a woman had lactated during reproductive years the less likely