Breastfeeding better than vaccines at preventing infection

Thursday, September 30, 2010 by: Ethan A. Huff, staff writer
Tags: breastfeeding, infections, health news

(NaturalNews) Researchers in Greece are urging mothers to exclusively breastfeed their babies for at least the first six months of their lives, based on new research findings. According to the study, babies who are exclusively breastfed for the first six months experience fewer infections than those who are either breastfed for a shorter period of time, or fed formula in addition to breast milk.

Professor Emmanouil Galanakis and his colleagues tracked nearly 1,000 infants for a year, keeping track of their health. They then evaluated how the children were fed throughout their early months of development, and compared the results. They found that fully breastfed kids had significantly fewer infections than the other children.

"Mothers should be advised by health professionals that, in addition to all the other benefits, exclusive breastfeeding helps prevent infections in babies and lessens the frequency and severity of infectious episodes," said researchers.

Mothers' breastmilk contains vital antibodies, nutrients, vitamins and immunological factors that babies need to develop natural immunity to disease. In other words, breastfeeding is the optimal and natural way to instill immunity in children, eliminating the need for chemical-laden vaccines that often cause more harm than good.

The research also serves as another wake-up call to mothers everywhere about the importance of breastfeeding, not only for their children's health but also for their own.

"We know that breastfeeding is the default method of infant feeding for babies; good for mothers and good for...health," Janet Fyle from the Royal College of Midwives in the U.K. is quoted as saying in a recent BBC article. "This is why we need to continue our efforts to ensure that we maintain a high rate of breastfeeding."

Sources for this story include:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-11417490