Maternal raw milk proven superior to pasteurized milk in infant nutrition

Saturday, August 20, 2011 by: Anthony Gucciardi
Tags: raw milk, nutrition, health news

(NewsTarget) It seems that the benefits of a mother's raw milk for a newborn baby are being observed by scientists faster than synthetic baby formula companies can keep up. New research adds to the body of evidence that maternal raw milk is a super-potent nutrient cocktail that should be a part of every newborn's nutritional regiment; researchers are finding that a mother's raw milk is far superior to conventional milk when it comes to infant nutrition. The consumption of raw milk from the mother by the child resulted in improved growth compared with pasteurized donor milk.

The structure and utilization of breast milk is such that synthetic infant formula simply cannot compare. While it is true that toxic substances can accumulate in breast milk due to improper nutrition, even many toxic pollutants that may inhabit breast milk are not able to fully diminish the extreme benefits. Even with the average American diet containing hazardous ingredients, it is still evident that breast milk is a super-potent nutritional resource for infants. In fact it has even been found that the length of breast-feeding affects brain size and development.

Longer periods of breast-feeding in babies led to increased growth and development of the brain, according to a study performed by the University of Durham. What is more interesting is that the findings were not specific to humans. Around 127 species of mammals confirmed the findings, with mammals who were breast-fed for longer exhibiting accelerated brain development. The World Health Organization recommends that babies not only be exclusively breast-fed for the first 6 months of their life, but breast-feeding should also continue up to age 2 or older in combination with other foods. New findings are confirming that continued breast-feeding may be the key to optimal growth in babies and absolutely should not be discontinued after 6 months.

When looking at the breast-feeding routines of other mammals, it is easy to mathematically show that humans need an extended length of breast-feeding. Humans have 9-month pregnancies and should breast-feed their babies up to about 3 years. The average brain volume of an adult human is 1,300 cubic centimeters (cc). Fallow deer have roughly the same body weight as humans but are only pregnant for 7 months, followed by a suckling period of up to 6 months. Their brain size is 220cc, 6 times smaller than the human brain. Lead investigator and anthropology professor Robert Barton explains what this means for us:

"We already know that large-brained species develop more slowly, mature later and have longer lifespans, but what has not always been clear is why brains and life histories are related," he said.

"One theory is that large brains increase lifespan by making the animal more generally flexible in its behavioral responses to unpredictable challenges, permitting slower life histories. However, our findings suggest that the slow-down in life histories is directly related to the costs rather than the benefits of growing a large brain. The necessary benefits to offset these costs could come in other ways, such as improving specific perceptual and cognitive abilities, rather than through some generalized flexibility," he explained.

[Editor`s Note: NaturalNews is strongly against the use of all forms of animal testing. We fully support implementation of humane medical experimentation that promotes the health and wellbeing of all living creatures.]

Sources:
http://www.greenmedinfo.com/article/preterm-...
http://www.greenmedinfo.com/substance/breast...
http://www.nrdc.org/breastmilk/benefits.asp
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-...

About the author

Anthony Gucciardi is a health activist and wellness researcher, whose goal is centered around educating the general public as to how they may obtain optimum health. He has authored countless articles highlighting the benefits of natural health, as well as exposing the pharmaceutical industry. Anthony is the creator of Natural Society (http://www.NaturalSociety.com), a natural health website. Anthony has been accurately interpreting national and international events for years within his numerous political articles. Anthony's articles have been seen by millions around the world, and hosted on multiple top news websites.