Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding has many incredible health benefits such as reducing the chances of many diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Keep in mind that the faster your baby gains weight, even in first week or month, the higher is her/his chance of developing obesing or diabetes later in life. The first few months in your baby’s lifespan are the most critical stage and during that time your baby can develop obesity, hypertension or asthma. One of the early life factors contributing to obesity is that the child hasn’t been breastfed long enough and has been introduced to solid foods pretty early.
Breastfeeding Role in early Obesity Prevention
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding especially for the first 6 months to a year with combination of solid foods after 6 months for children. Research shows that the chances of obesity is a lot less when the baby is breastfed. Breastfeeding is effective in lowering the chances of the mother developing gestational diabetes or type 2 diabetes.Baby Cries aren’t Always for Hunger
Your baby isn’t necessarily hungry when he/she is crying, sometimes the baby cries when they want attention, they aren’t comfortable or they are bored. The idea of feeding your baby every time they cry can wrongly shape your child’s eating habits. So the baby starts developing some sort of a pattern that when they are hungry they are fed, when they are uncomfortable they are fed, when they are bored they are fed and when they cry for any other reasons they are fed.
The American Academy of Pediatrics also suggests introdcuing solid foods to your child's diet after 6 months. Science proves that introducing solid foods to babies before the age of 6 month can significantly increase the chances of obesity and by the time the children are two or three years old they develop obesity. Solid food feeding and not breastfeeding long enough have a strong correlation with obesity.
Eliminating Sugary Sweetened Beverages
The diet in babies can also develop certain early behavioral patterns. It is really important not to introduce sugary sweetened beverages to young children and eliminate sugar in your child's diet. Even fruit juices should be limited; juices can have the same amount of sugar as soda. Studies show that children start developing food preferences during their childhood based on what they are fed, how they are fed and how often they are fed.
