7.       CORRECT WEIGHT LOSS.

A mother puts on about 9 lbs. in readiness for her milk supply. If she doesn't nurse her baby, that weight does not come off easily. This problem is intensified if the mother herself was bottle fed or given fatty food in childhood. If too many fat cells are produced in childhood they remain on the body, waiting to be filled up when the adult eats a high calorie meal.

Some mothers say they haven't lost weight during nursing, but usually they have only breastfeed for a short while. Long-term nursing will always reduce weight. In fact, this is one time in your life, when you can eat what you want without worrying! Also, breastfeeding causes the uterus to contract and retract to its former state in the first few weeks.

8.       LESS WORK.

No need to prepare bottles or solid foods. Each time the baby needs you, it is another opportunity to sit down and put your feet up - or even take the baby to bed with you. If you have little ones around, it is an opportunity to gather them around you as you nurse your baby and read them a story or relate to them. Nursing keeps you close to your baby and your other children.

You also don't have to worry when baby cries. Put the baby to the breast for whatever needs the baby has. It takes all the worry out of mothering. It is interesting to note that mothers who feed this way are usually the mothers who want more babies.

WHEN SHOULD YOU WEAN YOUR BABY?

A baby should be weaned when it is ready to wean, which if a baby is given this opportunity, will be at about two to three years of age. Research reveals that peoples in the world who do not substitute with animal milk of some kind nurse their babies for 3 - 5 years.

Dake's commentary of the Bible suggests that Moses was five years old when he was weaned and ready to start his education in the Egyptian court; Samuel was five years old when we was weaned and taken to the prophet, Eli; Isaac was five years old when he was weaned and they celebrated with a weaning party.

Let's look at the mammal kingdom. We are also mammals, although more than that, for we are human beings created in the image of God. Young mammals that grow rapidly and mature early have correspondingly short nursing periods. Young mammals that grow slowly and develop late have correspondingly long nursing periods.

The human infant grows slowest of all and reaches maturity latest and therefore should have a correspondingly longer nursing period.  Large numbers of mammalian species reach maturity, reproduce themselves, live out their life span and die in less time than it takes for men to attain maturity and yet many of these nurse longer than most women.

Dr. Niles Newton tells of a study that suggests that the duration of breastfeeding may be related to the amount of social learning required. As long as a mammal is lactating, the young tend to stay near the mother and thus can possibly learn more from her. Marked differences exist in the duration of the nursing of aquatic mammals.

Some are simple grazers of the sea and nurse only 7 - 10 months. Others, like the porpoises have complex social structures and sophisticated navigational systems and they nurse for 18 - 25 months. He states, "The effect of the unbiologically early weaning in human infants is not known, but it is possible that learning ability and socialization are influenced by date of weaning."

Here's the words of an old Egyptian sage, 'Three longs years she carried thee upon her shoulder and gave thee her breast to thy mouth, and as thy size increased her heart never once allowed her to say, "why should I do this?"'

The advantages of later weaning are more than physical. In fact, as the baby grows and enters the second year, the mother is not necessarily feeding her baby for sustenance as he can get that from other food. She continues to nurse to satisfy his inner needs that are just as important as his physical. I am sure that a baby who is allowed to nurse for two to three years will have a basis of security and confidence for his future years.

This article is reprinted from,

THE POWER OF MOTHERHOOD

There are discussion questions at the end of each chapter for use in personal mediation or in group study.

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