Articles and information on breastfeeding and gut health from the blog of GetzWell Pediatrics, a Holistic Pediatrician group in the Bay Area.

breastfeeding and gut health

Articles and information on breastfeeding and gut health from the blog of GetzWell Pediatrics, a Holistic Pediatrician group in the Bay Area.

Benefits of Breastfeeding

This past January Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin announced the The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding.  Due to mounting evidence of breastfeeding’s myriad health benefits she declared its promotion a national priority.  Indeed, most people have heard about the passage of immunities from mothers to their breastfed infants, but few parents have been informed that formula-fed babies are at higher risk for developing lower respiratory infections, asthma, atopic dermatitis, obesity, necrotizing enterocolitis, type 1 and type 2 diabetes, childhood leukemia, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).  In fact, the Surgeon General estimates that if 90% of mothers breastfed exclusively for 6 months, nearly 1,000 deaths among infants could be prevented annually!

What are Probiotics?

Probiotics are the beneficial bacteria and yeast that live in our intestinal tracts and help support not only good digestion and optimal absorption of nutrients but our overall health and well being.  It sounds strange, but these single cell organisms affect us in ways we can hardly imagine and which modern science is now beginning to elucidate.  Probiotics may help promote healthy mood, keep us from sniffling and sneezing, and bind toxins and heavy metals (like mercury) in order to better excrete these poisons.  By the time we are adults, 3-4 lbs of our body weight is accounted for by these organisms alone!  However, most of us in modern industrial society do not have an optimal mix of intestinal bacteria due to antibiotics, antacids, stress, lack of sleep, fast food, and hydrogenated oils, among other culprits.