Breastmilk and Breastfeeding: Facts at a Glance

2022 Parents Corner Int FLRF

Relevant sources of information and fast facts about breastfeeding and breastmilk for families in Switzerland

Content and links are reviewed regularly to bring you the most current information available. Is there a resource that you use, but do not see here? We might be interested in including it – please get in touch

If you are in Frauenfeld (Switzerland), we welcome you to visit our community breastfeeding room. It is a quiet, relaxing space for breastfeeding mothers, children and their families.

Informative websites for families

Fast facts about breastfeeding and breastmilk

Breastfeeding and breastmilk consumption produce zero-to-minimal waste

With no ‘industry’ required to manufacture breastmilk, its ecological footprint is feather light.

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Breastmilk is 87% water, keeping babies properly hydrated in the first 6 months

The ‘standard’ composition of breastmilk is 87% water, 3.8% fat, 1.0% protein and 7% lactose, keeping babies properly hydrated and nourished.

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Yet breastmilk composition changes dynamically – hourly, daily, weekly and monthly – adapting to each infant’s nutritional, developmental and immune needs.

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Mothers send signals about when to sleep, wake and eat to their newborns via breastmilk

Mothers help set their infants’ circadian clocks thanks to hormones like glucocorticoids and melatonin that pass from her plasma to her milk.

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Breastmilk concentrations of fat, proteins and amino acids, among others, differ dramatically from day to night, also helping infants develop their own circadian rhythms.

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Foods mothers eat change the flavor of their breastmilk

Sweet, bitter, sour, salty, umami – the flavors infants are exposed to via breastmilk contribute to their unique set of taste preferences.

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Infants exposed to a wide variety of flavors from healthy, nutrient-rich foods – first through amniotic fluid and later through breastmilk – can lead to healthier food choices and optimal health later in life.

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Breastmilk heals from the outside in

Thanks to its antibodies, a few drops of breastmilk can help treat cuts, soothe diaper rash or even help infants with eye and ear infections.

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Breastfed babies typically get sick less often than babies who do not receive breastmilk

When breastfed babies do get sick, they send signals to their mother via saliva to produce breastmilk that contains illness-specific antibodies.

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Breastfeeding mothers make a direct, positive contribution to the national economy through their supply of breastmilk

Yet not breastfeeding is calculated to cost nearly USD 600 billion per year in economic and human capital losses.

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Maternal health

Breastfeeding reduces a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer

The reduction effect increases with the number of months spent breastfeeding. In other words, the more time a mother spends breastfeeding, the more protection she gains against developing breast cancer.

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Breastfeeding can protect women from major non-communicable diseases

Breastfeeding duration is strongly linked to a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus and other chronic diseases like obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and hyperlipidemia.

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Breastfeeding may improve endometriosis and reduce its symptoms

Up to 10% of the general female population is affected by endometriosis, a gynecological, estrogen-dependent, inflammatory disease linked to everything from pelvic pain to trouble conceiving.

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Hormones involved in breastfeeding may prevent or mitigate the development endometriosis.

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Infant health

Benefits of breastfeeding and breastmilk extend throughout life

Individuals who had been breastfed show improved performance on intelligence tests and higher earnings in adulthood.

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Breastmilk can protect against developing metabolic diseases, like childhood obesity.

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Any amount of breastfeeding shows a protective trend for the prevention of asthma.

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Breastfeeding can save infant lives

Breastfeeding has a protective effect against sudden infant death syndrome.

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Globally, almost 600,000 childhood deaths are attributed to not breastfeeding annually.

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Breastfeeding can prevent lower respiratory tract infections

Breastfed babies are at lower risk for developing acute bronchitis, influenza and pneumonia.

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