is less expensive i've heard why is this?
2007-05-11 19:28:08 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
Baby food companies hate breastfeeding because it takes away their profit.
2007-05-11 19:31:33 · answer #1 · answered by ineedyourhelp 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are many reasons to breastfeed, including financial ones. You have gotten a lot of the obvious ones- no need to buy formula or bottles, saves on healthcare, etc, but let me give you a few less obvious ones too:
- If you are exclusively breastfeeding your periods shouldn't return for a while (average is about 14 months for those "ecologically breastfeeding") so you will save on feminine hygiene products
- Breastmilk is more readily digested so that the baby produces fewer eliminations. For you that means you save on diapers.
- Breastfeeding actually saves our entire society money. It has been estimated that between 2-4 billion dollars would be saved annually in healthcare if all women breastfed their babies for even just 12 weeks. This article has more about it:
http://www.savannahnow.com/node/248617
2007-05-12 12:04:24 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A child will eat more than one of the largest cans of formula in a month. Just one of those cans cost $25 at wal-mart (think cheapest). Now multiply that by at least 3 (though I believe it's more until they start eating food, but roughly 2-3 thereafter). Breastfeeding is no more money out of pocket than what you can eat with a couple of extra snacks more than while pregnant. So an extra maybe $20 a month tops on nutrients, that you most likely would have eaten in vain to add more pounds had you not breastfed (your body still goes through a period of hormone adjusting after birth that can cause you to eat extra until it realizes you're not pregnanat and not breastfeeding). Upside to all this, you'll burn those extra calories you added when breastfeeding!
2007-05-12 02:36:50 · answer #3 · answered by Sunshine Swirl 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Formula is between $12-$15 a can. If your baby doesn't tolerate regular formula, you'll have to buy more expensive ones like Nutramigen. Then there's all the bottles, nipples, bottle brushes, etc.
With breastfeeding, you don't have to worry about any of that. Even if you go back to work and pump, a pump is much cheaper than buying formula. And you'll need less bottles that way. I only have 3 bottles that I use. My daughter gets pumped breastmilk twice a week while I'm at work and my husband is home alone with her.
I never need to worry about having water to mix formula with, warming up a bottle, hearing my daughter cry while I'm getting her meal together. I just lift up my shirt and feed her.
2007-05-12 02:36:28 · answer #4 · answered by ban26ana 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Because formula costs about $20-30 a week, that's only if your child doesn't need special formula, for breastfeeding you just need to eat healthy, which you should already be doing to keep up your energy for taking care of the baby, you may need a pump which could cost your $200 for a good one. Plus you are going to have a lot healthier child, less visits to the doctors, less time off of work, less co-pays and prescriptions.
2007-05-12 02:58:53 · answer #5 · answered by maxtonamvl 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There are many financial advantages to breastfeeding:
• no need to buy formula, which can be very expensive
• no need to buy bottles, bottle nipples, or bottle liners
• no need to run the dishwasher daily just to sterilize dirty bottles and nipples
• no need to continually replace baby's clothing... formula stains are very difficult to get out
• no need to buy bottle warmers for house or car
And there's another big reason that breastfeeding can help you financially. Babies that are exclusively breastfed tend to be healthier and less prone to ear infections than formula-fed babies. This means less visits to the doctor, less co-pays, and less prescriptions to pay for... not to mention less days of work missed because baby is sick (if you're planning to go back to work, that is).
There are, of course, many reasons to nurse a baby other than the financial, and I'd be happy to share them with you if you'd like. But you specifically asked about the financial benefits, so I hope this helps.
2007-05-12 02:44:20 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
It's less expensive because it is absolutely free. You don't have to buy anything to breastfeed. If you bottle feed you have to buy bottles, lots of formula, and all the bottle cleaning supplies. Formula can cost a lot of money depending on what brand you are buying. Even the "cheap" brands are pretty expensive.
2007-05-12 02:35:15 · answer #7 · answered by familyfan 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
financially?!?
i think it's more about health. all during your pregnancy, your body sustained this child in your womb. breast feeding is just a continuation of that and it is your assurance of a healthy diet that insures the healthy state of your child.
in my estimation, health is the ultimate priority of a human being. if your health isn't here, neither are you. oh, and another thing, if you are a good parent, then your child deserves a fighting chance in this dirty old world and you need to make sure that happens, by God!
financially?!
2007-05-12 02:47:11 · answer #8 · answered by ? 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
You just have to eat right, you don't have to buy bottles, formula, water. You don't have as many healthcare costs or as many missed days of work even when the child enters school as breastfed babies' immune systems are better developed.
2007-05-12 02:32:23 · answer #9 · answered by Momofthreeboys 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
breast milk is FREE! Have you ever priced a can of formula. It is between $20-$25 for a large can. That will last you about a week.
2007-05-12 02:32:28 · answer #10 · answered by shannon 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋