Hello, today still talking about my baby and the obligation to give her the best in life including her health and wellbeing.
Preparing for parenthood should really be discussed by the couple extensively.
Why do I say so?
DECISION
I want to use myself and my wife as a case study for this post today.
There's a saying "You are what you eat".
My wife and I sat down,talked about when we want to conceive,talked about when our Baby would be born,talked about practicing Exclusive Baby feeding,then we swung into action.
ACTION PLAN
We started by treating ourselves,you know taking medication against malaria and typhoid.
After that,we started taking Folic Acid daily for 30days,to improve our vitamin intake,we went on to take fresh fruits such as water melon, oranges, green apples,alot of groundnuts, banana, alot of carrots and green beans,etc.
After we took all these,we went ahead to calculate my wife's ovulation time and she took in.
Note,we continued taking the folic acid,we went to a very good hospital, registered her for antenatal.
Its a beautiful experience because each trimester came with body changes due to hormonal changes,thereby preparing the body for delivery.
SUPPORT
I want to strongly admonish that men should make the sacrifice of going for antenatal with their wives.
It hurts to see about 50 pregnant women in antenatal class and you look around only to see 3 men(husbands) who came with their wives.
It's so pathetic to see these women go through alot of discomfort during the 9month journey.
I consciously ensured I wash,cook,go to the market, massage and be by her side to talk with her.
I know some of you will say "this must be a jobless husband",no, am not jobless, infact I've 2 jobs that requires my attention each day that passes.
The question is how did I achieve all these if I have a very busy schedule.
I made sure that my job does not interfere with my family.
I go to the market after close of work, make sure I buy things in large quantities so it could last for a while.
I come home to cook,serve her,do the dishes afterwards,put the rest into containers and refrigerate it.
I do the washing most times at night so as not to have littered clothes pilled up and smelly.
With the little strength remaining,I try to mop the house with disinfectant and afterwards I retire to bed, cuddle her and our unborn baby and sleep, sometimes am moved to do my manly duties at night....Lol.
BREASTFEEDING EXCLUSIVELY
Remember, we've done everything the doctor asked us to do just to stay healthy and for our baby to be healthy as well.
When our Baby was born,my wife asked me this question:Are we still doing BABY FRIENDLY?
I responded,yes of course we are.
Alot of our parents put us through some rigorous moments ranging from when they want to bath,feed or give us drugs.
Most times even after the immunization,we still contracted measles, chicken pox, conjunctivitis,etc.
BENEFITS OF EXCLUSIVE
Breast milk has ideal nutrition for babies
Breast milk consists of everything baby needs for the first 6 months of life, in all the right proportions. Its texture also changes according to the baby’s changing needs, especially during the first month of life.
About the first days after birth, your breasts produce a thick and yellowish fluid called colostrum. It has a high deposit of protein, low in sugar.
Colostrum is the authentic first milk and helps the newborn’s immature digestive tract develop.Breast milk contains important antibodies
Breast milk is rich with antibodies that help your baby fight off viruses and bacteria, which is critical in those tender, early months.
If exposed to viruses or bacteria, you start producing antibodies that then go into the milk. It’s immunity,baby !
- Breastfeeding may reduce disease risk
Exclusive breastfeeding or baby friendly means that the infant receives only breast milk, is particularly beneficial.
It reduces your baby’s risk for many illnesses and diseases, including:
Middle ear infections.
Respiratory tract infections.
Gut infections.
Intestinal tissue damage.
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Bowel diseases.
Diabetes.
Childhood leukemia.
- Baby friendly promotes baby’s healthy weight
Breastfeeding promotes healthy weight gain and helps prevent childhood obesity.
This can be as a result of development of different gut bacteria.
- Breastfeeding may make children smarter
Breastfeeding may help baby ace those tests. Studies suggest there may be a difference in brain development between breastfed and formula-fed babies.
BREASTFEEDING BENEFITS FOR MUMS
- Breastfeeding may help you lose weight
You may have heard this one often. While other women seem to gain weight during breastfeeding, others seem to effortlessly lose weight.
- Breastfeeding helps the uterus contract
At pregnancy, your uterus grows immensely, expanding from the size of a pear to filling almost the entire space of your abdomen.
Soon after delivery, your uterus goes through a process called involution, which helps it return to its previous size.
Breast feeding mum's have a lower risk for depression.
Baby friendly mums seem less likely to develop postpartum depression, compared to mothers who wean early or do not breastfeed.Breastfeeding reduces your disease risk
Exclusive mums seems to provide you with long-term protection against cancer and several diseases.
Exclusive mums have a lower risk for:
high blood pressure
arthritis
high blood fats
heart disease
type 2 diabetes2
- Breastfeeding may prevent menstruation
Continued breastfeeding also pauses ovulation and menstruation. The absence of menstrual cycles may actually be nature’s way of ensuring there’s some time between pregnancies
- It saves time and money
With all these, you'll agree with me that to stay healthy and your bundle of joy to stay healthy and free from free radicals, you'll agree with me that the best gift to give them is a healthy lifestyle and also boosts the mothers body as well.Above all,it's the cheapest form of saving money while everyone stays healthy. Until then it's goodbye.
