Breast feeding is best for most children. Breast feeding is becoming more common because it is becoming more convenient. If you chose this option, know that there are far more options to support this choice than existed every a decade ago. Breast feeding offers many advantages over baby formula. Aside from helping build up the baby’s immune system in ways formula cannot, it can help the mother’s body recover from child birth and act as a strong bonding agent for both mother and child. Breast feeding, if done without extra gadgets and pumps, can be the cheapest way to feed a baby as well. If you decide to breastfeed, shop for breast feeding essentials during pregnancy. Stock up on nursing bras (that have either cloth pockets or just snaps so you can get access without taking a bra off), nursing gowns (not essential but convenient), and nursing pads (so your post-breast feeding leaks do not ruin clothes). Have these items packed in with your "clothes for the hospital stay" bag. Then you will be ready to begin breast feeding as soon as baby makes his or her arrival. Better yet, you can discuss breast feeding with the hospital nurses to answer any questions. If there are any challenges, like how to hold twins so you can breast feed at once or if the milk doesn’t come with enough volume for the baby, many hospitals even have a lactation consultant who can help. The benefits of breast feeding are so great this consultation service is even covered by some health plans. Another employer benefit offered by some enlightened companies is the “mother’s room”. How do you cope when you are breast feeding but happen to work? Go make a reservation at the “mother’s room” and pump in private. They’ll even have fridges to keep the bottles safe and sound when you are ready to return to work. But however natural breast feeding is, it is not as convenient as bottle feeding. Breast milk is more digestible for infants, so when breast feeding a baby, they will often require more feedings because their bodies digest the milk faster. If breast feeding, you may end up feeding a newborn every two hours when a bottle fed child would need a bottle every three hours. Furthermore, breast feeding can take twenty to thirty minutes. Some hungry little critters can down a bottle in ten minutes, though bottle feeding does increase the risk and quantity of spit up.

To find out more on this subject, and about rasising your baby or child in general, please visit VideoJug. We have a section devoted entirely to breast feeding at http://www.videojug.com/expertanswer/breast-feeding/what-is-lactation
which will help you find out what you need to know.