Throughout history, every generation has needed to develop an alternative to breastfeeding, either because a mother had insufficient milk or chose not to breast feed. Scientific and historical literature tells us of centuries-old efforts to satisfy an infant’s nutritional needs and to replicate the composition and benefits of breast milk.

In prehistoric cultures, infant mortality was high. Like other mammals, only the hardest of infant, nursed by their mothers, survived. In ancient cultures, the first doctors encouraged breast feeding. If for some reason, the mother could not nurse, wet-nursing- substituting lactating adult women for the birth mother- was recommended for those who could afford it. Ancient art shows us that those who could not afford a wet nurse relied on the milk of domestic animals, such as donkeys, camel and goats. Clay feeding vessels, designed to transfer the milk from the animal to the baby, have been found in ancient tombs and ruins. Historians of spartan times reported that succession to the throne was interrupted and given to a younger son because he was breastfed by his mother and his older brother was wet-nursed.

Little about infant feeding was documented between ancient times and the Renaissance. During the Middle Ages, wet nursing was the choice for a mother who could not nurse. One pediatric article on breast feeding describes the characteristics of a good wet nurse as well as information on hiccups, diarrhea and vomiting. In the late 1500s, scientists detailed the therapeutic values of human milk not only for infants, but also for aging men and women, They also recommended the use of ass’ milk as a breast- milk substitute, should a mother need it. If the baby could not be nursed, liquid food made of diluted honey mixed with cereal flour or breadcrumbs was poured through a hollow cow’s horn. However, most efforts to replace breast feeding were unsuccessful because of the infant’s intolerance or to bacterial contamination.

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Is breast feeding better than bottle feeding?

Breast milk is the best food for your newborn baby. It contains just the right balance of nutrients such as protein, carbohydrates and fat, as well as antibodies that help your baby fight off illness and infection. Breast milk is also at exactly the right temperature for your baby.

breast feeding is much more convenient than bottle feeding, as you do not have to worry about cleaning bottles and teats, or storing formula.

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How To Loose Weight Fast At Home For Free

When thinking about losing weight many people automatically think of going on a ‘diet’ as one of the main ways to lose weight. However many diets require making difficult and hard to follow changes to what we eat forcing us to give up our favorite foods and for most of us makes us think about food more than we would normally. Here are five simple tips that have helped me lose weight without resorting to ‘dieting’.

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