Breast milk vs formula: Are they the same?

Knowing what is in the breast milk or formula milk will help you to make a good decision when deciding to feed your baby.

Let us compare breast milk to formula milk. In some ways, breast milk and formula both provide energy, hydration and nutrients. So whichever milk you feed, your baby will still grow.
But no matter how advance the baby milk formula is, it is never close to the health benefits of your breast milk. Human milk is the perfect food for human babies. It builds baby’s complex brain, digestive and immune systems.

What’s in breast milk?

Every single drop of your breast milk contains thousands of beneficial components, including:
•    antibodies to protect against illnesses
•    hormones which  helps in bonding and regulate appetite
•    stem cells which will help to support organ development and helps in repair
•    white blood cells that fight infection
•    good bacteria to protect your baby’s digestive system
•    prebiotics that promote  healthy gut
•    contains long-chain fatty acids to help develop your baby’s nervous system , brain and eyes
•    enzymes to help his digestive and immune systems
•    hormones and nucleotides to promote healthy sleep patterns

Breast milk adapts to your baby’s changing needs. So if your baby is sick, your body makes extra white blood cells and antibodies in your milk to help fight infection.

What’s in formula milk?

Baby formula milk is made of processed skimmed cow’s milk with added emulsifiers and stabilisers. It may also contain:
•    lactose which is a natural sugar found in milk and/or other sugars such as corn syrup, fructose or maltodextrin
•    plant-based oils, such as palm, sunflower and soybean oil
•    fatty acids, usually derived from fish oil
•    vitamins and minerals from plant and animal sources
•    enzymes and amino acids
•    some may have probiotics

Babies fed with formula may be doing too well and growing fast but that may not be good in the long term. So formula milk manufacturers are now trying to bring down protein levels in their milk so that babies won’t get too fat.