@evenif123 https://www.ohsu.edu/school-of-medicine/moore-institute/breastfeeding-and-microbiome#:~:text=We%20call%20this%20ecosystem%20our,to%20each%20mom%20and%20baby. :
breastfeeding plays an important role in establishing a healthy microbiome in babies, which in turn has long-term implications for our overall health.
Breastmilk contains a rich and varied array of nutrients that are unique to each mom and baby. It also contains beneficial bacteria and prebiotics – “food” for the beneficial bacteria.
researchers found that beneficial bacteria are shared through breastmilk and that feeding directly from the breast is the best way to support this process. The milk itself is amazing enough, but feeding directly at the breast increases the transfer of beneficial organisms. This is because approximately ten percent of the bacteria introduced to the infant is from the skin around a mother’s areola. There is also a beneficial alchemy that occurs with the bacteria and enzymes inside the infant’s mouth, facilitating a healthy oral microbiota in the baby.
Long-term health implications of a healthy microbiome
A healthy microbiome is developed within the first three years of life and plays a number of critical roles throughout the lifespan, including how well people are able to fight disease and prevent infections. Breastmilk seeds and nurtures the microbiome with beneficial bacteria, until it is fully mature. Beneficial gut bacteria play a role in lowering risk for chronic diseases like asthma, obesity, allergies, dermatitis, inflammatory bowel disease and neurodevelopmental disorders. They also play a role in regulating anxiety, mood, cognition and pain via the brain/gut axis.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1931312820303504?via=ihub
As for the hormones, it has something to do with breastmilk helping your baby develop hormones responsible for the sleep cycle. Breastmilk helps to develop a circadian rhythm in babies through cortisol and melatonin, which are the hormones responsible for our sleep-wake cycle.
Additionally, the composition of breast milk change over the course of the 24-hour day. Breast milk at night has more melatonin, which is a hormone that causes drowsiness. And in the morning, breast milk has higher concentration of cortisol, which is a a stress hormone that makes babies more alert.
This link has the research links listed on the bottom:
https://parentingscience.com/breast-pumps-and-baby-formula/
