Breast milk as we know it is for baby as that is their only source of energy and an excellent source of nutrients for them; many women choose to practice exclusive breastfeeding because of the positive impact it has on the health of the baby.
It helps to develop the baby’s brain and research proves that babies who are breastfed exclusively for up to 2 years are smarter and have better immunity than their counterparts who were not exclusively breastfed.
The U.S Department of Health and Human Services and the American Academy of Pediatrics said the breast milk is rich in nutrients and antibodies and they recommend breast feeding a baby exclusively for the first six months of his or her life.
So, generally, it is believed that breast milk is for babies; but there are people asking whether these benefits are only for babies or can adults also benefit from this?
This is a controversial issue and there was a time it was trending online when it was reported that a lady quit her job so that she could breastfeed her boyfriend every two hours.
She did this because her boyfriend is a professional body builder and some studies suggest that breast milk is rich in natural compounds that help to build muscles. It is also reported that it helps people gain weight and some even termed it “the best solution to weight gain”.
Some studies have proven that adults too can benefit from breast milk; in fact many men now patronize commercial breast milk because they believe it benefits them, if you not yet familiar with this, below are some of the ways breast milk benefits an adult.
As stated earlier, this is a controversial issue as some health experts are discouraging this act; their argument is that breast milk is for babies and not for grown up men.
They are also worried about the health risk involved; since many studies reported the benefits of breast milk, there have been a boost in this market and many men are now demanding for breast milk.
In fact there is a black market for this where unregistered and unscreened breast milks are sold from unknown donours. Patronizing this can put the health of the consumers at risk and many women now prefer to make little cash from theirs than “letting it waste” according to them.
This group of scientist believes that the benefits of breast milk are for babies alone and not grown men while others think otherwise. So while reading on the health benefits; have it in mind that many doctors do not agree with this.
If you want to go ahead and take breast milk then go for the ones that are registered and have their donours screened before donating.
Breast milk is also a bodily fluid and bodily fluid can carry infections that are present in the body of the donour; infections such as HIV and hepatitis can be transmitted via breast milk.
So below are some of the health benefits of breast milk.
- It boosts energy
- It helps ones build muscles and gain healthy weight
- It helps clear acne and acne spots due to its rich content of lauric acid
- It treats sore throat
- It can kill E.coli
- It can fight Crohn’s disease because it has a cell surface protein called CD14 which is effective in fighting this medical condition.
- It fights diabetes because it contains stem cells.
- It treats arthritis because it contains lactoferrin which prevents overreaction of the immune system and prevents rheumatoid arthritis.
- It is believed to be able to fight cancer; although this claim is controversial but a study suggested this because it contains Hamlet which is a compound that can attack cancer cells. Studies prove this compound can attack cancer cells in close to 40 different types of cancers and tumors. There are just few studies on this and for that it is not yet legit.
- Others believe that it is the best type of milk since it comes from humans and not cows or other animals.
- It creates bond between couples; that is when you are getting it from your wife and please note that it is wrong to deprive a baby; remember that they need it more.
- It boosts immunity and fights infections
