As we spend more time living in pandemic conditions, the state and importance of our health always become important and the health of our children. So parents are studying ways they can maximize the protection of their babies. According to a first-rate Turkish pediatrician, there is a simple answer: breast milk.

Breast milk not only provides nutrition to infants, but also strengthens the immune system and protects them from infections. “Studies show that babies who are breastfed for one year are 50% less likely to get an infection than other babies,” said Nalan Karabayır, who teaches health and pediatric diseases at Mega Medipol University Hospital. ‘Istanbul.

Breast milk also has indirect ways of helping infants. Antibodies to the coronavirus were found in the milk of vaccinated mothers and babies can be protected in this way.

Karabayır said that if the mother is inoculated against the coronavirus, it will protect her and her baby from infection.

Touching on the effects of COVID-19 on mothers and infants, and referring to studies, Karabayir noted that the pandemic affects children of all ages, but with our current knowledge, it is accepted that it is not transmitted through of breast milk.

“Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, which are produced in the mother who had a COVID-19 infection, are also known to pass into breast milk and protect the baby from infection,” she said.

Breastfeeding is known to be safe as long as mothers follow strictly isolation practices such as putting on masks, socializing and hygiene, she said.

Emphasizing that the living cells of the mother’s immune system are present in breast milk, Karabayır explained: “Thanks to breast milk, the baby receives 1.5 million living cells for every 1 milliliter ( 0.03 ounces) of milk “.

The World Health Organization and children’s and children’s health groups suggest that babies should be breastfed for the first six months and that breastfeeding should continue until they are at least 2 years old. to say.

Karabayır stressed that babies are born before their immune system is fully mature. “Physical and chemical preservatives are not yet developing postnatalally. For this reason, they need immune components in breast milk to fight microorganisms that can cause infection.”

“In addition to the nutritional properties of breast milk, the living cells, probiotics, cytokines, immunoglobulins and oligosaccharides they contain, provide protection to the baby from infections. For these reasons, breast milk is unique,” she added.