7 Benefits of Breastfeeding You Might Want to Consider

By Laurel Niedospial for Popsugar

Almost as soon as a woman becomes pregnant, the conversation about breastfeeding begins. It's commonly stated that "breast is best," but what does that actually mean, and who is it best for?

Understandably, there have been numerous studies and much research done about breastfeeding and its many benefits. Regardless if a woman chooses to nurse her baby (at POPSUGAR, we're supporters of "fed is best" and urge you to make the best choice for you and your baby), there are a lot of advantages to breastfeeding that should be considered. Below are just seven pros for baby and mom. 

1. Breast milk provides perfectly balanced meals. The human body can truly do some amazing th
2. Breastfeeding can reduce the risk of asthma. Asthma is a notoriously hard condition to live with. Thankfully, it was recently found that babies who carry the genetic marker for asthma could be protected by breastfeeding . 
3. Nursing saves an astounding amount of money. Since the mom's body is creating the milk, it's no wonder that it is an extreme cost-saving measure. Overall, a minimum of $3.6 billion would be saved if breastfeeding participants were raised to the Surgeon General's recommended numbers, roughly 70 to 75 percent of newborns. 
4. Breastfeeding is probably the greenest option. Breastfeeding doesn't require any packaging or bottles, making it more environmentally beneficial. For every 1 million formula-fed babies, 150 million formula containers are consumed, many of which end up in a landfill. 
5. Producing breast milk is said to burn calories. After giving birth, it can be difficult to get back into an exercise routine. Since breastfeeding burns 425 to 700 calories per day, many women attribute breastfeeding to returning to their pre-baby weight.
6. ings, and breast milk is pretty spectacular. The milk is specially tailored to an infant's needs, with the perfect blend of nutrition to ensure that baby grows big and strong.
7. It can also provide a natural defense against illnesses. Some studies have shown that breast milk will contain nutrients and antibodies that will help the baby defend against common childhood illnesses. This is especially important since medicines are very restricted for babies of a young age. 
8. Nursing might lower the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). One of the scariest parts of having an infant is the risk of SIDS. A study found that nursing can reduce the risk of SIDS around 50 percent, and recommends that parents nurse at least up until six months old.

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British American Newborn Care can help you find a Newborn Care Specialist to care for baby and you. They can assist with the full spectrum of newborn care and may be certified in areas including but not limited to: breastfeeding, exploring alternate feeding methods, sleep training, bonding, lactation, psychological development, and more.

5 SPECIAL EVENTS TO CELEBRATE ON A SUPERYACHT

By Alexander Coles for A Luxury Travel Blog

Everyone’s looking for a way to make their special occasion that little bit more special. After all, while weddings in vineyards and honeymoons in a Maldives bungalow are undeniably gorgeous, they have been done rather a lot.

You want something different. We get it.

Whether you’re planning a wedding or a honeymoon, a loved one’s birthday party or a milestone anniversary, you’re looking for an experience that is entirely unlike any other special event you’ve been a part of—one that you’ll remember with a thrill for the rest of your life.

In order to create an extraordinary special event, there are seven golden rules to finding the perfect venue.

1. An event venue that’s staggeringly gorgeous, and wildly out of the ordinary.
2. Superb staff ensuring every last detail is perfect.
3. Gourmet cuisine prepared by a private, highly-trained chef
4. A location backdrop that inspires wonder…and exceptional event photography.
5. Indoor and outdoor space.
6. Luxurious accommodation onsite.

Above all, the greatest events offer privacy and exclusivity to the group—a sense that what you’re doing is somehow separate from the world, a day almost outside real life.

Which is why superyachts are the ultimate event venue for special occasions.

Here are five lifetime events that are perfect to host on a luxury yacht charter, with some practical information to assist in your decision-making.

1. White wedding, blue sea

‘I got married on a superyacht’. Now that’s something you don’t hear every day. And now it’s in your head, don’t you want to be the one to say it?

There are so many good reasons to marry on a yacht, beginning with the spectacular venue, with glamorous deck spaces for the ceremony, or an opulent interior if you’d prefer to say your vows surrounded by a décor of marble and gold. When it comes time to party, the reception can spill over the decks, with music playing, guests dancing in the moonlight, and (no doubt) a few guests jumping in the sundeck Jacuzzi as the night wears on!

The yacht’s luxurious staterooms provide for up to 12 people, meaning your bridal party and loved ones have stunning accommodations right onsite. As for the backdrop, you’re only limited by your imagination. Imagine getting married on the Amalfi Coast or the in tropical islands of the Caribbean, where the incredible views of yacht and sky and sea make for truly breathtaking wedding photography. The imagery of a white wedding dress against blue sea is a visual match made in heaven, and the yacht provides the perfect location shoot for unforgettable images—from the bridal party posing on the foredeck to the happy couple jumping on the bed in the master suite.

The yacht’s professional crew are another superb reason to get married onboard a yacht. Superyacht crew aren’t the typical hotel or venue staff, who are often transient or temp staff, and are sometimes uninterested or poorly trained. Instead, crew have spent their yachting careers looking after ultra-high net worth individuals, from celebrities and princes to oil magnates and Swiss bankers. They’re also accustomed to entertaining onboard, with event charters during high-profile events like the Cannes Film Festival and the Monaco Grand Prix. In short, it’s not their first rodeo, and yacht crew will handle your special day with consummate style and professionalism, and liaise carefully with any florists, celebrants, wedding planners etc.

As for the chef, they’ve been cooking for these same elite guests, and are accustomed to preparing fine dining cuisine across many cuisines and dietary requirements. You’ll have control over the menu, and if your wedding is large and requires outside catering, the chef is on hand to assist.

Even more blissful, when it’s time for the honeymoon, the guests just depart and you float away…

The logistics

Most (but by no means all) charter yachts have passenger licenses of 12 guests if the yacht leaves the dock and heads out to sea. This means you can either have an intimate wedding at anchor and return to port for the party, or alternatively you may wish to host your wedding ceremony in a glamorous marina, such as Monte Carlo so that more people can attend the ceremony. There are some yachts the are classified as passenger vessels and do not have the 12 guest limit, which are very in demand. Also look into the legal regulations in the country you’re marrying in: for instance, if you’d like to get married on a yacht in romantic Santorini, you’ll need to arrive in Greece a week before. A reputable yacht broker will have experience planning events, so rely on their expertise.

2. Enter honeymoon heaven

Can you imagine a better way to start married life than drifting through paradise on a superyacht?

Watch land fall out of sight and enter your own private bliss of swimming off the yacht and dining by candlelight, having luxury beach picnics on coral atolls and spending happy afternoons strolling through exotic ports. Each meal cooked by the yacht’s private chef, each morning waking to a perfect new view out the large windows of the master suite, each night relaxing in the Jacuzzi with a glass of champagne, looking up at the stars.

Your captain and crew will always be on hand to wait on your hand and foot, but also give you the privacy you want on your honeymoon- to laugh and play and plan your lives together.

Unlike spending your honeymoon in hotels or villas, you won’t have to spend time in traffic or changing hotels to move around from one gorgeous beach or island to another- the yacht takes you where you want to go.

The logistics

Logistics? There simply aren’t any. You just arrive, the crew unpack your luggage, and you don’t have to lift a finger for the entire time. But unlike a cruise ship, you have total control over what you do, and eat, and see. If you crave adventure, the captain will organise night dives and jungle trips and white water rafting. If you just want to relax, the captain will organise masseuses to the yacht and a succession of secluded anchorages, each more beautiful than the last. One useful tip though is to fill out the preference sheet from your broker, so that the crew have an idea ahead of time what you like to eat and drink and do, as well as little details like what kind of music you like so they can create the perfect yacht playlist.

3. Babymoon bliss

The babymoon concept has become wildly popular in recent years, and little wonder: this is the last time a couple gets to relax and be pampered as a couple without children. No matter how excited you are about the arrival of your new baby, a trip for the two of you on a yacht is a heavenly moment captured in time that you’ll look back on for many years to come. (Particularly when you’re up all night with a screaming baby and remember how soft the bed on the yacht was…)

Spend a week having long lie-ins, exploring exotic places, snorkelling crystal clear waters, and reading books on a deckchair, surrounded by the sparkling sea. And while you probably won’t want to leave, another great thing about having a babymoon onboard is that you’ll realise just how perfect luxury yacht charters are for family vacations, so you can return when you have children.

The logistics

Just like any babymoon planning, you’ll want to choose a destination where you’ll be doing your cruising close to land, ensure there’s a good hospital nearby, and get good insurance. Some tropical yachting destinations currently have the Zika virus, so talk to your yacht broker about popular alternative babymoon destinations such as the Seychelles, the Amalfi Coast, the French Riviera, Sardinia, or Croatia.

4. Milestone anniversary, making new memories

A yacht charter for a wedding anniversary is an idyllic way to reconnect and create new memories.

The two of you might want a relaxing holiday away from the cares of normal life, or perhaps you want to explore your shared interests, maybe with an art-lover’s yacht charter down the French Riviera or a gourmet food and wine charter along Italy’s Cinque Terre to Tuscany.

If you’re a lover of grand romantic gestures, the yacht can easily organise your stateroom to be filled with roses, a romantic picnic on a sandbank in the middle of the sea, or even a ceremony to renew your vows.

Whether you want it to be just the two of you or bring the children for a special family event, it’s hard to beat a yachting holiday as a way to mark your time together.

The logistics

Again, there really aren’t any. Just remember, the more information you give your broker, the more prepared the yacht’s crew will be to deliver an anniversary that the two of you will treasure forever.

5. A party to remember

Whether it’s your husband’s 50th birthday party in Monte Carlo or your 8 year old’s pirate-themed party in the BVIs, a luxury charter yacht makes an incredible venue for a celebration. It will certainly not be one they forget, as friends and family drink cocktails on the sundeck, or you watch your kids chase the crew around the yacht on a Caribbean treasure hunt and dive-bombing into the water.

Your yacht crew will have experience throwing glittering parties on the yacht, so just talk to your broker and to the crew about what you want, and they’ll co-ordinate with any organisers, decorators, or caterers to ensure the event exceeds your expectations.

The logistics

As we explained in the wedding section above, most superyachts have passenger restrictions of only 12 guests, but these only apply when the yacht has left the dock, so most big yacht parties tend to happen in famous marinas, such as Cannes or Saint Tropez. Having the party in port (as happens during the Cannes Film Festival for example) means that you can have a much bigger guest list, so speak to your broker about numbers and planning. Of course, if you’re hosting a child’s party or more intimate celebration, a 12 person limit for cruising offshore may be perfect for your needs.

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Let British American Yachts help you find your next yacht crew, yacht purchase, or charter experience.

Preparing for Childbirth is Proven to Make You a Better Mother

By Angela Anagnost Repke for Pop Sugar

Before the birth of my first child, I didn't armor myself with knowledge like I should have. Instead of researching breathing techniques, pain relief options, and potential complications, I simply thought, "Yeah, it's going to hurt and there's nothing I can do about it." I didn't think about all the possible scenarios and how I could have given myself the ammo to deal with them. Instead, I gave that power to my obstetrician. 

I should have done my homework. 

I was bullied into a C-section after only 18 hours of labor. After the surgery, I was pumped with so many drugs that the fog made it difficult to even hold my firstborn. The nurse held my baby to my breast — only to begin the takedown of my nipples. This was not the romantic scene I had signed up for. And things only got worse from there. I felt anxious and depressed that I wasn't nursing successfully, and I had little confidence as a new mother. The C-section that I didn't ask for stripped the power from me completely, making me doubt my ability to mother my own child. I had never cried that much in my life.

When I became pregnant with my second, I was determined to do my research. And as it turns out, being prepared for childbirth has a direct effect on your abilities as a mother (or, more accurately, your thoughts on your ability as a mother). According to the Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, the satisfaction of a woman's childbirth experience has vital health implications for her and her family, and whether a mother is prepared for childbirth can help increase this satisfaction.

Katherine Hinic, PhD, conducted a 2017 study on 107 women in the first four days postpartum who gave birth to a healthy infant, carried to full-term, and planned to breastfeed. The new mothers were given a survey to evaluate their birth satisfaction, stress, and breastfeeding self-efficacy to see how these outcomes connected to their preparedness. Hinic wanted to study this because childbirth is the initial task of motherhood and can greatly impact early parenting. Essentially, a positive birth can be associated with an "increased maternal sense of competence, self-esteem, mastery, confidence, and decreased anxiety." 

The study showed that when women were in control and prepared for their labor, they were confident in their ability to breastfeed well. Thus, their overall childbirth experience was favorable, too. The study also demonstrated that women who had longer labors were not as satisfied with their experience. This, I will say, was actually untrue for my second birth. Yes, I labored from start to finish for 50 hours, but I was able to have the vaginal birth I had wanted so badly with my first. Because I was in control, I became a much more confident mother the second time around. I didn't doubt myself, nor did I feel any anxiety.

One surprising thing the study also demonstrated was that receiving pain management had no bearing on childbirth satisfaction. What did matter was whether the mother had the power to choose her method of pain medication. If the mother was prepared, was knowledgeable, and had the autonomy of choosing, then she had a better birthing experience. Thus, her competence in her ability to mother increased as well. Before my second labor started, I wanted to have a natural childbirth, but after 35 hours, I asked, in horrific pain, for that heavenly epidural. I wasn't disappointed — I was pleased that I was the one who made that choice. 

The childbirth experience is often the most memorable time in a woman's life. While it's easy to assume (like me) that giving birth is ultimately out of our control, you can (and should) take steps to make sure you're prepared for whatever may happen to your body and your baby. As women, we aren't always granted the opportunity to go through the birthing process many times (if at all), so it's wise to empower yourself with knowledge.