Katie Couric: This morning on Today's Woman, the benefits of breastfeeding. Nursing is a wonderful way to bond with the newborn and get them off to a healthy start as well, but according to a recent report from the American Academy of Pediatrics, less than 60% of women breastfed their newborn at the time they were discharged from the hospital. Dr. Judith Reichman is a gynecologist and contributor here of Today. Hey, Judith. Good morning.

Dr. Judith Reichman: Good morning, Katie.

Katie Couric: So I'm just looking at less than 60%...

Dr. Judith Reichman: That's when they left the hospital and less than 21% percent were breastfeeding at the sixth month and many of them were supplementing they weren't doing so breastfeeding.

Katie Couric: So why do you think these numbers are so low?

Dr. Judith Reichman: I think it's very difficult for the working women to breastfeed and sometimes there is difficulty in initiating it. I'm not sure that everybody realizes how truly important to the health both of the baby and the mother it is.

Katie Couric: Why and what about formula? Is it as beneficial to the baby? Could modern-day formula(be) as mom's milk?

Dr. Judith Reichman: Well. I'm gonna use this phrase that I often use. Breast is best, and it really is. The milk that comes from the breast has the absolute right amount of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, fatty acids, minerals. You can't do better and we don't even know everything that's in breast milk so formula can really, totally copy it. But it certainly is much better than cow's milk which has things in it that the baby simply cannot and should not digest.

Katie Couric: Well. You can't give a newborn cow's milk, right?

Dr. Judith Reichman: You absolutely should not. The protein in the cow's milk is wrong. Breastmilk has something called whey and CASEIN and the whey is way above the amount. It's about 72%. Cow's milk is just the opposite. It has the wrong currents of electrolyte. It has a protein in it which actually can cause changes in the beta cells of the pancreas and help increase risk of diabetes in an infant or in a child.

Katie Couric: Oh, wow! OK. So breast milk, though, is on a positive side. Breast milk can prevent diarrhea, respiratory infections, ear infections and urinary tract infections.

Dr. Judith Reichman: It has wonderful antibodies and has cells that eat up the bad bacteria. It coats the lining of the gastral and intestinal tract. It prevents bad proteins from getting in, and it actually decreases colitis and ulcer to colitis down the line.

Katie Couric: Also when we talked about allergies, so we hear more about allergies these days, many more kids being diagnosed for the asthma. And there is some evidence that breastfeeding can help stave off this condition?

Dr. Judith Reichman: Yes. It's thought that if a woman exclusively breastfeeds for six months, she can decrease the allergens. She gets antibodies. If she doesn't eat nuts for example, then the baby is less likely to get the allergies to nuts. So the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that all women who have a history of allergies or asthma in their family, breastfeed exclusively for 6 months.

Katie Couric: Also mental development. There have been studies that show that breastfed babies are smarter, right?

Dr. Judith Reichman: Yeah. Well. I wasn't breastfed, so I keep thinking how if I had been breastfed who knows what I would have done?(You've been brilliant. You already are,so.) Fun? Thank you.(You would be too scary.) But in many cases there is some thought that increases cognition and that these children are not only a little smarter but the smartness continues down the line. so the longer a child is breastfed, maybe the better than brain develops.

Katie Couric: Yeah. Come to think that I wasn't breastfed either. See? Think what we'll be today and we happen?. Al'right, what about childhood obesity?

Dr. Judith Reichman: There are definitely some suggestions that it decreases obesity and also it decreases diabetes as I said before.

Katie Couric: What about for the mom? I know that it delays the onset of your first period, but it also can help you to burn a lot of calories after your pregnancy, right?

Dr. Judith Reichman: It's much easier to lose that baby weight if you breastfeed, and that's probably one of the chief reasons that women are anxious to do it. But in addition it decreases the amount of bleeding that a woman does after delivery. It decreases the ovulation. She's less likely to get breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

Katie Couric: Well, the one thing I want to mention, though, too, is it's difficult to breastfeed. And I don't think new mothers are told this. It doesn't sort of in necessarily, instantaneously happen where the baby latches on, and it's like Madonna and child. So people should know that there're experts in hospitals, there's the La Leche League I know. I got a pump from them. I felt like I'll see the cow. When I was in my kitchen. that nasty green bud through ...

Dr. Judith Reichman: But you know what, the more you do it, but you really do it, the better you get out of it. And we really tell mothers trying to do it every 2 hours. If you don't get enough milk out, try again. Use the pump. Learn what you can do.

Katie Couric: But talk to the experts because as I said I think a lot of women find it very frustrating and there are people on the hospital staff you should talk to even before you have your baby. If you're interested in breastfeeding just say, "Will you be available if I have any problems?"

Dr. Judith Reichman: Absolutely, the first breastfeeding is probably the most important because at that time the colostrum comes out. (Right.) And that's chock-full of antibodies and good things for the baby, so the hospital has to make sure that the baby rooms in and is available and they have to help the mother nurse and then in her workplace ,if she can pump, all she needs is a small room to herself with perhaps a small refrigerator and she can continue to breastfeed that baby.

Katie Couric: And very quickly, ideally how long should you do it? I did it for 6 months.

Dr. Judith Reichman: We want 6 months exclusively. If possible, then add on a supplement for a year, and we encourage, the American Academy of Pediatrics encourages breastfeeding for 2 years.

Katie Couric: Wow.

Dr. Judith Reichman: Yes.

Katie Couric: But when they can ask for it, they are too old. Right?

Dr. Judith Reichman: Well. Mommy. Mommy.

Katie Couric: I don't know. That kind of crazed me out. All right. Judith, thank you very much. If you'd like to learn more to each zone, right, about breastfeeding,just go to our website at today.msnbc.com.