Breastfeeding good for mom's heart

When women breastfeed their infants for a year, there are lasting health benefits for both mother and infant, according to a new study.

In the study, researchers found evidence that increased duration of breastfeeding may lower the mother's risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and cardiovascular disease after menopause.

The finding, reported in the medical journal Obstetrics and Gynaecology, stem from data on nearly 140 000 mothers who breastfed their infants.

Longer breastfeeding, greater benefits
According to Dr Eleanor Bimla Schwarz of the University of Pittsburgh and associates, the beneficial effect of breastfeeding on cardiovascular risk factors appeared to be "dose-dependent" - the longer the duration of breastfeeding, the greater the benefits - even after adjusting for social, demographic and lifestyle variables, family history, and body weight.

Women with a lifetime history of more than 12 months of breastfeeding were significantly less likely than women who never breastfed to have high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease.

Schwarz and colleagues speculate that breast-feeding "does more than simply reduce a woman's fat stores," and propose that the effects on cardiovascular risk profiles may be due to hormonal effects of breastfeeding. - (Reuters Health, April 2009)

SOURCE: Obstetrics and Gynaecology, May 2009.

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