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Women who give birth but do not breastfeed face an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, at some point in their lives, a Pennsylvania study, led by Dr. Eleanor Schwarz of the University of Pittsburgh
finds.
Previous research demonstrated health benefits to moms who breastfed as long as six months or a year. The Pennsylvania results suggest that even a month of breastfeeding can have positive, lasting effects.
An estimated 10 percent of American women have type 2
diabetes.
Dr. Eleanor Schwarz and colleagues compared the incidence of type 2 diabetes in 2,233 women between the ages of 40 and 78, divided into three groups: those who had never had children, those who had children but never breastfed them and those who had
breastfed.
The researchers found that 188 (26.7 percent) of the study mothers who didn't breastfeed their infants later went on to develop diabetes compared to 202 (18 percent) of women who exclusively breastfed their newborn at least one month and 71 (17.5 percent) of women who never had
children.
Related Links
The American Journal of Medicine, September 2010
University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
(MDN)
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