We’ve all heard the saying, “breast is best”, (a saying I hate btw… breast is not best, it’s the biologically normal way to feed a baby. But that’s a story for another day). My point is, most people know that breastfeeding has important health benefits for their baby but in my experience with mums, many don’t know the important benefits of breastfeeding for their own health. The health of mums is important too but often gets lost in the focus on the baby. I’m writing this post to bring more awareness to the important benefits of breastfeeding for the health of mums.
In this post I’m going to let you know about the breastfeeding benefits for mums – 8 cancers and conditions that breastfeeding reduces the risk of you getting.
So other than the benefits of breastfeeding for your baby, why breastfeed? When you breastfeed your baby, you’re less likely to get:
Ovarian Cancer
Research shows that having at least one child and breastfeeding for 6 months decreases the risk of developing epithelial ovarian cancer and that for every 12 months a mother breastfeeds, the risk of developing ovarian cancer is reduced by 10%. That’s a big reduction considering most the majority of women who have children have more than one. Breastfeeding each of their children for the recommended 2 years could make a big difference to their ovarian cancer risk.
Did you know World Ovarian Cancer Day is coming up on the 8th of May? That’s why Ovarian Cancer gets a place at the top of this list. It’s the most deadly gynaecological cancer and there’s no screening programme to help find it early so it’s important to spread awareness of the common symptoms:
- Abdominal/pelvic pain or discomfort
- Increased abdominal bloating
- Changes in bowel habits
- Eating less and feeling fuller
- Needing to urinate more often or urgently
- Fatigue
CureOvarianCancer.org says that if you experience any of these symptoms for longer than 2 weeks, you should get checked over by your doctor.
Find out how you can get involved in spreading awareness about ovarian cancer HERE.
Breast Cancer
Research shows that the longer a mum breastfeeds, the more protected they are against breast cancer. Every 12 months of breastfeeding reduces the risk by 4.3%. For women who have a family history of breast cancer, any breastfeeding can reduce their risk of getting premenopausal breast cancer by 60%. Breastfeeding is one way you can actively decrease the risk of you getting breast cancer.
There’s a special protein in breastmilk called HAMLET (Human Alpha-lactalbumin Made LEthal to Tumor cells) that’s also thought to be involved in the protection of the breast from developing cancer.
Endometrial Cancer
The risk of endometrial cancer is related to oestrogen hormone levels. During breastfeeding, oestrogen levels are lower, especially in the first 6 months which may reduce the risk of endometrial cancer developing.
Iron deficiency anaemia (low iron levels)
Iron deficiency anaemia is less common in breastfeeding women compared to women who feed their babies formula. Breastfeeding women experience less postpartum blood loss and a longer delay in their period restarting meaning they are losing less blood overall and more easily keep iron at the right levels.
Pregnancy
Unplanned pregnancies can put a strain on relationships, finances and psychological wellbeing. Research also shows that a mum’s health could also be at risk by having another baby less than 3 years after the last pregnancy.
Breastfeeding is a highly effective and side effect free contraceptive in the first 6 months postpartum as long as you meet the following criteria:
- You haven’t had a period since the birth
- You are exclusively breastfeeding or nearly exclusively breastfeeding (nearly exclusively = some irregular non breast feeds, as long as they don’t disrupt how often baby feeds – they are breastfeeding 4 hourly or closer).
- Your baby is less than 6 months old.
If you meet the above criteria, then breastfeeding as a contraceptive (also known as the lactational amenorrhea method (LAM) is 98-99% effective. For comparison, the contraceptive pill and the mini pill are 99% effective with perfect use, though typical use is more likely and has an effectiveness of 91%).
If you don’t meet even one of the above criteria, the contraceptive effect of breastfeeding is reduced, and you may need to consider a different method of avoiding pregnancy.
Weight gain
The energy used in the body to make breastmilk helps to gradually burn off the weight normally gained while pregnant. Mums breastfeeding for 12 months or longer lose significantly more weight in the first 12 months postpartum than mums who breastfeed for 3 months or less.
Multiple sclerosis (MS)
Research shows that breastfeeding for 15 months or more reduces the risk of developing MS. For women who already have MS, breastfeeding reduces the chance of a relapse of symptoms by half.
Diabetes
Type 1 Diabetes
Mums with Type 1 Diabetes who are breastfeeding find the amount of insulin needed to control their blood sugar is reduced.
Type 2 Diabetes
Breastfeeding reduces the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. The research also suggests that exclusive breastfeeding and breastfeeding for a longer period of time after each pregnancy has more of a reducing effect.
Gestational diabetes
Women with gestational diabetes who breastfeed are 50% less likely to develop diabetes postpartum.
So, there you have it! There are huge important benefits for women’s health when they breastfeed, or to put it another way, there are real significant risks to women’s health when they don’t breastfeed. Not only does breastfeeding save the life of babies, it can save the lives of many mums too. There are so many life threatening and life impacting health conditions that can be significantly reduced when women breastfeed their babies. Imagine the change in health outcomes if women were properly supported to breastfeed?! It’s a necessary form of self-care – a way of looking after your future self.
Were you surprised by anything on this list? I know I was when I first learned about it in my training. Let’s get the word out there. Share this with the women in your circles to let them know how breastfeeding is important for them too, not just their babies.
If you have questions or concerns, you might like to get in touch with an IBCLC to help you to work out what’s going on and develop a plan that suits your individual situation. You can book a home visit or online consultation with me below.
References:
Baker JL et al. (2008) Breastfeeding reduces postpartum weight retention.
Berens, P., Labbok, M. and the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (2015). Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine Clinical Protocol #13: Contraception During Breastfeeding. Breastfeeding Medicine, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1089/bfm.2015.9999
Bodnar LM et al. (2002) Who should be screened for postpartum anemia? An evaluation of current recommendations.
Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer (2002) Breast cancer and breastfeeding: collaborative reanalysis of individual data from 47 epidemiological studies in 30 countries, including 50302 women with breast cancer and 96973 women without the disease
Dewey KG et al. (1993) Maternal weight-loss patterns during prolonged lactation
Gaitskell K et al. (2017) Histological subtypes of ovarian cancer associated with parity and breastfeeding in the prospective Million Women Study.
Hallgren O et al. (2008) Apoptosis and tumor cell death in response to HAMLET (human alpha-lactalbumin made lethal to tumor cells).
Hanson L (2004) Immunology of Human Milk: How breastfeeding protects babies
Kjos SL et al. (1993) The effect of lactation on glucose and lipid metabolism in women with recent gestational diabetes
Langer-Gould A et al. (2017) Breastfeeding, ovulatory years, and risk of multiple sclerosis.
Lenora J et al. (2009) Effects of multiparity and prolonged breast-feeding on maternal bone mineral density: a community-based cross-sectional study.
Okamura C et al. (2006) Lactation and risk of endometrial cancer in Japan: a case-control study
Pakpoor J et al. (2012) Breastfeeding and multiple sclerosis relapses: a meta-analysis.
Portaccio E et al. (2011) Breastfeeding is not related to postpartum relapses in multiple sclerosis.
Riviello C et al. (2009) Breastfeeding and the basal insulin requirement in type 1 diabetic women.
Stuebe AM et al. (2005) Duration of Lactation and Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes
Stuebe AM et al. (2009) Lactation and incidence of premenopausal breast cancer: a longitudinal study.
Sung HK et al. (2016) The Effect of Breastfeeding Duration and Parity on the Risk of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
Van der Wijden C et al. (2003) Lactational amenorrhea for family planning.
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