EFFECTS OF BREASTFEEDING ON THE MOTHER


Miriam H.Labbok, MD,MPH,IBCLC
 

SUMMARY

 In the rush to find nutrient alternatives to breastfeeding, a theme that dominated research on infant feeding throughout the twentienth century, only recently have new findings that reconfirm the importance of breastfeeding for maternal and child health begun to infuence medical texts and health policy . Appoximately 30 years of increasingly rigorous and positive research findings have led to the rediscovery of breastfeeding as a valid and evidence-based health intervention for infants. Unfortunately, because much of the research was designed to assess human milk as a nutrient replacement for infant formula, the literature on the effects of breastfeeding on maternal health remain limited. Nonetheless, a clear pattern of positive physiologic changes that lead to improved short-term and long-term health sequelae are emerging. All patients and their families should be informed fully as to the positive preventive health effects of breastfeeding not only infants but also for mothers. Women have many difficult choices to make; it behooves physicians to ensure that they receive all of the facts on which to base these decisions.  


(The Pediatric Clinic of North America)

BREASTFEEDING 2001, PART I:
THE EVIDENCE FOR BREASTFEEDING

Volume 48.Number1.February 2001


਍਍਍