Mothers may pay price of bottled milk

Friday August 27th, 2010

Mothers who do not breast-feed their children face a massively increased risk of developing diabetes later in life, researchers warn today.

A study of more than 2,000 middle-aged and elderly women found they were twice as likely as other women to contract the disease if they had children but never used breast-feeding.

As many as 27 per cent of these women went on to develop disease.

The researchers, from Pittsburgh University, Pennsylvania, USA, say that women who do not breast-feed are in danger of piling up fat around the belly.

The study involved some 2,233 women in California. Some 1,800 were mothers and 56 per cent had breast-fed a baby for at least a month, according to the report in the American Journal of Medicine.

Researcher Dr Eleanor Bimla Schwarz said: "We have seen dramatic increases in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes over the last century.

"Diet and exercise are widely known to impact the risk of type 2 diabetes, but few people realise that breastfeeding also reduces mothers' risk of developing the disease later in life by decreasing maternal belly fat.

"Our study provides another good reason to encourage women to breastfeed their infants, at least for the infant's first month of life.

"Clinicians need to consider women's pregnancy and lactation history when advising women about their risk for developing type 2 diabetes."

American Journal of Medicine September 2010: 123;9, pp863.e1-863.e6

Tags: Childbirth and Pregnancy | Diabetes | Diet & Food | North America | Women’s Health & Gynaecology

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