A woman who breast-feeds her babies may store up health protection for herself later in life, researchers reported today.
New findings link breast-feeding to protection against heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Experts said the finding backed claims that breast-feeding is good for women – but more research will be needed to find out why there is a link with low heart disease rates.
The findings, reported in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, show that women who breast-fed for longer than a year enjoyed a ten per cent reduced risk of having a heart attack or stroke compared with women who never breast-fed.
According to the study, the benefits last for at least 35 years.
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, studied nearly 140,000 elderly and middle-aged women to reach their conclusions.
Researcher Dr Eleanor Bimla Schwarz said: “Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, so it’s vitally important for us to know what we can do to protect ourselves.
“We have known for years that breastfeeding is important for babies’ health; we now know that it is important for mothers’ health as well.”
June Davison, a cardiac nurse with the British Heart Foundation, warned that further research is needed.
She said: “Breastfeeding has long been thought to be beneficial to baby and mother. This research suggests that it might also have heart health benefits for mum too.
“However, it only showed an association between breast feeding and these health benefits.”
Obstetrics & Gynecology VOL. 113, NO. 5, MAY 2009�Schwarz et al
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