Breastfeeding a baby for a year helps lessen the risk of heart attack or stroke. Breastfeeding is beneficial for both the mother and the baby.
Scientists claim that women who breastfeed their child are at 10% less risk of suffering from a heart attack or stroke. They are less likely to develop heart conditions as com pared to those women do not breastfeed. Breastfeeding also reduces high blood pressure risk by 12% and of course diabetes as well as high cholesterol by about 20%.
The findings have appeared in the journal “Obstetrics and Gynecology” of late.
Out of the 26 million Indian women who have given birth to a baby every year, around 20 million of them do not adopt optimal breastfeeding practices during the time their baby is six months old. Only about 24% women begin start breastfeeding as per suggested norm, within an hour of the birth of the child. Experts opine that if about 60% of the women breastfeed their child, then about 250, 000 babies’ lives could be saved.
It is recommended by physicians that mothers should breastfeed the baby during the first six months, but only 1/4th of them do so.
Dr. Arun Gupta, national coordinator of Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India says, “This study adds to the growing evidence that breastfeeding makes both the mother and the baby healthy. He further adds,” If Indians can increase exclusive breastfeeding rates from 25% at present to 100%, cardiovascular disease in women will decrease. But, breastfeeding rates have hardly improved in India since 1992.”
The University of Pittsburg researchers’ findings are based upon postmenopausal women who were enrolled in a study conducted on chronic diseases that began in 1994. It was observed that the longer the duration of breastfeeding, the lower the risk of suffering from heart attack, cardiovascular diseases and strokes.
The study further state that the risk of cardiovascular diseases is less since the fat stored in the body is much less. Of course, the researchers do admit that the release of hormones that have been stimulated by breastfeeding also have role to play.
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