Study : Breastfeeding Lowers Risk of Breast Cancer

Several studies have shown the protective effects of breastfeeding both for the babies and mothers. Apart from providing long-term health benefits to the babies, breastfeeding reduces the risk of developing breast cancer, researchers revealed.

A study by the Cancer Research UK analyzed 47 published studies with subjects of nearly 150,000 from 30 countries. Researchers concluded that the reasons for the increased incidence of breast cancer in Western countries are twofold : breastfeeding for shorter periods of time and for having fewer children. This finding supports other studies that reinforces the view that hormonal and reproductive factors play a role in the development of breast cancer.

A similar 1986 study, entitled “Evidence of Protective Effect of Lactation on Risk of Breast Cancer in Young Women”, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, showed that the risk of breast cancer decreases with increase duration of lactation experience. This showed that the duration of breastfeeding had a strong influence on the risk of breast cancer.