Breast-feeding has many benefits. Now a new study found it may reduce a woman’s risk for cardiovascular disease later in life.
Researchers recorded pre-pregnancy cardiovascular risk factors in 846 women starting in 1985. Then, 20 years later, they used ultrasound to measure the thickness of their carotid arteries — an indication of the extent of atherosclerosis, a risk factor for heart disease. The study is in the August issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
After controlling for many other risk factors, including race, blood pressure, B.M.I., age and cholesterol levels, they found that the less time a woman breastfed, the thicker her carotid arteries. In addition, almost 17 percent of women who lactated for a month or less had atherosclerotic plaques, compared with less than 11 percent of those who breastfed for 10 months or longer.
Pregnancy makes the cardiovascular system work harder, increasing the risk for cardiovascular disease, and the authors suggest that lactation helps restore maternal physiological systems to their pre-pregnancy state.
The lead author, Erica P. Gunderson, an epidemiologist at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, Calif., said that breast-feeding has been shown to lower the risk for several other diseases as well.
“But particularly important,” she said, “is the prevention of heart disease, which is the number one killer of women in the U.S. Women need to be aware that breastfeeding can benefit the health of both their children and themselves.”