Breastfeeding may diminish the risk of diabetes and heart diseases

Hi folks,

Just came across this article in Baiboo, a portal which has a lot of interesting articles for parents!


Excerpts:

A new study suggests that Mothers who breastfeed seem to have a lower long-term risk of developing a collection of risk factors for diabetes and heart disease than women who bottle-feed.

Researchers found that among 700 women followed for 20 years, those who had breastfed were less likely to develop metabolic syndrome — a cluster of risk factors for type 2 diabetes and heart disease that includes abdominal obesity, elevated blood pressure and blood sugar, lower-than-desirable levels of "good" HDL cholesterol and elevated triglycerides (a type of blood fat).

What's more, the apparent protective effect was stronger among women with a history of gestational diabetes, a form of diabetes that arises during pregnancy and goes away after childbirth.

Although it is temporary, gestational diabetes does raise a woman's odds of eventually developing type 2 diabetes.

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For more on this article, check out Baiboo's site here, they have lotsa other useful articles on parenthood!

What a good one! So breastfeeding not only helps to reduce Breast Cancer risk, but also diabetes and heart disease! So mommies out there, Breastfeeding is the way to go!

Cheers!