Breastfeeding Beyond 12 Months: Is There Evidence for Health Impacts?
- 11 October 2021
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Annual Reviews in Annual Review of Nutrition
- Vol. 41 (1), 283-308
- https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-nutr-043020-011242
Abstract
Because breastfeeding provides optimal nutrition and other benefits for infants (e.g., lower risk of infectious disease) and benefits for mothers (e.g., less postpartum bleeding), health organizations recommend that healthy infants be exclusively breastfed for 4 to 6 months in the United States and 6 months internationally. Recommendations related to how long breastfeeding should continue, however, are inconsistent. The objective of this article is to review the literature related to evidence for benefits of breastfeeding beyond 1 year for mothers and infants. In summary, human milk represents a good source of nutrients and immune components beyond 1 year. Some studies point toward lower infant mortality in undernourished children breastfed for >1 year, and prolonged breastfeeding increases interbirth intervals. Data on other outcomes (e.g., growth, diarrhea, obesity, and maternal weight loss) are inconsistent, often lacking sufficient control for confounding variables. There is a substantial need for rigorous, prospective, mixed-methods, cross-cultural research on this topic. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Nutrition, Volume 41 is September 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.Keywords
This publication has 108 references indexed in Scilit:
- The relationship between breastfeeding and postpartum weight change—a systematic review and critical evaluationInternational Journal of Obesity, 2013
- Prolonged breast-feeding is an independent risk factor for postmenopausal osteoporosisMaturitas, 2013
- Optimal duration of exclusive breastfeedingEmergencias, 2012
- Heightened attention to supplementation is needed to improve the vitamin D status of breastfeeding mothers and infants when sunshine exposure is restrictedMaternal & Child Nutrition, 2012
- Breastfeeding and the Use of Human MilkPEDIATRICS, 2012
- Interactions between metabolic and reproductive functions in the resumption of postpartum fecundityAmerican Journal of Human Biology, 2009
- Breast Volume and Milk Production During Extended Lactation in WomenExperimental Physiology, 1999
- Nutrition and Fertility in Bangladesh: Breastfeeding and Post Partum AmenorrhoeaPopulation Studies, 1987
- Lactation and birth spacing in highland New GuineaJournal of Biosocial Science, 1985
- IMMUNOLOGIC COMPONENTS IN HUMAN MILK DURING THE SECOND YEAR OF LACTATIONActa Paediatrica, 1983