Written by Hannah Harp
Spoon Feed
Breastfeeding is associated with reduced risk of serious GI and respiratory infections and improvement of other health outcomes, including overall infant mortality.
Good and good for you
The most recent (and most referenced) systematic review of the impact of breastfeeding on infant and maternal health outcomes was published in 2007. Today, we’ll look at a new systematic review that updates those results regarding infant health outcomes, encouraging continued use of breastfeeding support programs.
Synthesizing 29 systematic reviews and 145 primary studies, breastfeeding (directly or via expressed milk) was linked to reduced risk of moderate to severe GI and respiratory illnesses, and specific disease processes, such as otitis media (OR 0.67; 95%CI 0.59–0.76), asthma (OR 0.76; 95%CI 0.68–0.85), obesity (OR 0.74; 95%CI 0.70–0.78), and childhood leukemia (RR 0.90; 95%CI 0.85–0.95). Authors also found lower risk of allergic rhinitis, malocclusion, inflammatory bowel disease, type 1 diabetes, rapid weight gain and growth, systolic blood pressure, and overall infant mortality. Breastfeeding beyond 12 months was associated with increased risk of dental caries (RR 1.54; 95%CI 1.16–2.00).
The studies included did not take a nuanced approach toward duration of breastfeeding or proportion of breastmilk to formula. Most relied on surveys administered after 1 year of life, which introduces recall bias.
How will this change my practice?
It’s great to have current information about the benefits of breastfeeding when talking to parents who are exhausted and questioning if they should continue to breastfeed. At the same time, it’s great to have information about what isn’t affected by breastfeeding for those times when an exhausted parent chooses to formula feed instead.
Sources
Breastfeeding and Health Outcomes for Infants and Children: A Systematic Review. Pediatrics. 2025 Apr 17. doi: 10.1542/peds.2025-071516. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40240318
