What do I need to know about breastfeeding?

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Breastfeeding promotes many benefits for mothers, babies, and their families.

For mom, breastfeeding lowers risk of:

• Postpartum hemorrhage
• Cardiovascular disease
• Hypertension
• Hyperlipidemia
• Type 2 diabetes 
• Obesity
• Metabolic Syndrome
• Breast and ovarian cancer
• Postpartum depression
• Rheumatoid arthritis

For baby, breastfeeding lowers risk of:

• Respiratory illness
• Otitis media
• Gastrointestinal disease
• Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)
• Childhood leukemia
• Eczema (atopic dermatitis)
• Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
• Type 2 diabetes and obesity

What are the breastfeeding recommendations?

Breastfeeding recommendations include the following (AAP, 2019):

• Exclusively breastfeed for the first 6 months
• Breastfeed for the first 12 months
• Add complementary foods in addition to breastfeeding around 6 months
• Breastfeed for as long as mom and baby want

What challenges exist for breastfeeding mothers?

Mothers who want to breastfeed their babies might face challenges including the following:

• Pain
• Low milk supply
• Mother-infant separation
• Early supplementation
• Exhaustion/sadness/depression
• Returning to work/school
• Non-supportive policies/environment
• No place to pump
• Lack of resources/support
• Sleepy/fussy/crying baby