Your Milk, Your Superpower: Breastfeeding Boosts Your Child’s Health

Pediatricians tell us that breastfeeding benefits infants & children. It has always been your superpower.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has for many years stressed the health benefits of mothers’ breastfeeding their children, recommending exclusive breastfeeding for at least six months and continued feeding for up to two years (as desired by mom and infant). The AAP’s rationale is that breastfeeding provides significant benefits to child health.

baby breastfeeding

In their updated policy statement in 2022, the AAP stated that “extensive data confirm many acute and chronic pediatric disorders – such as otitis media, acute diarrheal disease, lower respiratory tract illness, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), inflammatory bowel disease, childhood leukemia, diabetes mellitus, obesity, asthma, and atopic dermatitis – occur less frequently among children who were breastfed as infants.” (1)

As long ago as 2011, we knew that any breastfeeding was associated with a 60% reduced risk of SIDS. Exclusive breastfeeding provided even greater protection, and the protective effect of breastfeeding remained after adjusting for confounders like maternal smoking and bed-sharing. (2)

In 2017, other published research confirmed that any breastfeeding is protective against SIDS with exclusive breastfeeding conferring a stronger effect. Breastfeeding duration of at least 2 months is associated with half the risk of SIDS, and breastfeeding does not need to be exclusive to confer this protection. (3)

In 2022, AAP policy stated that breastfeeding is one of the strongest modifiable protective factors against SIDS. The benefits are dose-dependent, with exclusive breastfeeding conferring the most protection. (4)

Why these data matter

One of my greatest concerns is that, currently, and in the past, some best-selling child care influencers have contradicted AAP advice and offered that breastfeeding is more of a social or lifestyle choice since it conveys only minimal short-term benefits to the infant:

In Cribsheet, Emily Oster opined: “There are some health benefits to breastfeding early on, although the evidence supporting them is more limited than is commonly stated. There are likely some long-term health benefits, related to breast cancer, for mom. The data does not provide strong evidence for long-term health or cognitive benefits of breasfeeding for your child.” (5)

In 2022, Emily Oster updated her opinion in Parent Data, but it remained erroneous:

“I found credible evidence for some small, early-life benefits of breastfeeding (lower rates of gastrointestinal illness, possibly fewer ear infections) but no credible evidence for most of the claims made about long-term health or IQ. The bottom line is that breast is great. But formula is also great.” (6)

New data have emerged

Recently, a team of researchers at the Kiser Family Foundation (KFF) completed a meta-analysis of 145 primary studies and 29 existing systematic reviews, done between 2007 and 2024, to examine the effect of breastfeeding on various child health outcomes. Their work was published recently in Pediatrics. They found that breastfeeding is clearly associated with beneficial effects for several important infant and child outcomes, both short-term and long-term. (7)

The KFF analysis established clear associations between lower risk from more (vs less) breastfeeding for: moderate-to-severe respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, otitis media, allergic rhinitis, asthma, malocclusion, inflammatory bowel disease, type 1 diabetes, rapid weight gain and growth, childhood obesity, high systolic blood pressure, childhood leukemia, and infant mortality. The data analysis did not support improved cognition from breastfeeding.

See the table below for a summary of benefits and strength of the evidence:

The researchers at KFF found no clear threshold of breast-feeding duration that appeared to be most beneficial for any outcome. Nor were there adequate data to determine whether associations varied by mode of breastfeeding or source of breastmilk (e.g. mother’s breastmilk feedings by bottle, or donor breastmilk).

What this means

Now we have rather definitive data to support numerous infant and child health benefits from breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is species-specific and since humans are mammals, we have evolved to protect our young infants and children by breastfeeding. Formula feeding may be adequate for nutritional support, but it does not confer any child health benefits and may contribute to higher rates of childhood obesity.

Breastfeeding is hard. Many modern women try to nurse their babies and fail. I failed to nurse my firstborn longer than three months because of early return to work at eight weeks and a suboptimal breast pump. With my second, I struggled with engorgement, sore nipples, and mastitis. Finally, I breastfed my third child easily for one year.

“Breastfeeding – Battles or Bliss?”

By:  Susan Landers, MD

Published in Moms Matter on Substack,  August 19, 2024

Read full story

Our modern society – specifically our healthcare systems, community support services, and workplaces – is not conducive to breastfeeding success. Mothers’ return to work is a huge factor in early weaning from breastfeeding.

We do not need influencers to tell women that breastfeeding is really just a personal choice and that it conveys few benefits. The implication is – why bother to try and make it work.

Breastfeeding is worth the effort for our children’s health. It is worth it for us, too because mothers who breastfeed have lower rates of type 2 diabetes, breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancer. (1,8)

References:

1. Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk. Meek, Noble, and the Section on Breastfeeding. Pediatrics 2022: 150 (1): 323-337. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/150/1/e2022057988/188347/Policy-Statement-Breastfeeding-and-the-Use-of
2. Breastfeeding and reduced risk of sudden infant death syndrome: a meta-analysis. Hauck, Thompson, Tanabe, Moon, and Vennemann. Pediatrics. 2011;128(1):103–110. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2010-3000.
3. Evidence base for 2022 updated recommendations for a safe infant sleeping environment to reduce the risk of sleep-related infant death. Moon, Carlin, and Hand. Pediatrics. 2022;150(1):e2022057991.
4. Duration of breastfeeding and risk of SIDS: An individual participant data meta-analysis. Thompson, Tanabe, Moon, et al. Pediatrics 2017; 140 (5.) e20171324. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/140/5/e20171324/37852/Duration-of-Breastfeeding-and-Risk-of-SIDS-An
5. Cribsheet: a data-driven guide to better, more relaxed parenting, from birth to preschool. Emily Oster, Penguin Books, 2019.
6. https://parentdata.org/breast-is-best-breast-is-better-breast-is-about-the-same/
7. Breastfeeding and Health Outcomes for Infants and Children: A Systematic Review Patnode, Henrikson, Webber, et al. Pediatrics 2025; 156 (1). e2025071516. doi: 10.1542/peds.2025-071516
8. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2021/02/breastfeeding-challenges