The British test, which involved 740,000 people, showed that the number of pregnancies affects weight. New studies have shown that women who breastfeed for more than 6 months are less likely to suffer from obesity.
How does breastfeeding affect weight?
Obesity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and joint diseases. Overweight can often result in cancer of the intestines, uterus, esophagus, and kidneys. A British study also found that every 10 breast cancers are caused by being overweight.
With every pregnancy, a woman gains weight within 9 months. Body weight also increases in the long run - even after menopause. However, at the same time, breastfeeding counteracts obesity, the researchers say.
In women with 4 or more children, BMI is 1.7 times higher than in childless after menopause.
BMI for women with 2 children averages 26.2 points. WHO considers up to 25 points to be a normal weight, and above that is overweight.
Researchers write that the effects of breastfeeding and childbirth on weight are independent of each other. They also do not depend on other factors — eating habits, income, education, and tobacco use.
On average, women with higher incomes are lower in weight.
Nevertheless, the effect of childbirth and breastfeeding in both groups is clearly visible and relatively large. The results show that two factors have the same long-term effect on weight as finance.
Prolonged breastfeeding reduces a woman’s body weight?
How difficult it is to lose weight after childbirth is very different and also depends on the baby. Many mothers fail to regain their initial weight after childbirth, as they get used to eating plenty of food. If women continue to breastfeed, they are able to quickly return to normal weight. An infant consumes nearly 500 kilocalories per day.
Gabriel Snyder of the University of Pittsburgh and her colleagues examined 678 women. The POUCH study looked for the causes of preterm birth by collecting detailed data on women's health, including body weight. Women were re-examined after 7-15 years. At that time, it was about the effect of pregnancy on cardiovascular disease.
According to Snyder, 54% of women in the POUCH study had obesity in the abdomen. They breast-fed their babies for an average of 3.9 months. The average breastfeeding time for women with a smaller waist circumference was 6.4 months. The lowest waist circumference was in women who were breastfeeding for more than 6 months.
In women who were breastfeeding for 6 months, BMI after menopause was approximately 0.22 points less. If women fed the baby for 10 months, the effect of maintaining body weight actually increased to about 2 percent.
A 1-2% reduction in body weight as a result of breastfeeding does not seem so big. However, if the average BMI in the world was only 1% lower, this would reduce mortality by 14%. Such weight loss can significantly reduce the cost of diseases caused by being overweight.
The results were confirmed in two studies comparing women with other identical characteristics. Mothers who fed their children breast milk for 6 months or more had less weight. 10 years later, 1 out of 3 women had normal body weight.
How does WHO look at prolonged breastfeeding?
The recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) are clear: breastfeed for at least 6 months, then start complementary foods.
The research team analyzed a number of recent studies on this topic.
She showed that babies who are breast-fed longer are more likely to suffer from allergies and iron deficiency.
Therefore, overly long breastfeeding benefits only the mother, but not the fetus.
The German Nutrition Society still adheres to the middle course: experts recommend starting with complementary foods after 5-7 months.
Prolonged breastfeeding reduces a woman's body weight. However, excessively long lactation harms the baby. Optimal time for breastfeeding helps reduce weight and the risk of obesity-related complications.
