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Review
. 2016 Jan 30;387(10017):475-90.
doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01024-7.

Breastfeeding in the 21st century: epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect

Cesar G Victora  1 , Rajiv Bahl  2 , Aluísio J D Barros  3 , Giovanny V A França  3 , Susan Horton  4 , Julia Krasevec  5 , Simon Murch  6 , Mari Jeeva Sankar  7 , Neff Walker  8 , Nigel C Rollins  2 ; Lancet Breastfeeding Series Group
Collaborators, Affiliations
Review

Breastfeeding in the 21st century: epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect

Cesar G Victora et al. Lancet. .

Abstract

The importance of breastfeeding in low-income and middle-income countries is well recognised, but less consensus exists about its importance in high-income countries. In low-income and middle-income countries, only 37% of children younger than 6 months of age are exclusively breastfed. With few exceptions, breastfeeding duration is shorter in high-income countries than in those that are resource-poor. Our meta-analyses indicate protection against child infections and malocclusion, increases in intelligence, and probable reductions in overweight and diabetes. We did not find associations with allergic disorders such as asthma or with blood pressure or cholesterol, and we noted an increase in tooth decay with longer periods of breastfeeding. For nursing women, breastfeeding gave protection against breast cancer and it improved birth spacing, and it might also protect against ovarian cancer and type 2 diabetes. The scaling up of breastfeeding to a near universal level could prevent 823,000 annual deaths in children younger than 5 years and 20,000 annual deaths from breast cancer. Recent epidemiological and biological findings from during the past decade expand on the known benefits of breastfeeding for women and children, whether they are rich or poor.

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Comment in

  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century.
    Quigley MA, Carson C. Quigley MA, et al. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2087-2088. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30534-7. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301815 No abstract available.
  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century.
    Wallingford J. Wallingford J. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2087. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30547-5. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301816 No abstract available.
  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century.
    Walters D, Kakietek JJ, Eberwein JD, Pullum T, Shekar M. Walters D, et al. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2087. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30546-3. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301817 No abstract available.
  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century.
    Agranonik M, Portella AK, Hamilton J, Fleming AS, Steiner M, Meaney MJ, Levitan RD, Silveira PP; MAVAN study team. Agranonik M, et al. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2088-2089. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30536-0. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301818 No abstract available.
  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century - Authors' reply.
    Victora CG, Rollins NC, Murch S, Krasevec J, Bahl R. Victora CG, et al. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2089-2090. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30538-4. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301819 No abstract available.
  • Breastfeeding in the 21st century.
    Renfrew MJ. Renfrew MJ. Lancet. 2016 May 21;387(10033):2089. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30537-2. Lancet. 2016. PMID: 27301820 No abstract available.

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