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Posted on Sep 29, 2002, 6 a.m.
By Bill Freeman
As well as being the best source of nutrition for a growing baby, breastfeeding can actually cut a mother's risk of developing breast cancer by half. Researchers from Yale University School of Medicine studied 500 women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and a further 500 women of the same age who did not have the disease.
As well as being the best source of nutrition for a growing baby, breastfeeding can actually cut a mother's risk of developing breast cancer by half. Researchers from Yale University School of Medicine studied 500 women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and a further 500 women of the same age who did not have the disease. Results showed that women who had breast-fed a child for a year or longer were roughly 50% less likely to develop breast cancer compared to women who had never breast-fed. Some researchers believe that breast-feeding reduces the risk of cancer by inhibiting the normal hormonal fluctuations of the menstrual cycle, or by removing toxins from breast tissue.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: British Journal of Cancer 2001; 84:1472-1476
