Breastfeeding - for a healthy baby and mum | Australian Breastfeeding Association

How you feed your baby can make a difference for both of you. Human milk is uniquely suited to your baby’s needs.

When babies are breastfed, especially for longer durations, they have a lower risk of a range of health problems. Mums who breastfeed, especially for longer, are less likely to experience certain health conditions themselves.

Here’s what the evidence shows.

For babies, breastfeeding lowers the risk of:

Gastrointestinal infections: Babies who are breastfed have a lower risk of tummy bugs and diarrhea.¹
Respiratory infections: Breastfeeding lowers your baby’s risk of chest infections and colds.²
Ear infections: Breastfed babies are less likely to develop ear infections.³
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): Breastfeeding lowers the risk of SIDS.⁴
Necrotising enterocolitis and sepsis (in premature babies): Breastfeeding protects preterm babies from serious gut and blood infections.⁵
Childhood cancer: Breastfed children have a lower risk of developing leukemia.^6,7
Dental malocclusions: Breastfeeding supports healthy jaw and teeth development, reducing the risk of dental misalignment.⁸
Overweight and obesity: Breastfed children are less likely to be overweight or obese in childhood and as adults.⁹
Type 2 diabetes: Breastfeeding lowers the risk of Type 2 diabetes in later life.¹⁰
Lower IQ: Breastfed children tend to have higher IQ scores.¹¹

The longer you breastfeed your baby, the more you reduce the likelihood of them having one of these health conditions. Exclusive breastfeeding for around the first 6 months, and continued breastfeeding alongside family foods, provides the strongest protection.¹²

For mums, breastfeeding lowers the risk of:

Breast cancer: Breastfeeding lowers your risk of developing breast cancer.¹³
Ovarian cancer: Breastfeeding reduces your risk of ovarian cancer.¹⁴
Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure: Breastfeeding is linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and hypertension.¹⁵
Heart disease and stroke: Breastfeeding lowers your risk.¹⁶

Research shows that the more months you breastfeed (across all your children), the greater the health benefits—this is called a dose–response effect.¹⁷

Why we talk about risks, not “benefits”

Breastfeeding is the biological norm. That’s why we talk about the risks of not breastfeeding, rather than the “benefits” of breastfeeding. Human milk is a baby’s natural first food, and all other ways of feeding are compared to this standard.

What does the latest research say?

Many large studies and reviews continue to confirm these findings. Recent meta-analyses and systematic reviews from 2023–2025 support the links between breastfeeding and lower risks of infections, obesity, childhood cancers, and chronic diseases for both babies and mums.

References

Duijts L, Jaddoe VWV, Hofman A, Moll HA. Prolonged and exclusive breastfeeding reduces the risk of infectious diseases in infancy. Pediatrics. 2010;126(1):e18–e25. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2008-3256
Mineva GM, Purtill H, Dunne CP, Philip RK. Impact of breastfeeding on the incidence and severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated acute lower respiratory infections in infants: A systematic review. BMJ Global Health. 2023;8(2):e009693. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2022-009693
Bowatte G, Tham R, Allen KJ, et al. Breastfeeding and childhood acute otitis media: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Acta Paediatr. 2015;104(S467):85–95. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.13151
Hauck FR, Thompson JMD, Tanabe KO, Moon RY, Vennemann MM. Breastfeeding and reduced risk of sudden infant death syndrome: A meta-analysis. Pediatrics. 2011;128(1):e103–e110. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2010-3000
Miller J, Tonkin E, Damarell RA, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of human milk feeding and morbidity in very low birth weight infants. Nutrients. 2018;10(6):707. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10060707
Amitay EL, Keinan-Boker L. Breastfeeding and childhood leukemia incidence: A meta-analysis and systematic review. JAMA Pediatr. 2015;169(6):e151025. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.1025
Su Q, Sun X, Zhu L, et al. Breastfeeding and the risk of childhood cancer: A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis. BMC Med. 2021 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-021-01950-5
Cenzato N, Berti C, Cazzaniga F, et al. Influence of the type of breastfeeding as a risk or protective factor for the onset of malocclusions: A systematic review. Eur J Paediatr Dent. 2023;24(4):329–333. https://doi.org/10.23804/ejpd.2023.2015
Horta BL, Rollins N, Dias MS, Garcez V, Pérez-Escamilla R. Systematic review and meta-analysis of breastfeeding and later overweight or obesity expands on previous study for World Health Organization. Acta Paediatr. 2023;112(1):34–41. https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.16460
Horta BL, Loret De Mola C, Victora CG. Breastfeeding and intelligence: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Acta Paediatr. 2015;104:14–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.13139 (Free full text available)
Horta BL, de Lima NP. Breastfeeding and type 2 diabetes: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Curr Diab Rep. 2019;19(1):1–9.
World Health Organization & United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Global strategy for infant and young child feeding. 2003. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9241562218
Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer. Breast cancer and breastfeeding: collaborative reanalysis of individual data from 47 epidemiological studies in 30 countries. Lancet. 2002;360(9328):187–195. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(02)09454-0
Babic A, Sasamoto N, Rosner BA, et al. Association between breastfeeding and ovarian cancer risk. JAMA Oncol. 2020;6(6):e200421. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaoncol.2020.0421
Rameez RM, Sadana D, Kaur S, et al. Association of maternal lactation with diabetes and hypertension: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Netw Open. 2019;2(10):e1913401. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.13401
Tschiderer L, Seekircher L, Kunutsor SK, et al. Breastfeeding is associated with a reduced maternal cardiovascular risk: Systematic review and meta-analysis. J Am Heart Assoc. 2022;11(2):e022746. https://doi.org/10.1161/JAHA.121.022746.
Victora CG, Bahl R, Barros AJD, et al. Breastfeeding in the 21st century: Epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect. Lancet. 2016;387(10017):475–490. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01024-7.