Breastfed Babies Less Likely to Die, Study Finds
Overall Risk Fell 20 Percent During an Infant's First Year
By Rob Stein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 3, 2004
Breastfeeding appears to reduce significantly the chances that babies will die in their first year of life, researchers reported yesterday.
An analysis of a nationally representative sample of about 9,000 U.S. babies found that breastfeeding decreased the risk of dying from any cause by about 20 percent, the researchers reported.
Based on the findings, the researchers estimated that about 720 infant deaths would be prevented annually if all American women breastfed their babies for the first year, the researchers said.
"There's already a lot of reasons for women to breastfeed their babies," said Walter J. Rogan, an epidemiologist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, N.C. "This is one more."
Although previous studies have found that breastfeeding provides a variety of benefits for babies, including apparently reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), the study is the first to demonstrate an overall reduction in mortality among U.S. children, Rogan and other experts said.
The reason breastfeeding would reduce the overall risk of death remains unclear, though research has shown that in addition to reducing the risk of SIDS, breastfeeding boosts a baby's immune system, which protects against infections. There is also a possibility that women who breastfeed their babies simply tend
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