Breastfeeding Protects Women From Diabetes

Breastfeeding a newborn for even one month will lower a woman's lifetime risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, according to a study published Friday. Other research has also linked breastfeeding to a reduced risk of diabetes among women, but the new study establishes the strength of the association to a much greater degree, Los Angeles Times reports.

Photo: Breastfeeding Protects Women From Diabetes

The breastfeeding and diabetes link has been reported in other studies, according to researcher Eleanor Bimla Schwarz, MD, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Her study lends more credence to the link, she says. "Moms who had ever breastfed were much less likely to develop diabetes," Schwarz tells WebMD. ''Moms who had never breastfed had almost twice the risk of developing diabetes as moms who had."

The study is published in The American Journal of Medicine. It was funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and the National Institute of Child Health and Development, according to WebMD Health News.