Breastfeeding is recommended by the White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity as one one of the ways to reduce the risk of childhood obesity (1 out of 3 American kids is now overweight or obese). The 100 pages report, released yesterday by Michelle Obama, focuses on having a good start in early childhood. Increasing the breastfeeding rates (especially increasing the number of babies who are breastfed for at least 9 months) is one of the goals and the report states a few ways to get there, for example increasing the number of “baby-friendly” designated hospitals, as they encourage breastfeeding. I would also add that the baby-friendly hospitals respect the World health organization International code for the marketing of breastmilk substitutes, thus fostering their confidence in their ability to breastfeed without substitutes.
I find it quite interesting to read that every month of breastfeeding reduces the risk by an added 4%. This positive effect of breastfeeding reaches the maximum of 22% once the baby has been breastfed for nine months. Studies show that the effects of breastfeeding last all the way to adolescence.
We’re doing the right thing, let’s keep up the good work and keep on breastfeeding!
