Research has found that women who are overweight are more likely to
give up breastfeeding their babies at an early stage.
Researchers think that over weight women had pregnancy complications
and hormonal changes that may have made it difficult to breastfeed.
The Telethon Institute for Child Health Research examined 1,803
children and their mothers who participated in a large pregnancy
study.
Before becoming pregnant at least 18 percent of the women were obese
or overweight.
Factors like socioeconomic status and years of education were taken
into account.
Researchers found that over weight and obese women tended to ignore
breastfeeding.
Those that attempted it did not continue to breastfeed.
Obese women were twice as likely to have breastfed for only two months
at most.
In contrast 52 percent of overweight women stopped breastfeeding
before their babies were two months old.
Overall researchers found that over weight and obese women had a
76 percent risk of ceasing to continue breastfeeding by the time the
baby was six months old.
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