Doctors used to be worried about
breastfeeding decaying the bones of teen moms... no more.
 Breastfeeding does not hurt the bones of teenage mothers and
may actually help strengthen them, as reported in a study by the
University of California.
The
findings contradict long-held concerns that the nutritional rigors of
nursing could damage the bone health of young mothers who are still
themselves growing and developing. The results of this study are
important because they reassure young women that they can offer what
numerous studies have shown to be the most perfect food for babies --
breast milk -- without compromising their own health. Teen moms are
far less likely to nurse than are adult women, in part because of
widely held misconceptions surrounding this feeding method.
In the new study, reported at the annual joint meeting of the 2001
Pediatric Academic Societies and American Academy of Pediatrics in
Baltimore, Md., women who had breastfed as teenagers showed no signs
of bone loss an average of nearly three years after the birth of their
last child. In fact, the researchers found these women had stronger
bone mineral density once they stopped breastfeeding than did moms who
had children but did not nurse in their formative years. "Until
now, we really weren't sure whether the bones of a breastfeeding
adolescent could recover from the nutritional rigors of
breastfeeding, but the results indicate that lactation may
actually protect a teenager's bone health," said lead study author Caroline
Chantry, UC Davis assistant professor of pediatrics. "This
finding, coupled with the known health benefits both baby and mother
receive from breastfeeding, clearly underscores the overall advantage
for both mother and baby in choosing breastfeeding over
formula."
The study of 819 white, black and Mexican women between the ages of 20
and 25 included 94 who had breastfed as teens, 151 who had babies but
did not nurse them in their adolescence, 156 who had their first child
as adults and 418 who were childless. The study, which accounted for
such demographic and lifestyle factors known to affect bone mineral
density as race, diet, weight and exercise, showed teen mothers who
breastfed had 5 percent to 7 percent higher bone mineral density in
all five areas of the femur studied than did their peers who did not
breastfeed.
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