Breastfeeding is known to be associated with a lower risk of postnatal depression and anxiety, but evidence regarding its long-term mental health benefits remains limited. To address this gap, a 10-year prospective study examined the relationship between breastfeeding and later depression and anxiety among 168 parous women (mean age: 42.4 years). In this cohort, 37.5% of women breastfed for 12 months or longer, while the median lifetime duration of exclusive breastfeeding was 5.5 weeks.
Ever breastfeeding (odds ratio [OR], 0.40), longer duration of exclusive breastfeeding (OR, 0.98), and lifetime breastfeeding for 12 months or more (OR, 0.38) were all associated with lower odds of depression and anxiety. These findings suggest that breastfeeding may be associated with long-term mental health benefits, with longer breastfeeding duration linked to reduced risk of depression and anxiety in…
