Often times when you hear about the benefits of breastfeeding, you hear about them in reference to what benefits the baby. While there are certainly amazing benefits to your baby for receiving breastmilk, it’s time to think about yourself for awhile. Here are some of the few benefits breastfeeding provides for the mother of the baby:

1. Reduces mom’s risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
   These processes are thought to work because of the decrease in estrogen that comes with breastfeeding. This is protective for mothers against certain forms of cancer. This benefit is cumulative, meaning the more you breastfeed, the more protection you have personally. This is accumulated over the course of your reproductive life, meaning all of your children count.
   
   
2. Helps your uterus heal faster.
   Breastfeeding causes mom’s body to produce oxytocin. This hormone helps the uterus contract. This makes mom bleed less and helps the uterus return to its pre-pregnancy size faster. Every time your baby nurses, you’ll feel the oxytocin doing its thing. The good news is that is nothing like labor contractions.
   
   
3. Lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease.
   If a mother breastfeeds she has a lowered risk of many diseases of the heart. This list includes diseases such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
   
   
4. Delayed return of your menstrual cycle.
   The constant hormonal cycle of nursing will help your menstrual cycles be delayed for a bit. This is a great and simple way to space pregnancies (If you follow a few rules.). This allows your body to heal more completely so that you can start your next pregnancy in the most healthy state possible. Not to mention, if you don’t need your period, it’s just easier not to deal with it.
   
   
5. Costs less than other methods of infant feeding.
   If you choose to breastfeed, you will save money not only on the costs associated with formula feeding, but also other costs, like medical related cost. (Breastfed babies go to the doctor fewer times for illness, meaning fewer co-pays and less on medications. Moms will also have to take fewer days off work to care for sick babies and down the road it may play out to be lower health care costs in insurance, etc.) That said, do not expect that breastfeeding will be free. Consider that you may need to pay for some things like a few shirts, consultations with a professional, etc. (You might also check with your insurance company for some changes in recent laws that may make you eligible for some benefits.)
   
   
6. But wait, there’s more…
   Yes, just like a late night infomercial, there are even more benefits of breastfeeding for a woman. A lowered risk of developing Type II Diabetes is one, and some studies indicate that breastfeeding will help women lose weight faster than those who don't breast feed. And while breastfeeding causes a decrease in bone density, this is usually reversible — and in some cases, it's possible that breastfeeding may even reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

These benefits are all slightly varied based on how you breastfeed (e.g. do you supplement, do you pump) and how long you breastfeed. So, for example, the reduced risk of Type II Diabetes doesn’t kick in for moms until they have nursed for at least one month. There are also other factors that come into play as to effect an individual’s risks of getting a certain disease. Breastfeeding is just one of the many things that you can do to protect yourself.

It is also important to note that if you are exclusively pumping breastmilk for your baby, then you are still getting many of these benefits, even if your baby is not actually nursing. While moms who need to or choose to pump will have more work involved, whether they hand express their milk or wind up using an electric pump, the benefits are still clearly in their favor. Though some of the benefits of breastfeeding are less specific, such as saying you have more time with your child. Many mothers truly enjoy breastfeeding as a bonding experience, a few don’t. That’s okay too.

<sub>Sources:

Bartick, M, & Reinhold, A. (2010). The Burden of Suboptimal Breastfeeding in the United States: A Pediatric Cost Analysis. Pediatrics, 125(5), e1048-e1056. doi: 10.1542/peds.2009-1616

Johnston, M, Landers, S, Noble, L, Szucs, K, Viehmann, L, Feldman-Winter, L, & Lawrence, R. (2012). Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk. Pediatrics. doi: 10.1542/peds.2011-3552

Meek, JY. (2011). New Mother’s Guide to Breastfeeding (2nd ed.): American Academy of Pediatrics.

Schwarz, EB, Brown, JS, Creasman, JM, Stuebe, A, McClure, CK, Van Den Eeden, SK, & Thom, D. (2010). Lactation and Maternal Risk of Type 2 Diabetes: A Population-based Study. The American Journal of Medicine, 123(9), 863.e861-863.e866.</sub>