Breastfeeding is associated with enhanced
mental health
Mezzacappa ES. Breastfeeding
and maternal stress response and health (Review). Nutr
Rev. 2004 Jul;62(7 Pt 1):261-8.
This article reviews findings on the
maternal stress and health effects of lactation. Several
significant associations have emerged. Compared with not
breastfeeding, breastfeeding is associated with increased
parasympathetic nervous system modulation, greater vascular
stress response, lower perceived stress levels, and fewer
depressive symptoms. Breastfeeding exclusively is associated
with an attenuated initial sympathetic cardiac nervous system
response to some laboratory stressors. Bottle-feeding is
associated with increased sympathetic and decreased parasympathetic
cardiac control. The act of breastfeeding is associated
with decreased neuroendocrine response to stressors and
decreased negative mood. Finally, breastfeeding is associated
with enhanced physical and mental health compared with non-breastfeeding.
