Does breastfeeding reduce postpartum depression?

The association of breastfeeding (BF) with postpartum depression (PPD) remains controversial.

Currently, there is a lack of specific guidelines on the role of BF in managing PPD.

The present study determined the association between BF and PPD. It searched PubMed, CochraneLibrary, and EMBASE up to December 2021 for relevant articles and calculated Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with a random-effects model.

The study observed-

• Inclusion of 8 studies with 18,570 participants. 
• Association of BF with a 14% lower risk of PPD. 
• For a single BF episode, BF duration of >1 month showed a 37% lower risk, and BF for <1 month showed a 6% lower risk of PPD. 
• Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) compared with never breastfeeding (NBF) showed a 53% lower risk for PPD. 
• EBF, compared with partial breastfeeding (PBF), showed an 8% lower risk for PPD. 
• The studied subgroups may be a source of heterogeneity.

These results show an association between PPD and risk for BF, which must be confirmed by studies with large sample sizes.

Source:  Xia M, Luo J, Wang J, Liang Y. Association between breastfeeding and postpartum depression: A meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2022;308:512-519. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.04.091.