Breastfeeding and Breast Cancer Risk Reduction: Implications for Black Mothers

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and a leading cause of death from cancer among U.S. women. Studies have suggested that breastfeeding reduces breast cancer risk among parous women, and there is mounting evidence that this association may differ by subtype such that breastfeeding may be more protective of some invasive breast cancer types. The purpose of this review is to discuss breast cancer disparities in the context of breastfeeding and the implications for black mothers. Black women in the U.S. have lower rates of breastfeeding and nearly twice the rates of triple-negative breast cancer (an aggressive subtype) compared with white women. In addition to individual challenges to breastfeeding, black women may also differentially face contextual barriers such as a lack of social and cultural acceptance in their communities, inadequate support from the healthcare community, and unsupportive work environments. More work is needed to improve the social factors and policies that influence breastfeeding rates at a population level. Such efforts should give special consideration to the needs of black mothers to adequately address disparities in breastfeeding among this group and possibly help reduce breast cancer risk. Interventions such as peer counseling, hospital policy changes, breastfeeding-specific clinic appointments, group prenatal education, and enhanced breastfeeding programs have been shown to be effective in communities of color. A comprehensive approach that integrates interventions across multiple levels and settings may be most successful in helping mothers reach their breastfeeding goals and reducing disparities in breastfeeding and potentially breast cancer incidence.

Exposure to Hospital Breastfeeding Support by Maternal Race and Ethnicity: A Pilot Study

“…Taken together, this study justifies additional investigation of racial and ethnic disparities in hospital breastfeeding support to improve breastfeeding among all racial and ethnic groups in the United States. With regard to long term health, the racial disparity in breastfeeding may have important implications for other outcomes, such as breast cancer and obesity, for which breastfeeding is a modifiable risk factor and which disproportionately affect individuals of non‐white races and ethnicities …”

“…With regard to long term health, the racial disparity in breastfeeding may have important implications for other outcomes, such as breast cancer and obesity, for which breastfeeding is a modifiable risk factor and which disproportionately affect individuals of non-white races and ethnicities. 2,20,21 We suspect that this differential exposure to recommended practices may be attributable to several factors. First, cultural factors may influence patient preferences for pacifiers or formula.…”

Relationship between exclusive breastfeeding and cardiorespiratory fitness in children and adolescents: A meta‐analysis

“…Breastfeeding, also called personalized medicine for infants, has been under consideration for the last decades. It has been shown to have numerous short and long‐term benefits for maternal and children´s health, even more so when it is exclusive; however, despite extensive evidence and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, the latest epidemiological data reported very low rates of breastfeeding. Worldwide, just 36% of infants (0‐6 months) were exclusively breastfed from 2007 to 2014.…”

“…In the long term, breastfeeding has been related to neuropsychological benefits or motor development . For maternal health, benefits such as decreasing the risk of postpartum weight retention or preventing breast and ovarian cancer have also been highlighted …”

Factores relacionados con la mortalidad a largo plazo en las personas de mediana edad de la provincia de Castellón

“…Por otra parte, en las comunidades judías se ha observado una menor incidencia de cáncer de pene debido al efecto protector de la circuncisión. Entre las comunidades religiosas de monjas se ha observado una incidencia más alta de cáncer de mama, que se ha relacionado con la ausencia de gestaciones y de lactancia, que tendrían un cierto efecto protector para esa neoplasia (40).…”