Cardiometabolic effects of breastfeeding on infants of diabetic mothers

Breast milk is the best and principal nutritional source for neonates and infants. It may protect infants against many metabolic diseases, predominantly obesity and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic metabolic and microvascular disease that affects all the body systems and all ages from intrauterine life to late adulthood. Breastfeeding protects against infant mortality and diseases, such as necrotizing enterocolitis, diarrhoea, respiratory infections, viral and bacterial infection, eczema, allergic rhinitis, asthma, food allergies, malocclusion, dental caries, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. It also protects against obesity and insulin resistance and increases intelligence and mental development. Gestational diabetes has short and long-term impacts on infants of diabetic mothers (IDM). Breast milk composition changes in mothers with gestational diabetes.

To investigate the beneficial or detrimental effects of breastfeeding on the cardiometabolic health of IDM and their mothers.

We performed a database search on different engines and a thorough literature review and included 121 research published in English between January 2000 and December 15, 2022, in this review.

Most of the literature agreed on the beneficial effects of breast milk for both the mother and the infant in the short and long terms. Breastfeeding protects mothers with gestational diabetes against obesity and type 2 DM. Despite some evidence of the protective effects of breastfeeding on IDM in the short and long term, the evidence is not strong enough due to the presence of many confounding factors and a lack of sufficient studies.

We need more comprehensive research to prove these effects. Despite many obstacles that may enface mothers with gestational diabetes to start and maintain breastfeeding, every effort should be made to encourage them to breastfeed.