Association of breastfeeding and risk of metabolic syndrome and its components in postmenopausal parous women: Korea national health and nutrition examination survey (2010 ~ 2016)

Background: Understanding the relationship between breastfeeding (BF) and metabolic syndrome (Mets) is important for maternal long-term health benefits and disease prevention. This study aimed to examine the association between BF and Mets and its components among postmenopausal parous Korean women.

Methods: This cross-sectional study on 10,356 Korean women used nationally representative data from the KNHANES from 2010 to 2016. Anthropometric, laboratory data and manual BP were measured. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the association of BF with Mets and its components after adjusting for potential confounding variables. A p-value < 0.05 was to be considered statistically significant.

Results: Mets was present in 42% of the study participants. The BF group had low household income and education level. The prevalence of Mets in the BF group was higher than that in the non-BF group (42.69% vs. 34.76%, p < 0.001). BF was associated with increased risk of Mets (odds ratio [OR]: 1.4, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18-1.65, p < 0.001). The BF group was at higher risks for diabetes (OR: 1.5, 95%CI: 1.14-1.98), hypertension (OR: 1.32, 95%CI: 1.03-1.68), hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 1.42, 95%CI: 1.02-1.99) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (OR: 1.32, 95%CI: 1.06-1.65).

Conclusion: In this study, BF did not affect decreasing the prevalence of Mets and its components.