The impact of maternal eating disorders on breastfeeding practices: a systematic review

Breastfeeding is an effective way to protect and promote the health of the infant and mother. Cultural, social, economic, medical, or psychological factors might interfere with successful breastfeeding. Therefore, maternal eating disorders (EDs) may have detrimental effects on the decision of breastfeeding initiation and on its continuation. There is limited knowledge about the breastfeeding practices of mothers with EDs. We performed a systematic review to generate more evidence in this area. A search was conducted in PubMed and PsycINFO, and several journals were hand searched for relevant publications. Of N = 3904 hits, 13 full texts were included in the qualitative analysis. The findings on total duration of BF between mothers with and without EDs were mixed, but women with EDs showed more negative experiences and emotional problems during BF. There was not enough evidence to conclude on breastfeeding initiation, or on the duration of exclusive breastfeeding. Maternal EDs might have a negative impact on BF practices with possible negative effects on the maternal-child feeding environment. Further studies with comparable data and information on the women’s partners’ attitudes about breastfeeding are needed.