Introduction Pregnant women and their partners face many new challenges when welcoming a newborn into the world, which can often be very overwhelming. When it comes to feeding your newborn, it is important that, as nurses, we provide them with up-to-date information on feeding methods. This helps new parents make informed decisions about which method is best for them. The following document will discuss the scientific evidence that supports the benefits of breastfeeding for both mother and baby. Literature Review Research has been conducted and evidence has been gathered to support that breastfeeding has many maternal benefits for “women who breastfeed, particularly up to or beyond 1 year” (Godfrey & Ruth, 2010, p. These women have a reduced risk of developing many diseases and conditions, for example, ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, postpartum depression, and decreased postpartum bleeding (Godfrey & Ruth, 2010). A study was conducted to determine whether breastfeeding breast reduced the likelihood of ovarian cancer in 2005 (Luan, Wu, Gong, Vogtmann, Wang, & Lin, 2013). They compared women who breastfed with those who did not and determined that breastfeeding is associated with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer. Research supports that the longer a woman breastfeeds, the lower the risk of developing ovarian cancer (Luan et al., 2013). Breastfeeding is related to a decrease in the incidence of type 2 diabetes in women. . Breastfeeding is believed to be responsible for this reduction by increasing the body's effectiveness at balancing the amount of glucose in the blood and the amount of glucose needed in the cells (Godfrey & Ruth, 2010). It is not uncommon for a woman.. .... middle of paper ......tnutrition: a holistic analysis of the concept. Public Health Nursing,31(1), 88-96. doi:10.1111/phn.12047. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.c om.libproxy.cbu.ca:2048/doi/10.1111/phn.12047/pdf Godfrey, J., & Lawrence, R. (2010). Towards optimal health: the maternal benefits of breastfeeding. MD Journal of Women's Health, 19(9), 1597-1602. doi:10.1089/jwh.2010.2290. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.libpr oxy.cbu.ca:2048/Legacy/Views/static/html/Error.htm?aspxerrorpath=/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer Luan, N.N., Wu, Qj , Gong, T.T., Vogtmann, E., Wang, Y. L. & Lin, B. (2013). Breastfeeding and ovarian cancer risk: a meta-analysis of epidemiological studies. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23966430 Ricci, S.S. (2013). Essential elements of nursing care for mothers, newborns and women (3rd ed.). Philadelphia PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.