🦷 REMINDER: Breast- and Chestfeeding Can Be Protective Against Cavities! 🦷

Has your dentist or pediatrician told you to stop breastfeeding, as it increases the risk of cavities in infants and toddlers?

If they have, and if you have felt bad about continuing, I'm here to set the record straight.

As a certified lactation support counselor and a nursing mama myself, I was terrified of compromising my child's dental health with prolonged breastfeeding. Both my original pediatrician and pediatric dentist (we've since left their offices, FYI!) suggested that breastfeeding was the cause of my child's cavities, not acknowledging her extensive family history of Amelogenesis imperfecta. This disease causes improper formation of enamel on her teeth, and because it is genetic, it is not something that diet or lifestyle could prevent.

Still, I wanted to review the research. In a 2015 study, scientists found that breastfeeding was protective against the formation of dental caries (cavities), and they upheld the WHO recommendation of breastfeeding until 2 years old if possible.

We know now that there are plenty of other factors that contribute to cavity formation, including diet, airway obstruction/facial development, and hygiene. More on that later, but for now, keep calm and breastfeed on!

References

Avila, W. M., Pordeus, I. A., Paiva, S. M., & Martins, C. C. (2015). Breast and Bottle Feeding as Risk Factors for Dental Caries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PloS one, 10(11), e0142922. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0142922

Arroyo Buenestado, A., & Ribas-Pérez, D. (2023). Early Childhood Caries and Sleep Disorders. Journal of clinical medicine, 12(4), 1378. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm12041378