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Breastfeeding may reduce hypertension risk

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Seoul, Jan 30 (IANS) Breastfeeding mothers, take note! New research suggests that women who breastfeed more children and for a longer duration were less likely to suffer from hypertension after they reach menopause.

According to the researchers, elevated blood pressure is the greatest single risk factor for disease and mortality.

“Our findings endorsed the current recommendations for breastfeeding for the benefit of maternal health in later lives,” said the lead author of the study, Nam-Kyong Choi from Ewha Womans University in South Korea.

Evidence from epidemiologic data has also shown the beneficial effects of breastfeeding on the health of infants and their mothers.

It has been well documented that long-term breastfeeding is associated with reduced children’s allergies, celiac disease, obesity and diabetes mellitus, the researchers said.

However, the effects of breastfeeding on maternal health have been little studied compared with the effects on the children.

Several studies have consistently found that absence of breastfeeding or premature discontinuation was associated with increased risks of diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome, coronary heart disease and cardiovascular diseases, the researchers mentioned.

For the study, published in the American Journal of Hypertension, researchers examined 3,119 non-smoking postmenopausal women aged 50 years or older in the 2010-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

They found that breastfeeding of more children and for longer duration were associated with lower risk of hypertension in postmenopausal women.

In particular, the highest quintile of number of children breastfed (five to 11) showed a 51 per cent lower risk of hypertension compared with the lowest quintile (zero to one).

The highest quintile of duration of breastfeeding (96 to 324 months) showed a 45 per cent lower risk of hypertension.

The researchers, however, said that this link may prove to be less true in obese women.

–IANS
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Covid toll in Karnataka is a worrying sign for state government

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Even though Karnataka recorded the lowest number of Covid deaths in April since the virus struck first in 2020, the state is recording a rise in the positivity rate (1.50 per cent). Five people died from the Covid infections in April as per the statistics released by the state health department. In March, the positivity rate stood around 0.53 per cent. In the first week of April it came down to 0.38 per cent, second week registered 0.56 per cent, third week it rose to 0.79 per cent and by end of April the Covid positivity rate touched 1.19 per cent.

on an average 500 persons used to succumb everyday in the peak of Covid infection, as per the data. Health experts said that the mutated Coronavirus is losing its fierce characteristics as vaccination, better treatment facilities and awareness among the people have contributed to the lesser number of Covid deaths.

During the 4th and 6th of April two deaths were reported in Bengaluru, one in Gadag district on April 8, two deaths were reported from Belagavi and Vijayapura on April 30. The first Covid case was reported in the state in March 2020 and three Covid deaths were recorded in the month. In the following month 21 people became victims to the deadly virus, and May 2020 recorded 22 deaths. The death toll recorded everyday after May crossed three digits. However, the third wave, which started in January 2

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