an overview of importance of breastfeeding

context according to some studies, the tendency of mothers to breastfeed has declined in recent years. due to numerous benefits of breastfeeding which had been reported, this problem may put children’s health and overall health of society at risk. in this study, we reviewed previous studies, emphasizing importance and necessity and enumerating benefits of breast-feeding. evidence acquisition databases including science direct, biomed, medline, cochrane library, embase, sid, and magazines related to the topic were searched using keywords. articles that examined various aspects of breastfeeding were analyzed as well. results the most perfect food for babies during the first two years of their lives is breast milk. it has so many health benefits for both mother and baby. breastfeeding was studied from various aspects. there was significant correlation between the examined factors in vast majority of papers. however, some factors that researchers considered important did not give definitive results; therefore more extensive research is needed in this area. conclusions breast milk is the most perfect food for babies during the first two years and no replacement is recommended during this time. breastfeeding has so many health benefits for both mother and baby during the breastfeeding period as well as in the future.