Abstract

Breast-feeding has substantial short and long term positive influences on maternal and infant health. It is highly protective against childhood infections and malocclusion, enhances intelligence and decreases the obesity. Prolonged breast-feeding provides a natural protection for women against breast and ovarian cancer while postponing the next pregnancy by means of extending the birth intervals. Breast-feeding, beyond its benefits on maternal and infant health, is a substantial component for sustainable development, prosperity and welfare on a global scale. When breast-feeding is assessed based on country’s income brackets, for other entire indicators apart from the indicator of “commencing breast-feeding in the initial one hour”, the higher the income bracket is the less the breast-feeding gets. Although breast-feeding in Turkey varies, 96% of the children under five years of age are subject to breastfeeding for a while. Notwithstanding with the “Exclusive Breastfeeding up to six months of age” recommendation of the World Health Organization, this rate of 4.7% within the babies of six months of age in Turkey is way below the expected level. World Sustainable Development Summit was held in January 2016 and Sustainable Development Goals spearheaded by the United Nations were determined in order to replace the Millennium Development Goals which was ended in 2015. Breast-feeding is more or less essentially associated with the entire goals, in this compilation, emphasis shall be laid on eight goals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12) that are mostly associated with the breast-feeding.