Check out this article in yesterday's (3/8/99) International Herald Tribune

     UNITED NATIONS, New York (NYT) - Increased breastfeeding could save
     the lives of up to 1.5 million of the roughly 12 million children
     under the age of 5 who die every year around the world, according to
     initial findings presented by a group of women's organizations.

     The organizations, which have been trying to measure the economic
     benefits of breastfeeding, told the annual meeting of the UN
     Commission on the Status of Women that they hope to counter what they
     see as a worldwide decline in the practice by convincing governments,
     health authorities and ordinary families that they should do more to
     encourage mothers to breastfeed.

     Children who are not breastfed tend to have weaker immune systems and
     are at greater risk from infectious diseases, especially diarrhea and
     respiratory illnesses, they say.