Moms who breastfeed may reap big health benefits. Compared to women who had babies but never breastfed, mothers who breastfed for any period of time were less likely to develop heart disease, have a stroke, or die from heart disease during 10 years of follow-up.

For the study, researchers analyzed information on close to 1.2 million women in eight studies conducted between 1986 and 2009 across several countries. They looked at how long women breastfed, how many children they had, their age at first birth, and whether they had a heart attack or a stroke during follow-up.

Fully 82 percent breastfed at some point. These women were 11 percent less likely to develop heart disease, 12 percent less likely to have a stroke, and 17 percent less likely to die from heart disease during 10 years of follow-up. These benefits held for women who breastfed for any length of time and were even greater for those who breastfed for up to one year.

The study can’t say whether breastfeeding for even longer periods is more beneficial because there weren’t enough women in the study who breastfed for more than two years.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants be exclusively breastfed for around the first six months of life.