Mothers who plan, but are unable, to breastfeed their babies are more likely to suffer from postnatal depression, report BBC News and The Independent.
Borra et al, 2014 - New Evidence on Breastfeeding and Postpartum Depression
The study had several limitations. For example, both antenatal and postnatal depression were self-reported rather than clinically diagnosed, which may make the results less reliable.
Due to the nature of the study’s design, it cannot prove that not breastfeeding raises the risk of postnatal depression. However, it highlights the need to support new mothers who want to breastfeed but are unable to do so.