Breastfeeding Programs an Infant's Metabolism

Breastfeeding is universally recommended as the superior method for feeding infants because it's linked to long-term prevention of various illnesses including asthma, diabetes and obesity. A study released Monday puts more emphasis on breastfeeding by showing it may have a lasting impact on metabolism.

French researchers analyzed three years of data following 234 children and how they were fed after birth. One group of children received only breast milk for the first four months of life. The other two groups were randomized to receive either a low-protein formula or a high-protein formula. Both of the formula types contained protein amounts that are within recommendations.

The study showed that children who received breast milk for the first four months had a specific pattern of growth and metabolic profile that differed from the formula-fed babies. Even at 15 days of life, the breast-fed infants had blood insulin levels that were lower than the formula-fed infants.

By 3 years of age, many of the metabolic and growth differences between the breast-fed and formula-fed infants had disappeared. However, blood pressure readings were higher in the infants who had been fed the high-protein formula compared with breast-fed infants. The blood pressure rates were still within the normal range.

The study suggests that if breast-feeding is not possible, infants should be fed formula that has a metabolic profile as close to human breast milk as possible.

Breastfeeding Linked to Better Behaviour

Babies who are breastfed for several months develop fewer behavioural problems in early childhood than those who are bottle-fed, researchers have said.

The British study which involved around 10,000 mothers and their babies found that breastfeeding for at least four months lowered the risk of behavioural problems in children aged five by one third.

Researchers say the findings, published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, add to a wealth of existing evidence on the benefits of breastfeeding.

Children raised on bottled milk formula tended to show more signs of anxiety, hyperactivity or lying and stealing, researchers found.

"We're not necessarily talking about tearaway, unmanageable five-year-old kids," said Maria Quigley from Oxford University, who led the research.

"It might be unusual anxiousness, restlessness, inability to socialise with other children or play fully in groups."

Scientists said the results could be explained either by the fatty acids in breast milk which aid brain development or the bonding between mother and child, which may affect learned behaviour.

Researchers from the Universities of Oxford, Essex, York and University College London analyzed data from a survey of 10,037 infants born in the UK between 2000 and 2001, who took part in the the wider Millennium Cohort Study.

Mothers were asked to assess the behaviour of their children by the age of five, giving scores for different behaviours, such as clinginess and restlessness.

Raw figures showed that only six percent of breastfed children were given abnormal scores indicating behavioural problems, compared with 16 percent of formula-fed children.

However, mothers who breastfed tend to be older, better educated and from a higher socio-economic background than those who don't, the study said.

Researchers therefore adjusted the figures to take those factors into account, concluding that there was a 30 percent greater risk of behavioural problems among formula-fed children.

"Our results provide even more evidence for the benefits of breastfeeding," Quigley added.

"Mothers who want to breastfeed should be given all the support they need."

Janet Fyle, from the Royal College of Midwives, agreed that the study backed evidence that breastfeeding is best for babies but warned against victimizing women who choose not to.

"We need to be careful to keep a balance when interpreting the results, so that we do not send a negative message to mothers that they have failed or make them feel guilty because they bottle-fed their babies," she said.

Benefits of Breastfeeding



Breast Feeding

What are the benefits of breastfeeding?

Breastfeeding has many benefits for both you and your baby. It's a lovely way for you to feel close to each other. Best of all, though, your breastmilk gives your baby everything she needs to thrive for the first six months of her life.

And once your baby starts solids at around six months, you can carry on breastfeeding her. Breastmilk is full of nutrients that will continue to do your baby good.

Breastfeeding also helps your baby to fight infections in the first few months of her life. Breastmilk contains antibodies which help protect your baby against illnesses such as tummy bugs (gastroenteritis), colds, urinary infections and ear infections.

Breastmilk also reduces the risk of your baby getting allergic conditions such as asthma and eczema. It can even help to protect your baby against serious illnesses, such as childhood diabetes and leukemia.

As well as antibodies already in your breastmilk, your body will make new antibodies as soon as you are exposed to an infection. These antibodies then transfer to your milk, ready for your baby to receive as soon as she next has a breastfeed.

Breastmilk has long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are essential for helping your baby's brain develop. Exclusively breastfeeding for the first few months can improve your baby's cognitive development. In theory, this means breastfeeding your baby could make her more intelligent.

Breastfeeding is the healthiest choice for you, too. It reduces your risk later in life of pre-menopausal breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and bone fractures from osteoporosis.

On the practical side, a big benefit of breastfeeding is how convenient it is. You have nothing to wash, sterilise or prepare. You and your baby will enjoy it, and you will feel a real sense of achievement to see her growing and developing. And it's all your own work!