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Association between infant breastfeeding and overweight in young children

M L Hediger1, M D Overpeck, R J Kuczmarski

  • 1Division of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention Research, NICHD/NIH, Bldg 6100, Room 7B03, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892-7510, USA. hedigerm@exchange.nih.gov

JAMA
|May 23, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Breastfeeding may reduce the risk of children being overweight, but the duration of breastfeeding did not show a clear dose-dependent effect. Maternal weight status was a stronger predictor of child overweight than breastfeeding duration.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health
  • Nutrition

Background:

  • Breastfeeding is hypothesized to protect against childhood overweight.
  • A dose-dependent effect of breastfeeding duration on this protective association has been suggested.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between breastfeeding, its duration, and the risk of overweight in young US children.
  • To determine if breastfeeding offers protection against children being overweight.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) (1988-1994).
  • Analyzed data from 2685 US-born children aged 3-5 years with available feeding, height, and weight information.
  • Defined overweight risk using Body Mass Index (BMI) percentiles (85th-94th percentile for at-risk, ≥95th percentile for overweight).

Main Results:

  • Ever breastfeeding was associated with a reduced risk of being at risk of overweight (AOR 0.63; 95% CI 0.41-0.96).
  • No reduced risk of being overweight was observed (AOR 0.84; 95% CI 0.62-1.13).
  • No clear dose-dependent or threshold effect of breastfeeding duration on overweight risk was found.
  • Maternal overweight and obesity were significant predictors of child overweight status.

Conclusions:

  • Associations between breastfeeding, its duration, and childhood overweight risk are inconsistent.
  • While breastfeeding is recommended, moderating familial factors like diet and activity may be more critical for preventing childhood overweight.
  • Maternal weight status is a stronger determinant of childhood overweight than breastfeeding duration.
Abstract

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