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Home environment, not duration of breast-feeding, predicts intelligence quotient of children at four years

Shao J Zhou1, Peter Baghurst, Robert A Gibson

  • 1Child Nutrition Research Centre, Flinders Medical Centre and Women's and Children's Hospital, Child Health Research Institute, North Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.

Nutrition (Burbank, Los Angeles County, Calif.)
|February 27, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Breastfeeding duration in infancy showed no link to a child's intelligence quotient (IQ) at age 4. Home environment quality was the strongest predictor of IQ in this study of children in an industrialized nation.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Health
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Breastfeeding is often associated with cognitive benefits in children.
  • However, the direct impact of breastfeeding duration on intelligence quotient (IQ) requires further investigation, particularly in well-nourished populations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the relationship between the duration of infant breastfeeding and children's IQ at 4 years of age.
  • To identify predictors of IQ in early childhood within an industrialized country.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective data collection from a cohort of 302 children born in Adelaide, Australia (1998-1999).
  • Assessment of children's IQ at 4 years using the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale.
  • Multivariable regression analysis adjusted for home environment quality and socioeconomic factors.

Main Results:

  • No significant association was found between the duration of breastfeeding and children's IQ at 4 years.
  • A child breastfed for 6 months had an expected IQ only 0.2 points higher than a never-breastfed child, after adjustments.
  • The quality of the home environment emerged as the strongest predictor of IQ at 4 years.

Conclusions:

  • In well-nourished populations in industrialized countries, breastfeeding duration does not appear to be associated with childhood IQ.
  • Observed cognitive benefits of breastfeeding in such settings are likely influenced by confounding sociodemographic factors.
Abstract

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