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Neurological differences between 9-year-old children fed breast-milk or formula-milk as babies
C I Lanting1, V Fidler, M Huisman
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Groningen, Netherlands.
Insights
Breastfeeding for at least three weeks may benefit long-term neurological development in children. This study found a reduced risk of neurological abnormalities in breastfed children at nine years of age.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Neuroscience
- Public Health Nutrition
Background:
- Minor neurological dysfunction (MND) impacts school-age behavioral and cognitive development.
- Previous research linked MND to perinatal disorders and abnormal neonatal neurological condition.
- The influence of infant feeding methods on long-term neurological outcomes requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between breastfeeding duration and long-term neurological development.
- To assess the impact of breastfeeding versus formula feeding on neurological status at nine years of age.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective cohort study involving 526 children born between 1975-1979 at University Hospital Groningen.
- Infants were categorized based on neonatal neurological examination: normal, slightly abnormal, or frankly abnormal.
- Children were reassessed at nine years of age, with feeding history collected via maternal questionnaires in 1993.
Main Results:
- After adjusting for confounding factors (obstetric, perinatal, neonatal neurological, social), breastfeeding (≥3 weeks) was associated with a reduced likelihood of neurological non-normality at age nine (OR 0.54; 95% CI 0.30-0.97).
- A statistically significant, albeit small, advantageous effect of breastfeeding on neurological status was observed.
Conclusions:
- The study suggests a potential beneficial effect of breastfeeding on postnatal neurological development.
- Longer-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in breast milk, crucial for brain development, may mediate this effect.
- While retrospective, the findings support further research into the neurodevelopmental benefits of breastfeeding.
Abstract:
The presence of minor neurological dysfunction is associated with behavioural and cognitive development at school age. We have previously shown a relation between minor neurological dysfunction and perinatal disorders, especially abnormal neonatal neurological condition. We have now investigated the relation between breastfeeding and long-term neurological development. We studied 135 breastfed (for > or = 3 weeks) and 391 formula-fed children, born at term in the University Hospital Groningen between 1975 and 1979. A standard neonatal neurological examination was used to classify the infants as normal (247), slightly abnormal (213), or frankly abnormal (66). At 9 years of age the children were reexamined. In 1993 their mothers were asked to complete a questionnaire about how the children were fed as infants. After adjustment for obstetric, perinatal, neonatal neurological, and social differences, a small advantageous effect of breastfeeding on neurological status at 9 years of age was found (odds ratio for neurological non-normality 0.54 [95% CI 0.30-0.97]). Although a retrospective design cannot lead to definite conclusions, our data suggest a beneficial effect of breast-feeding on postnatal neurological development. Longer-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are present in breast-milk but not in most formula-milks, may have a role since they are vital for brain development.