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Infant nutrition and cognitive development in the first offspring of a national UK birth cohort
M Richards1, M Wadsworth, A Rahimi-Foroushani
1MRC National Survey of Health and Development, University College London, University of London, UK.
Insights
Breastfeeding may not directly improve cognitive development. This study found that the apparent benefits of breastfeeding on children's verbal ability disappeared after accounting for socioeconomic and parental factors.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Existing research suggests a link between breastfeeding and improved cognitive development.
- The precise mechanisms, whether nutritional or environmental, remain debated.
- This study investigates the influence of confounding factors on this association.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the relationship between breastfeeding and verbal ability at age 8.
- To determine if socioeconomic and parental factors mediate the effect of breastfeeding on cognitive performance.
- To differentiate between nutritional and environmental influences of breastfeeding.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from 511 first-born offspring in the National Survey of Health and Development.
- Comparison of verbal ability scores between breastfed and non-breastfed children.
- Statistical adjustment for paternal occupation, maternal education, maternal cognitive performance, nursery school attendance, and maternal age.
Main Results:
- An initial positive association between breastfeeding and cognitive performance was observed.
- This association diminished significantly after adjusting for paternal occupation, maternal education, or maternal cognitive performance.
- No association was found between breastfeeding and cognitive function in the mothers themselves.
Conclusions:
- The apparent cognitive benefits of breastfeeding may be explained by confounding socioeconomic and parental factors rather than direct effects.
- Environmental influences associated with breastfeeding, such as social class, require further investigation.
- The study highlights the complexity of disentangling the effects of breastfeeding on child development.
Abstract:
Several studies show a modest beneficial effect of breastfeeding on cognitive development after controlling for sociodemographic confounders. It is still unclear, however, to what extent this is due to the nutritional advantage of breast milk or to environmental influences associated with breastfeeding. We compared verbal ability scores at age 8 years in 511 first-born offspring of the National Survey of Health and Development who were ever or never breastfed, adjusting for paternal occupation, maternal education, maternal cognitive performance, attendance at nursery school, and maternal age at birth of the participant. A positive association between breastfeeding and cognitive performance was found but this was no longer the case after adjusting for either paternal occupation, maternal education, or maternal cognitive performance in turn. In contrast, an association between breastfeeding and cognitive function was not found for mothers of these offspring. Breastfeeding was increasingly associated with a non-manual social class across the generations although it remains unclear how this might mediate the effect of breastfeeding on cognitive performance.