DIFFERENCES IN MORBIDITY BETWEEN BREAST-FED AND FORMULA-FED INFANTS

Citation
Kg. Dewey et al., DIFFERENCES IN MORBIDITY BETWEEN BREAST-FED AND FORMULA-FED INFANTS, The Journal of pediatrics, 126(5), 1995, pp. 696-702
Citations number
49
Categorie Soggetti
Pediatrics
Journal title
ISSN journal
00223476
Volume
126
Issue
5
Year of publication
1995
Part
1
Pages
696 - 702
Database
ISI
SICI code
0022-3476(1995)126:5<696:DIMBBA>2.0.ZU;2-E
Abstract
To determine whether breast-feeding is protective against infection in relatively affluent populations, morbidity data were collected by wee kly monitoring during the first 2 years of life from matched cohorts o f infants who were either breast fed (BF) (N = 46) or formula fed (FF) (N = 41) until at least 12 months of age, Cohorts were matched for ch aracteristics such as birth weight and parental socioeconomic status, and we controlled for use of day care in data analysis, Mean maternal educational level was high (16 years) in both groups, In the first yea r of life the incidence of diarrheal illness among BF infants was half that of FF: infants; the percentage with any otitis media was 19% low er and with prolonged episodes (>10 days) was 80% lower in BF compared with FF infants, There were no significant differences in rates of re spiratory illness; nearly all cases were mild upper respiratory infect ions, Morbidity rates did not differ significantly between groups in t he second year of life, but the mean duration of episodes of otitis me dia was longer in FF than BF infants (8.8 +/- 5.3 vs 5.9 +/- 3.5 days, respectively; p = 0.01), These results indicate that the reduction in morbidity associated with breast-feeding is of sufficient magnitude t o be of public health significance.