RELATION OF INFANT-FEEDING TO ADULT SERUM-CHOLESTEROL CONCENTRATION AND DEATH FROM ISCHEMIC-HEART-DISEASE

Objective - To examine whether method of infant feeding is associated with adult serum lipid concentrations and mortality from ischaemic hea rt disease. Design - Follow up study of men born during 1911-30. Setti ng - Hertfordshire, England. Subjects - 5718 men, for 5471 of whom inf ormation on infant feeding had been recorded by health visitors and 13 14 of whom had died. 485 of the men born during 1920-30 and still livi ng in Hertfordshire who had blood lipid measurements.Main outcome meas ures - Death from ischaemic heart disease; serum cholesterol and apoli poprotein concentrations. Results - 474 men had died from ischaemic he art disease. Standardised mortality ratios were 97 (95% confidence int erval 81 to 115) in men who had been breast fed and had not been weane d at 1 year, 79 (69 to 90) in breast fed men who had been weaned at 1 year, and 73 (59 to 89) in men who had been breast and bottle fed. Com pared with men weaned before one year men not weaned had higher mean s erum concentrations of total cholesterol (6-9 (not weaned) v 6.6 (wean ed) mmol/l), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (5.0 v 4.6 mmol/l) an d apolipoprotein B (1.14 v 1.08 g/l). Men who had been bottle fed also had a high standardised mortality ratio for ischaemic heart disease ( 95; 68 to 130) and high mean serum concentrations of total cholesterol (7.0 mmol/l), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (5.1 mmol/l), and a polipoprotein B (1.14 g/l). In all feeding groups serum apolipoprotein B concentrations were lower in men with higher birth weight and weigh t at 1 year. Conclusions - Age of weaning and method of infant feeding may influence adult serum low density lipoprotein cholesterol concent rations and mortality from ischaemic heart disease. Adult serum apolip oprotein B concentrations are related to growth in fetal life and infa ncy.