Breast feeding reduces asthma risk in kids
17 July 2009
Breast feeding appears to protect against the development of asthma, regardless of family history of allergy.
While some previous findings suggested breast feeding had a protective effect, others indicated the risk of asthma might actually increase in children breastfed by a mother with asthma.
Now, a Dutch study of more than 3000 children assessed regularly up to the age of 8 years for wheeze, lung function and prescription of inhaled steroids, has found breast feeding does have a protective effect, even if the mother has a history of asthma or allergy (Thorax 2009; 64: 558-59, 604-09).
The researchers found than children breastfed for one to 16 weeks had an 18 per cent lower asthma prevalence than those never breastfed. The prevalence was 43 per cent lower if breast feeding continued beyond 4 months. (Prevalence is the proportion of people with a condition in a certain population at a given time.)
No interaction was observed between breastfeeding and maternal or paternal allergy. The authors observed a lower risk for sensitisation to airborne allergens (substances that trigger allergies) among the children who were breastfed.
Australian nutritionist Dr Wendy Oddy, from the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Perth, said that as asthma was a complex disease it would be unlikely that any one determinant was definitive.
However, even a small effect in favour of protection against the disease could have important implications for public health, she said.
Last Reviewed: 17 July 2009
- 1. Oddy WH. Breast feeding and childhood asthma. Thorax 2009; 64(7): 558-9
