Association between breastfeeding and childhood overweight at 3 to 4 years of age

Abstract

A number of studies have shown that breastfeeding may protect against childhood obesity, but other studies have found no association. The objective of this study is to evaluate the association between the duration of any and exclusive breastfeeding and the children's body mass index (BMI) at 3 to 4 years of age. We recruited a total of 1240 mother-infant pairs who gave birth in four geographically distributed public hospitals in Hong Kong from October 2011 to May 2012. Breastfeeding status was assessed through telephone interviews up to 12 months postpartum or until they stopped breastfeeding, whichever came first. We further followed up participants by telephone or online questionnaire when the child was 3 to 4 years of age. Child body weight and height were assessed by maternal self-report. The body mass index z scores of the children were calculated according to World Health Organization Child Growth Standards. When compared with children who were breastfed for a shorter duration (< 1 month), infants who were breastfeed for > 4 months were significantly less likely to have a body weight z score in the overweight category (p=0.03). A longer duration of breastfeeding was associated with a lower risk of overweight in Hong Kong Chinese children at 3 to 4 years of age.