AsianScientist (Apr. 24, 2019) – In a study published in the journal Pediatrics, researchers in Hong Kong have found that exclusive breastfeeding in early infancy promoted a healthier lipid profile in late adolescence.
The World Health Organization recommends babies should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months because of the benefits for infant and maternal health. However, how these benefits extend from infancy into adulthood has not been fully delineated. Specifically, the long-term effects of breastfeeding on cardiovascular risk factors, such as the ‘bad’ low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, are not well-established.
Seeking to quantify the effects of breastfeeding on health outcomes in offspring, researchers led by Professor Gabriel Leung and Associate Professor Mary Schooling at the University of Hong Kong analyzed data from Hong Kong’s ‘Children of 1997’ birth cohort, one of Asia’s largest birth cohorts.
Breastfeeding was recorded in 1997. Thereafter, 3,265 participants had their lipids measured between 2013-2016, when they were approximately 17.5 years of age. Back in 1997, breastfeeding was not very common in Hong Kong and was not clearly related to the education of the mothers. Hence, researchers were able to use this cohort to isolate any beneficial outcomes of breastfeeding.
The research team found that exclusive breastfeeding for the first three months was associated with lower LDL-cholesterol at about 17.5 years, regardless of body mass index and fat percentage. However, the researchers noted that further studies are needed to clarify the exact mechanism and the full effects of breastfeeding on lipid profile.
The team suggested that breastfeeding is potentially important in cardiovascular disease prevention by promoting lower cholesterol for the population as a whole. These findings support existing public health policies to promote breastfeeding in Hong Kong and globally. Importantly, the researchers report that from 1997-2016, the proportion of mothers in Hong Kong breastfeeding their children increased from 33 percent to 85 percent.
The article can be found at: Hui et al. (2019) Breastfeeding in Infancy and Lipid Profile in Adolescence.
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Source: University of Hong Kong; Photo: Shutterstock.
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