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. 2013 Feb;16(2):219-27.
doi: 10.1017/S1368980012003850. Epub 2012 Aug 24.

Infant feeding practices and prevalence of obesity in eight European countries - the IDEFICS study

Monica Hunsberger  1 , Anne Lanfer, Anna Reeske, Toomas Veidebaum, Paola Russo, Charalampos Hadjigeorgiou, Luis A Moreno, Dénes Molnar, Stefaan De Henauw, Lauren Lissner, Gabriele Eiben
Affiliations

Infant feeding practices and prevalence of obesity in eight European countries - the IDEFICS study

Monica Hunsberger et al. Public Health Nutr. 2013 Feb.

Abstract

Objective: To assess the association between exclusive breast-feeding and childhood overweight.

Design: Cross-sectional data are from the baseline survey of the longitudinal cohort study IDEFICS. Exclusive rather than partial breast-feeding is the focus of the study due to the theoretical relationship between exclusive breast-feeding and development of dietary self-regulation. Children's measured heights and weights were used to calculate weight status, while waist-to-height ratio (WtHR) and skinfold measures were examined as alternative indicators of adiposity and fat patterning.

Setting: Examination centres in eight European countries (Italy, Estonia, Cyprus, Belgium, Sweden, Hungary, Germany and Spain).

Subjects: The analysis included 14 726 children aged 2-9 years for whom early feeding practices were reported by parents in standardized questionnaires.

Results: After controlling for education, income and other potential confounders, breast-feeding exclusively for 4-6 months was protective of overweight (including obesity) when compared with children never exclusively breast-fed (OR = 0·73; 95 % CI 0·63, 0·85) across all measures of overweight. Exclusively breast-feeding for 6 months offered slightly more protection than for 4 and 5 months combined (OR = 0·71; 95 % CI 0·58, 0·85). The associations could not be explained by socio-economic characteristics or maternal overweight.

Conclusions: This multi-country investigation indicated that exclusive breast-feeding for 4-6 months may confer protection against overweight in addition to other known benefits. There was no demonstrated benefit of exclusive breast-feeding for more than 6 months or combination feeding for any duration across all measures of overweight examined.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Risk of overweight in children exposed to exclusive breast-feeding for 4–6 months stratified by country, 4–6 months all survey centres, 4–5 months all survey centres and 6 months all survey centres, compared with never breast-fed referent. Values are odds ratios, with 95 % confidence intervals represented by vertical bars. Fully adjusted model stratified by survey centre includes child's gender, age and birth weight, tobacco use during pregnancy, maternal education, maternal overweight/obesity, highest household education, foreign-born parent(s), household income and family structure. Children aged 2 to 9 years (n 14 726) from eight European countries, IDEFICS study
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References

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