The development of differences in the feeding behaviour of bottle and breast fed human infants from birth to two months

Abstract

An entire feeding session is videotaped at monthly intervals starting shortly after birth for a group of bottle and breast-fed infants. Mothers keep daily diaries of infants' activity and meal patterns. Several differences are apparent in the form of feeding sequence which appear characteristic of the technique. Bottle feeds are more mother-controlled in that breaks in the feed sequence are almost entirely mother initiated whereas with breast-fed infants the baby is more in control. Over the first 2 months differences appear in the size of meals with breast-fed infants showing a marked diurnal rhythm which is absent in the bottle-fed infant. These findings are discussed in relation to problems of obesity and of health education.