Maternal behavior during breast- and bottle-feeding

Abstract

Filmed records of an entire feeding session of a population of breast-and bottle-fed human infants were made at approximately 1-month intervals. The occurence of maternal and infant behavior is related to the infant's birth weight during the first week of life only in bottle-fed infants; the greater the mother's response, the less the small infant consumes. There are clear behavioral differences between bottle- and breast-feeding which stem from inherent characteristics of the technique of feeding. Breast-feeding allows the infant to have more control during the feed, whereas in the bottle-feeding, the mother has more control. This concept of control is discussed in terms of its implications for somatic growth and the development of obesity in relation to the advice and training of health professionals.