Breastfeeding Protects Against Asthma Independently of Maternal Asthma History
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Jul 29 - Regardless of whether or not their mother has asthma, infants who are exclusively breastfed for at least 4 months are less likely to develop asthma than those who are breastfed for shorter durations, according to a report from Australia.
Dr. Wendy H. Oddy, from the Telethon Institute for Child Health in West Perth, and colleagues analyzed data on 2602 children to evaluate the link between breastfeeding and childhood asthma. The children were enrolled in the study before birth and followed until 6 years of age.
Asthma was significantly more common among children born to asthmatic mothers than among children born to nonasthmatic mothers (p<0.001), the authors note in the July issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
On multivariate analysis, maternal asthma, positive atopy tests at 6 years of age, and exclusive breast feeding for less than 4 months were independently associated with increased asthma risk. Further analysis verified that maternal asthma status or atopy status did not influence the relationship between breastfeeding and childhood asthma.
"Given our findings, we continue to recommend that infants with or without a maternal history of asthma be exclusively breastfed for 4 months and beyond," the researchers conclude.
J Allergy Clin Immunol 2002;110:65-67.