Breastfeeding News and Research

Latest Breastfeeding News and Research

Maternal depressive symptoms at 2 to 4 months post partum and early parenting practices

When mothers experience symptoms of depression after the birth of their children they are less likely to breastfeed, play with, read to or perform other interactive parenting tasks with their newborns

9 Mar 2006

Child's fatness at age five is not related to being breastfed

Does breastfeeding or the age at which other foods are introduced to infants affect the risk of obesity in early childhood? Research on this question has produced mixed results

9 Mar 2006

Bottle-fed babies more likely to be obese children

The objective of the research, which was based on the detailed feeding history of almost 900 mothers and babies in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, was to find out whether different feeding patterns and energy intakes provided to infants, affected body weight and BMI later in childhood.

8 Mar 2006

Herbs popular in treating kids at WIC clinics

Nearly half of the low income, nutritionally-vulnerable Latino children surveyed by Penn State researchers in WIC clinics were treated with herbs by their caregivers for common ills such as diaper rash, colic, teething symptoms, stomachaches, coughs and colds.

12 Feb 2006

Babies fully breastfed for six months less likely to suffer from respiratory illnesses

Babies fully breastfed for six months are less likely to suffer from respiratory illnesses in their first two years than babies fully breastfed for only four months, according to research conducted by investigators at UC Davis Children's Hospital, the University of Rochester and the American Academy of Pediatrics, Center for Child Health Research.

7 Feb 2006

Babies of obese mothers have higher risk of some birth defects

Compared to normal-weight women, overweight and obese women suffer more pregnancy complications and their babies have more medical problems at birth, according to a position paper of the Public Affairs Committee of the Teratology Society.

5 Feb 2006

Anxious fathers make caesareans more painful for mothers

Fathers who are anxious during a caesarean operation may increase the pain experienced by the mother after the delivery of their baby, according to new research published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.

25 Jan 2006

Babies brainier when Mum eats fish

The benefits of giving fish oil supplements to children to improve their brainpower is being investigated by scientists at the University of Bristol.

23 Jan 2006

Urgent call to save lives of 30 million under fives over next decade

Unprecedented opportunity to reduce child mortality in poorest countries must not be missed

15 Dec 2005

Prevention of childhood obesity needs to begin before a woman ever gets pregnant

A child's weight may be influenced by his mother even before he is actually born, according to new research.

7 Dec 2005

More mums would stick with breastfeeding if they had more support

The perfectly natural procedure of breast feeding does not always come that easy to every mum and babe.

6 Dec 2005

Mum's the Word: Exploring Early Motherhood

Mums are the focus of a new study being undertaken by RMIT University researcher Leanne Sheeran.

5 Dec 2005

Warning that breast cancer drug can harm fetus

Health Canada along with drug company Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada, have issued a warning concerning the drug Femara (letrozole), which is used to treat breast cancer in women who are postmenopausal.

30 Nov 2005

Breastfeeding may protect children against gluten intolerance

Breastfeeding may protect children against gluten intolerance otherwise known as coeliac disease, suggests research published ahead of print in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.

28 Nov 2005

Breastfeeding longer lowers risk of type 2 diabetes

Women who breastfeed longer have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a study in JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

28 Nov 2005

Breastfeeding mums at less risk of diabetes

New research shows that women who breastfeed longer have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

24 Nov 2005

Breastfeeding does not raise the risk of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis C virus

One study found that infant girls are twice as likely to be infected as infant boys. Both studies provide new information with which to counsel pregnant women infected with HCV. Taken together, the two new studies expand upon preliminary data from smaller studies of mother-to-child transmission of HCV.

1 Nov 2005

Identification of a factor in human milk that can block HIV-1 transmission

Mother to child transmission of HIV accounts for a large proportion of HIV infections in children, with many infected as a result of breastfeeding, which requires transfer of the virus across mucosal barriers. DC-SIGN, a DC lectin receptor, interacts with HIV and is found at high expression levels in tonsillar tissue.

20 Oct 2005

Researchers call for better recognition and pain management of endometriosis

Women with endometriosis can wait up to ten years for the painful gynaecological condition to be diagnosed, according to a paper in latest issue of UK-based Journal of Clinical Nursing.

12 Oct 2005

Babies should not be asleep in the same bed that their parents are sleeping in

Revised American Academy of Pediatrics' guidelines on preventing sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) recommend putting babies to sleep in their own cribs instead of in their parents' beds.

10 Oct 2005