Breastfeeding News and Research

Latest Breastfeeding News and Research

Employers are key to overcoming U.S. breastfeeding dilemma

The United States government has launched a year-long national awareness campaign consisting of public service announcements (PSAs) for print media, radio and television, all to help the American public better understand the significant health benefits that breastfeeding provides to mothers and babies.

1 Jul 2004

In Africa only a quarter of infants under six months of age are fed exclusively on breast milk

Children in developing countries are being put at unnecessary risk of disease and death as they are fed on alternatives to breast milk.

1 Jul 2004

New risk factors associated with inflammatory bowel disease

Health researchers at the Christchurch School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Otago University, have found evidence of new risk factors associated with a debilitating illness called Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

24 Jun 2004

Eating fish during pregnancy produces children with better language and communication skills

A new study of children in Bristol has shown that women who ate fish regularly during pregnancy had children with better language and communication skills by the age of 18 months.

24 Jun 2004

Mothers infected with HIV who breast feed risk infecting infants

After four weeks of age, infants who breast feed from mothers infected with HIV continue to be at risk for infection with HIV for as long as they breastfeed

17 Jun 2004

Link between adult leg length and coronary heart disease in women

Researchers at Bristol University have found a link between adult leg length – an indicator of diet and living conditions during childhood – and coronary heart disease in women.

15 Jun 2004

FDA warns against use of domperidone to increase milk production

In response to reports that women may be using an unapproved drug, domperidone, to increase milk production (lactation), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning breastfeeding women not to use this product because of safety concerns. Today, FDA also issued six letters to pharmacies that compound products containing domperidone and firms that supply domperidone for use in compounding.

9 Jun 2004

Changing practices may raise African American women's breast cancer risk

A new study finds African American women derive similar breast cancer risk reductions associated with multiple births and breastfeeding as white women, but that recent trends may lead to a rising risk.

7 Jun 2004

Survey suggests mothers unaware of health benefits of soy for formula fed babies

According to a recent survey conducted in conjunction with National Soyfoods Month, only one in 10 moms of formula-fed babies are aware that soy can help manage persistent common feeding problems. Generally, the 300 surveyed moms had a positive view of soy, but many felt they had very little information when it came to soy infant formula.

5 Jun 2004

Bacteria found in the mouth can block the HIV virus

Certain strains of bacteria that occur naturally in the human mouth can snare the HIV virus and even cells it has infected, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry. They report their findings today at the 104th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

25 May 2004

Boston Medical Center awarded grant to support breastfeeding

The Breastfeeding Center at Boston Medical Center (BMC) has been awarded a $40,000 grant from the Trustees of the Theodore Edson Parker Foundation to help support the Hospital Education of Lactation Practices (HELP) Lowell Program.

19 May 2004

Faster growing babies are at greater risk of heart disease and stroke

Medical Research Council (MRC) and Institute of Child Health scientists say that babies who grow fast are at greater risk of heart disease and stroke in later life. Because breast-fed babies grow less rapidly than those fed formula milk, the work strongly reinforces the message that breast feeding is best.

14 May 2004

Baby food companies exposed as evidence presented to UK Parliament and Lancet study reinforces list of health risks of artificial feeding

The Breaking the Rules, Stretching the Rules 2004 monitoring report analyses the promotional practices of 16 transnational baby food companies and 14 bottle and teat companies between January 2002 and April 2004. The benchmark standards used for measuring marketing practices are the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and subsequent, relevant World Health Assembly (WHA) Resolutions.

14 May 2004

Breastfeeding decreases risk of heart disease later in life

A recent UK study of 216 teenagers, published in the Lancet, found that breastfeeding in infancy is likely to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease in later life.

14 May 2004

Baby food companies to be exposed as international monitors present evidence at UK Parliament

Members of the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) will be presenting evidence gathered through monitoring of baby food companies in 69 countries at the House of Commons on 13 May from 10.30 to 11.30 am. The evidence shows how companies aggressively promote their products and undermine breastfeeding, thereby contributing to the unnecessary death and suffering of infants around the world.

12 May 2004

New mums are being urged to give breastfeeding a go

The UK has one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Europe. Almost one third of women in England and Wales never try to breastfeed, compared to just two per cent in Sweden. Younger women are the least likely to breastfeed, with two in five mothers under 24 never trying.

10 May 2004

Survey serious misunderstandings about breastfeeding

A survey published today by The UK Department of Health for National Breastfeeding Awareness Week (9 - 15 May) shows that serious misunderstandings may be stopping women, particularly young women, from breastfeeding.

10 May 2004

Survey reveals important information about pregnancy health

Sixty-four percent of Maryland mothers who completed a 2001 survey conducted by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) reported one or more medical complications during pregnancy, and 20 percent of these women were hospitalized for one or more days.

5 May 2004

Protein in human milk reduces risk of obesity

Researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center have conducted the first study to detect the presence of a protein in human milk that may explain the association between breastfeeding and reduced risk of obesity later in life.

3 May 2004

Breastfeeding can reduce the risk of death for infants in their first year of life

Data analyzed by scientists at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences suggest that breastfeeding can reduce the risk of death for infants in their first year of life. Looking at infants between 28 days and one year of age, researchers concluded that promoting breastfeeding can potentially prevent up to 720 postneonatal deaths in the U.S. each year.

3 May 2004