School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
Arch Dis Child. 2021 Apr;106(4):355-360. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2020-319038. Epub 2020 Nov 9.
Shorter breastfeeding duration has been linked to a range of difficulties in children. However, evidence linking shorter breastfeeding duration to child behavioural problems has been inconclusive. Owing to an almost exclusive focus on early childhood in previous research, little is known about breastfeeding effects on behaviour throughout childhood and adolescence. This study examines the longitudinal effect of breast feeding on parent-reported behaviour in children aged 3-14.
Data come from the Millennium Cohort Study, a large, prospective, UK birth cohort study.
11 148 children, their parents and teachers.
This study maps the effect of breastfeeding duration on parent-reported child behaviour longitudinally, using latent growth curve modelling and on teacher-reported child behaviour using multiple regression analyses. Breastfeeding duration was assessed through parent interviews when the child was 9 months old. Children's behavioural development was measured using parent-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires (SDQ) at 3, 5, 7, 11 and 14 years and teacher-reported SDQs at 7 and 11 years.
Breast feeding was associated with fewer parent-reported behavioural difficulties at all ages even after adjusting for potential confounders (<2 months: =-0.22, 95% CI -0.39 to -0.04; 2-4 months: =-0.53, 95% CI -0.75 to -0.32; 4-6 months: =-1.07, 95% CI -1.33 to -0.81; >6 months: =-1.24, 95% CI -1.44 to -1.04; =adjusted mean difference of raw SDQ scores at age 3, reference: never breast fed).
This study provides further evidence supporting links between breastfeeding duration and children's socioemotional behavioural development. Potential implications include intervention strategies encouraging breast feeding.
较短的母乳喂养时间与儿童的一系列困难有关。然而，将母乳喂养时间较短与儿童行为问题联系起来的证据尚无定论。由于之前的研究几乎完全集中在儿童早期，因此对母乳喂养对儿童和青少年整个童年时期行为的影响知之甚少。本研究考察了母乳喂养对 3-14 岁儿童父母报告行为的纵向影响。
数据来自千年队列研究，这是一项大型的、前瞻性的英国出生队列研究。
11148 名儿童及其父母和教师。
本研究使用潜在增长曲线模型纵向分析母乳喂养时间对父母报告的儿童行为的影响，使用多元回归分析对教师报告的儿童行为进行分析。通过对 9 个月大的儿童进行父母访谈评估母乳喂养时间。使用父母报告的长处与困难问卷（SDQ）在 3、5、7、11 和 14 岁时以及教师报告的 SDQ 在 7 和 11 岁时测量儿童的行为发展。
即使在调整了潜在混杂因素后，母乳喂养与所有年龄段的父母报告的行为问题较少有关（<2 个月：=-0.22，95%置信区间-0.39 至-0.04；2-4 个月：=-0.53，95%置信区间-0.75 至-0.32；4-6 个月：=-1.07，95%置信区间-1.33 至-0.81；>6 个月：=-1.24，95%置信区间-1.44 至-1.04；3 岁时调整后的 SDQ 得分的平均差异，参考值：从未母乳喂养过）。
本研究进一步提供了支持母乳喂养时间与儿童社会情感行为发展之间联系的证据。潜在的影响包括鼓励母乳喂养的干预策略。
