Associations between exclusive breastfeeding and physical fitness during childhood

Examining Sociocultural Influences on Breastfeeding Attitudes Among Syrian and Hungarian Female Students

BACKGROUND

Breastfeeding in Syria is a common practice supported by social norms, family traditions, and cultural values. In Hungary, recent statistics show that exclusive breastfeeding is significantly lower than the recommendation of the World Health Organization. Understanding the perspectives of educated young ladies is crucial for discovering the difficulties of breastfeeding practices within Syrian-Hungarian societies. This study explores the sociocultural factors and their impact on breastfeeding behaviours among female students in Syria and Hungary.

METHODS

A comprehensive, multi-section questionnaire was administered to 317 students from Damascus University and 303 students from Hungarian universities, designed to assess breastfeeding behaviours evaluated through The Breastfeeding Behaviour Questionnaire (BBQ).

RESULTS

The results in both societies showed remarkable awareness and understanding among participants regarding breastfeeding. Traditions and culture affect Syrian society more than Hungarian society; the two societies have restricted responses toward breastfeeding in public and different reactions to breastfeeding in front of males or females. Most students disagree with preferring formula feeding to breastfeeding when it is related to the family or the husband's desire only. At the same time, agreement with choosing the bottle when the mother returns to work instead of exclusively breastfeeding is valued differently in the two societies.

CONCLUSIONS

This study elucidates the essential the sociocultural factors influencing breastfeeding attitudes among Syrian and Hungarian female students, highlighting the need for culturally suitable strategies to improve breastfeeding practices in both countries.

Longitudinal Change in Physical Activity in Children 6 to 36 Months of Age

OBJECTIVE

To describe the developmental pattern for physical activity (PA) in children 6-36 months of age and to identify factors that are longitudinally associated with PA as children transition from infancy to preschool age.

STUDY DESIGN

The study employed a prospective longitudinal design with baseline data collected when children were approximately 6 months of age. Mothers and infants (n = 124) were recruited through community and educational settings in South Carolina. Data were collected at 6-month intervals from 6 to 36 months. PA was measured via accelerometry. Mothers completed questionnaires that assessed independent variables, including parent characteristics, the child's sex, race, and ethnicity, birth/delivery type, motor milestones, sleep habits, dietary practices, childcare setting, and home environmental factors. Trained research staff administered anthropometric measures and assessed motor developmental status. Growth curve models described the age-related pattern for PA and evaluated relationships between independent variables and change in PA.

RESULTS

PA increased by approximately 45% between 6 and 36 months of age and followed a curvilinear pattern, with most of the increase occurring between 6 and 24 months. The child's exposure to television/electronic media was negatively associated with change in PA, and the presence of older siblings in the home was positively associated with change in PA.

CONCLUSIONS

As children develop from infancy to early childhood, their PA increases substantially, with most of the increase occurring by 24 months of age.

Breastfeeding, Walking Onset, and Abdominal Obesity Are Determinants of Physical Fitness among Latin American and Spanish Schoolchildren: A Cross-Cultural Study

OBJECTIVE

To comp+are levels of physical fitness between Ecuador and Spain and identify whether breastfeeding period, walking onset, and abdominal obesity are determinants of physical performance in schoolchildren from Ecuador and Spain.

METHODS

a total of 352 schoolchildren (6-12 years old) from Ecuador (n = 176) and Spain (n = 176) joined in this study. Anthropometric measures, socio-demographic characteristics, and physical fitness were evaluated.

RESULTS

Spanish schoolchildren showed better performance in handgrip strength, standing long jump, and 25 m sprint (p = 0.021; p < 0.001; p < 0.001; p < 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, Spanish children showed better cardiorespiratory fitness (p < 0.001) and a higher VO2 max (p = 0.002) with regards to their peers. In addition, children from Ecuador and Spain showed an influence of breastfeeding period (p ranged from <0.001 to 0.043) and walking onset (p ranged from <0.001 to 0.032) on physical performance. Moreover, physical fitness components were protective factors of abdominal obesity in Ecuadorian and Spanish schoolchildren (p ranged from =0.001 to 0.049).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings revealed the influence of the infancy period and the onset of walking on children's physical performance, highlighting the importance of these factors in motor development during early childhood and also their influence in middle childhood and throughout adulthood.

The role of human milk feeds on inotrope use in newborn infants with sepsis

Background

Regarding neonatal hypotension, there is no certainty as to whether inotrope properties are beneficial or whether they may be harmful. However, given that the antioxidant content of human milk plays a compensatory role in neonatal sepsis and that human milk feeding has direct effects in modulating the cardiovascular function of sick neonates, this research hypothesized that human milk feeds might predict lower requirements of vasopressors in the management of neonatal septic shock.

Method

Between January 2002 and December 2017, all late preterm and full-term infants attending a neonatal intensive care unit, with clinical and laboratory findings of bacterial or viral sepsis, were identified in a retrospective study. During their first month of life, data on feeding type and early clinical characteristics were collected. A multivariable logistic regression model was constructed to determine the impact of human milk on the use of vasoactive drugs in septic newborns.

Results

322 newborn infants were eligible to participate in this analysis. Exclusively formula-fed infants were more likely to be delivered via C-section, to have a lower birth weight and a lower 1-minute Apgar score than their counterparts. Human milk-fed newborns had 77% (adjusted OR = 0.231; 95% CI: 0.07-0.75) lower odds of receiving vasopressors than exclusively formula-fed newborns.

Conclusion

We report that any human milk feeding is associated with a decrease in the need for vasoactive medications in sepsis-affected newborns. This observation encourages us to undertake further research to determine whether human milk feeds mitigate the use of vasopressors in neonates with sepsis.

Associations of Infant Feeding with Body Composition and Cardiometabolic Health in Young Female University Students

Background:

We assessed the association of infant feeding with body composition and cardiometabolic health at 20 years in a setting where infant feeding is not associated with socioeconomic status.

Materials and methods:

Body size trajectory since birth, current body composition measured using whole-body dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and a broad range of cardiometabolic risk factors were compared cross-sectionally among young female university students who were ever breastfed (n = 158, 120 exclusively, and 38 mainly), mixed fed (n = 124), and formula fed (n = 15, 10 mainly, and 5 exclusively)

Results:

Compared with breastfed and mixed fed women, formula fed women had higher serum total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol although fat mass, fat distribution, fasting glucose, and insulin and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol did not differ. In addition, resting heart rates were higher in formula fed women compared with the other two groups of women although systolic and diastolic blood pressure did not differ. Further, formula fed women had higher adiponectin while serum leptin did not differ. There was no difference in birthweight, weight and height in childhood and adolescence, and glucose tolerance. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, formula feeding was associated with resting heart rates (odds ratio [OR]: 1.06, confidence interval [95% CI]; 1.01–1.12, p = 0.01) and adiponectin (OR: 1.3, 95% CI; 1.1–1.5, p < 0.001) independently of serum total and LDL cholesterol.

Conclusions:

Breastfeeding may be associated with favorable lipid profile and autonomic nervous function in young adults through mechanisms unrelated to adiposity, implicating potential long-term benefits of breastfeeding for cardiovascular health. Higher adiponectin in nonbreastfed women warrants further studies.

Children’s Health Capital Investment: Effects of U.S. Infant Breastfeeding on Teenage Obesity

Obesity, as a health and social problem with rising prevalence and soaring economic cost, is increasingly drawing scholarly and public policy attention. While many studies have suggested that infant breastfeeding protects against childhood obesity, empirical evidence on this causal relationship is fragile. Using the health capital development theory, this study exploited multiple data sources from the U.S. and a three-way error components model (ECM) with a jackknife resampling plan to estimate the effect of in-hospital breastfeeding initiation and breastfeeding for durations of 3, 6, and 12 months on the prevalence of obesity during teenage years. The main finding was that a 1% rise in the in-hospital breastfeeding initiation rate reduces the teenage obesity prevalence rate by 1.7% (9.6% of a standard deviation). The magnitude of this effect declines as the infant breastfeeding duration lengthens—e.g., the 12-month infant breastfeeding duration rate is associated with a 0.53% (3.7% of a standard deviation) reduction in obesity prevalence in the teenage years (9th to 12th grades). The study findings agree with both the behavioral and physiological theories on the long-term effects of breastfeeding, and have timely implications for public policies promoting infant breastfeeding to reduce the economic burden of teenage and later adult-stage obesity prevalence rates.

Time trends in the prevalence of breastfeeding among schoolchildren from public and private schools in Florianópolis, Southern Brazil: From 2002 to 2013

OBJECTIVE

To describe breastfeeding trends from 2002 to 2012/2013, and to investigate whether breastfeeding practices differ between mothers of children in public and private schools.

METHODS

Data were obtained from three school-based cross-sectional studies conducted with 7 to 10 years old children. The total sample was 7264 individuals. Data related to breastfeeding were analyzed descriptively and compared using the chi-square test for heterogeneity or trend.

RESULTS

In the 10-year period was observed a decrease in the total percentage of schoolchildren who were not breastfed (12.9%-10.5%) and an increase in the percentage of schoolchildren breastfed for >12 months (23.9%-36.7%). In public schools, the increase of breastfeeding for >12 months was independent of maternal age and years of schooling. In private schools, the increase was observed for schoolchildren born to older mothers and to more educated mothers, although the highest percentage was observed for schoolchildren born to less educated mothers.

CONCLUSIONS

The results confirm the complexity of determining breastfeeding behaviors, and understanding these dynamics is fundamental to develop and improve programs and actions aimed at encouraging, supporting, and protecting breastfeeding. However, strategies developed in Brazil during the first decade of the 21st century should explain the increase of proportion of breastfed children for more than 12 months, and the concomitant decrease of never breastfeed children in the city of Florianopolis (Southern Brazil).

Prevalence and factors associated with early initiation of breastfeeding among Bangladeshi mothers: A nationwide cross-sectional study

Background

Early initiation of breastfeeding (EIBF) is associated with better health of the mothers and reduced risk of neonatal mortality. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of EIBF and associated factors among Bangladeshi mothers.

Methods

The data was extracted from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS)-2014. A total of 4,092 married non-pregnant Bangladeshi mothers who had at least one child aged 2 years or younger were included in this study. A two-level logistic regression model was used to remove the clustering effect for finding the impact of socio-economic and demographic factors on EIBF.

Results

The prevalence of EIBF among Bangladeshi mothers was 51.4% (urban: 47.1% and rural: 53.4%). A two -level logistic regression model showed that mothers living in the Sylhet division (p<0.01) and rural environment (p<0.05) were more likely to practice EIBF. Mothers who were obese or overweight (p<0.01), had secondary (p<0.05) or higher education (p<0.01) were less likely to provide early breastfeeding to their newborn babies compared to their counterparts. Those who delivered by caesarian-section (p<0.01) were less likely to perform EIBF while those who attended an antenatal care clinic more than 3 times (p<0.05) were more likely to do so.

Conclusions

About half of the Bangladeshi mothers did not start breast-feeding within one hour after birth. This study identified several geographical and socio-demographic factors that were associated with EIBF, and hope that this information will help the government to focus their resources to promote early breastfeeding.

Early life factors are associated with trajectories of consistent organized sport participation over childhood and adolescence: Longitudinal analysis from the Raine Study

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to identify early life factors that were associated with childhood and adolescent organized sport participation trajectories.

DESIGN

Participants were in the Raine Study, a pregnancy cohort in Western Australia recruited from 1989 to 1991.

METHODS

Three organized sport trajectories over ages 5-17years were previously identified for girls (n=824: consistent participators, dropouts, and non-participators in sport) and boys (n=855: consistent participators, dropouts, joiners - those who joined sport in adolescence). Physical, psychological and social factors were measured from birth to age 5.

RESULTS

For girls and boys, children who were breastfed, were taller, did not have behavior problems, and attended childcare were more likely to consistently participate. Girls who had a previous injury (Relative risk ratio 1.55: 95% confidence interval 1.05, 2.29 vs never been injured) or who had parents who had worries about their child's health (1.56: 1.00, 2.42 vs no worries) were more likely to be in the dropout trajectory. Boys born preterm (2.00, 2.06, 3.76 vs full-term), did not have a previous injury (0.72, 0.53, 0.97 those with injury vs never been injured), had more difficult temperament (1.63, 1.02, 2.60 vs easy temperament), and higher family dysfunction (1.49, 1.06, 2.08) were more likely to be in the dropout trajectory.

CONCLUSIONS

Early life factors were associated with membership in sport trajectories. Physical, psychological, and social factors may serve as early warning signs for parents and practitioners that children may be at higher risk of dropping out of sports.

Relationship between exclusive breast feeding and cardiorespiratory fitness in children and adolescents: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

Breast feeding has been considered important due to its short-term and long-term benefits on infant and maternal health. Regarding the long-term benefits, the influence of exclusive breastfeeding on cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) during childhood and adolescence has been studied, although with controversial conclusions. This study protocol aims to provide a clear and standardised procedure for systematically reviewing the relationship between breast feeding, in terms of duration and exclusivity, and CRF in children and adolescents.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

This systematic review and meta-analysis protocol is reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols. A literature search will be conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science and Cochrane Library. Observational studies regarding the association between breast feeding and CRF in children and adolescents written in English or Spanish will be included. A Critical Appraisal Checklist for Analytical Cross Sectional Studies and The Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale for longitudinal studies will be used for quality assessment of included studies. Standardised mean differences of CRF by exclusive breastfeeding categories will be calculated as the primary outcome. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression will be performed based on the sources of heterogeneity.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

This evidence-based systematic review will summarise the relevant information on the association of exclusive breast feeding and CRF in children and adolescents. The results will be disseminated by publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Given that the data used for this systematic review will be exclusively extracted from published studies, ethical approval will not be required.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42018082642.