Here’s yet another reason why mothers should breastfeed their babies—to fend off asthma in children, says a study published in January in The Journal of Pediatrics. An international team, led by the University of Otago, New Zealand, has shown that breastfeeding of infants has a clear protective effect against the children developing asthma or wheezing up to age 6.
Healthy: Natural immunity.
In their study, the researchers analysed 1,105 infants over six years before coming to the conclusion that breastfeeding has a protective effect on the development of asthma in children. The team asked questions about breastfeeding and gathered information on wheezing and asthma in the children aged 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. The protective effect against the development of asthma is even stronger in those infants and children who are atopic, that is those who have allergies and are therefore more vulnerable.
The study shows a waning of the impact of breastfeeding after age 4, which is to be expected as children are exposed to other risk factors for asthma and wheezing, says lead author Dr Karen Silvers in a varsity release.
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