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- Title
The preventive effect of breast-feeding for longer than 6 months on early pubertal development among children aged 7-9 years in Korea.
- Authors
Hye Ah Lee; Young Ju Kim; Hwayoung Lee; Hye Sun Gwak; Young Sun Hong; Hae Soon Kim; Eun Ae Park; Su Jin Cho; Eun Hee Ha; Hyesook Park; Lee, Hye Ah; Kim, Young Ju; Lee, Hwayoung; Gwak, Hye Sun; Hong, Young Sun; Kim, Hae Soon; Park, Eun Ae; Cho, Su Jin; Ha, Eun Hee; Park, Hyesook
- Abstract
<bold>Objective: </bold>The present study was performed to investigate whether breast-feeding is associated with early pubertal development among children 7-9 years old in Korea.<bold>Design: </bold>Children were divided into those who did and did not receive breast-feeding for 6 months or longer in accordance with the recommendations of the WHO. Pubertal status was determined by clinical examination using Tanner staging.<bold>Setting: </bold>Prospective observational study.<bold>Subjects: </bold>We conducted a follow-up study of children aged 7-9 years in 2011 who had taken part in the Ewha Birth & Growth Cohort study.<bold>Results: </bold>Fifty (22.8%) of the total of 219 children were in early puberty, with the proportion being slightly higher for girls (24.1%) than boys (21.4%). Children who had entered early puberty were taller, weighed more and had a higher concentration of insulin-like growth factor 1. Moreover, the change in weight Z-score from birth to follow-up was significantly lower in children who were breast-fed than in those who were not (weight Z-score change: 0.32 (sd 1.59) v. 0.77 (sd 1.61), respectively, P=0.04). Comparison of breast-feeding by puberty status indicated a preventive association with early puberty in children who were breast-fed for 6 months or longer (OR=0.37; 95% CI 0.18, 0.74). This association remained significant after adjustment for relevant covariates.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>These results demonstrate a beneficial association between breast-feeding and early pubertal development, especially in those breast-fed for 6 months or longer. The study suggests that interventions would need to start early in life to prevent early pubertal development.
- Subjects
SOUTH Korea; BREASTFEEDING; PUBERTY; CHILD development; COMPARATIVE studies; COHORT analysis; LONGITUDINAL method; MOTHERHOOD; NUTRITION policy; PARENTING; PATIENT compliance; PRECOCIOUS puberty; SOMATOMEDIN; STATURE; WEIGHT gain; WORLD Health Organization; PREVENTION
- Publication
Public Health Nutrition, 2015, Vol 18, Issue 18, p3300
- ISSN
1368-9800
- Publication type
journal article
- DOI
10.1017/S1368980015000518