DURATION OF BREASTFEEDING AND PRESENCE OF CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT AT 3 YEARS OF AGE

Background: Breastfeeding is considered to protect against childhood obesity; however, the evidence remains inconsistent. Objective: The aim of this study is to assess how the duration of exclusive and total breastfeeding are related to overweight at the age of 3 years. Methods: A birth cohort of 3719 singleton infants carrying increased genetic susceptibility to type 1 diabetes was recruited in 1997-2004 from Pirkanmaa, southern Finland. Information on both breastfeeding and anthropometrics at 3 years was available for 2110 singletons. Overweight (obesity inclusive) was defined using International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) cut-offs for BMI. Logistic regression was used to model the relationship of duration of exclusive and total breastfeeding as well as potential confounders to child overweight. Results: The durations of exclusive (median 1.6, range 0-8 months) and total (7.0, 0-25 months) breastfeeding were similar in boys and girls. The prevalence of overweight was higher in girls (15%) than in boys (8%, p<0.001). Shorter duration of exclusive (<3 months) and total (<3 months) breastfeeding were associated with higher risk for of overweight at 3 years of age. When adjusted for maternal weight, educational level, smoking during pregnancy and gestational diabetes, child’s sex, birth weight and gestational, location of residence and paternal diabetes, only exclusive breastfeeding remained significantly related to overweight (