LLLI Center for Breastfeeding Information

Journal Abstract of the Month for December 2001

"The effect of breastfeeding on child development at 5 years: A cohort study" by PJ Quinn, M O'Callaghan, GM Williams, MJ Najman, MJ Andersen and W Bor. Published in Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health 2001;37(5):465-69

Australia's Mater Children's Hospital and a team of other hospitals and universities have worked together on a new study of the relationship between breastfeeding and later cognitive development: Is it a true biological effect, or is it confounded by psychosocial factors? This study determined after adjusting for biological and psychosocial confounders, that increasing Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-R scores showed a strong positive relationship with increased duration of breastfeeding. The adjusted mean for those breastfed for six months or more was 8.2 points higher for females and 5.8 points for males when compared to those never breastfed.