BMJ 2001;322:643-647 ( 17 March )

Papers

Duration of breast feeding and arterial distensibility in early adult life: population based study

Editorial by Booth

C P M Leeson, research fellow, ^a M Kattenhorn, vascular technician, ^b J E Deanfield, professor, ^b A Lucas, professor. ^a

^a Medical Research Council Childhood Nutrition Research Centre, Institute of Child Health, London WC1N 1EH, ^b Vascular Physiology Unit, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London WC1N 3JH

Correspondence to: C P M Leeson cpm_leeson{at}hotmail.com

Objectives: To test the hypothesis that duration of breast feeding is related to changes in vascular function relevant to the development of cardiovascular disease.
Design: Population based observational study.
Setting: Cambridge.
Participants: 331 adults (171 women, 160 men) aged between 20 and 28 years, born in Cambridge Maternity Hospital.
Main outcome measures: Distensibility of brachial artery, type and duration of infant feeding, current lipid profile, and other cardiovascular risk factors.
Results: The longer the period of breast feeding the less distensible the artery wall in early adult life, with no sex differences (regression coefficient = 3.93 µm/month, 95% confidence interval 7.29 to 0.57, P=0.02). However, in those breast fed for less than four months, arterial distensibility was not significantly reduced compared with an exclusively formula fed group. The vascular changes observed were not explained by alterations in plasma cholesterol concentration in adult life.
Conclusions: Breast feeding in infancy is related to reduced arterial function 20 years later. These data should not alter current recommendations in favour of breast feeding, which has several benefits for infant health. Further work is needed, however, to explore the optimal duration of breast feeding in relation to cardiovascular outcomes.

---

© BMJ 2001

Related Articles

Human milk is still best

Yap-Seng Chong
BMJ 2003 327: 683. [Extract] [Full Text]

Duration of breast feeding and adult arterial distensibility

Katherine A Dettwyler, Wendy Holmes, Ted Greiner, Jim Sikorski, Carol Dezateux, Anne Holt, Ian B Wilkinson, John R Cockcroft, Paul Michael Dark, Marie-Josée Rölli, Paul Leeson, Alan Lucas, and Sharon Davies
BMJ 2001 323: 689. [Extract] [Full Text]

Duration of breast feeding is related to arterial "stiffness"
BMJ 2001 322: 0. [Full Text]

Does the duration of breast feeding matter?

Ian Booth
BMJ 2001 322: 625-626. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Bronsky, J., Karpisek, M., Bronska, E., Pechova, M., Jancikova, B., Kotolova, H., Stejskal, D., Prusa, R., Nevoral, J. (2006). Adiponectin, Adipocyte Fatty Acid Binding Protein, and Epidermal Fatty Acid Binding Protein: Proteins Newly Identified in Human Breast Milk. Clin. Chem. 52: 1763-1770 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Victora, C. G, Horta, B. L, Post, P., Lima, R. C, De Leon Elizalde, J. W, Gerson, B. M. C., Barros, F. C (2006). Breast feeding and blood lipid concentrations in male Brazilian adolescents.. J. Epidemiol. Community Health 60: 621-625 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Owen, C. G, Martin, R. M, Whincup, P. H, Davey-Smith, G., Gillman, M. W, Cook, D. G (2005). The effect of breastfeeding on mean body mass index throughout life: a quantitative review of published and unpublished observational evidence. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 82: 1298-1307 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Mandel, D., Lubetzky, R., Dollberg, S., Barak, S., Mimouni, F. B. (2005). Fat and Energy Contents of Expressed Human Breast Milk in Prolonged Lactation. Pediatrics 116: e432-e435 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Langenberg, C., Hardy, R., Breeze, E., Kuh, D., Wadsworth, M. E. (2005). Influence of short stature on the change in pulse pressure, systolic and diastolic blood pressure from age 36 to 53 years: an analysis using multilevel models. Int J Epidemiol 34: 905-913 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M., Ebrahim, S., Griffin, M., Smith, G. D., Nicolaides, A. N., Georgiou, N., Watson, S., Frankel, S., Holly, J. M.P., Gunnell, D. (2005). Breastfeeding and Atherosclerosis: Intima-Media Thickness and Plaques at 65-Year Follow-Up of the Boyd Orr Cohort. Arterioscler. Thromb. Vasc. Bio. 25: 1482-1488 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Demmers, T. A., Jones, P. J. H., Wang, Y., Krug, S., Creutzinger, V., Heubi, J. E. (2005). Effects of Early Cholesterol Intake on Cholesterol Biosynthesis and Plasma Lipids Among Infants Until 18 Months of Age. Pediatrics 115: 1594-1601 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Armitage, J. A., Taylor, P. D., Poston, L. (2005). Experimental models of developmental programming: consequences of exposure to an energy rich diet during development. J. Physiol. 565: 3-8 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Armitage, J. A., Lakasing, L., Taylor, P. D., Balachandran, A. A., Jensen, R. I., Dekou, V., Ashton, N., Nyengaard, J. R., Poston, L. (2005). Developmental programming of aortic and renal structure in offspring of rats fed fat-rich diets in pregnancy. J. Physiol. 565: 171-184 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Owen, C. G., Martin, R. M., Whincup, P. H., Smith, G. D., Cook, D. G. (2005). Effect of Infant Feeding on the Risk of Obesity Across the Life Course: A Quantitative Review of Published Evidence. Pediatrics 115: 1367-1377 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M, Ben-Shlomo, Y., Gunnell, D., Elwood, P., Yarnell, J. W G, Davey Smith, G. (2005). Breast feeding and cardiovascular disease risk factors, incidence, and mortality: the Caerphilly study. J. Epidemiol. Community Health 59: 121-129 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Promislow, J. H. E., Gladen, B. C., Sandler, D. P. (2005). Maternal Recall of Breastfeeding Duration by Elderly Women. Am J Epidemiol 161: 289-296 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M., Gunnell, D., Davey Smith, G. (2005). Breastfeeding in Infancy and Blood Pressure in Later Life: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Am J Epidemiol 161: 15-26 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M, Davey Smith, G., Mangtani, P., Tilling, K., Frankel, S., Gunnell, D. (2004). Breastfeeding and cardiovascular mortality: the Boyd Orr cohort and a systematic review with meta-analysis. Eur Heart J 25: 778-786 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M., Ness, A. R., Gunnell, D., Emmett, P., Smith, G. D., for the ALSPAC Study Team, (2004). Does Breast-Feeding in Infancy Lower Blood Pressure in Childhood?: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Circulation 109: 1259-1266 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Hardy, R., Wadsworth, M. E., Langenberg, C., Kuh, D. (2004). Birthweight, childhood growth, and blood pressure at 43 years in a British birth cohort. Int J Epidemiol 33: 121-129 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Chong, Y.-S. (2003). Human milk is still best. BMJ 327: 683-683 [Full text]  
• MacDonald, A (2003). Is breast best? Is early solid feeding harmful?. The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health 123: 169-174 [Abstract]  
• Norman, M., Martin, H. (2003). Preterm Birth Attenuates Association Between Low Birth Weight and Endothelial Dysfunction. Circulation 108: 996-1001 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Martin, R. M, McCarthy, A., Smith, G. D., Davies, D. P, Ben-Shlomo, Y. (2003). Infant nutrition and blood pressure in early adulthood: the Barry Caerphilly Growth study. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 77: 1489-1497 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Marini, A., Agosti, M. (2003). Is Mother's Milk Programmed for Long-Term Results and Prevention of Adult Diseases?. Pediatrics 111: 921-922 [Full text]  
• Owen, C. G., Whincup, P. H., Odoki, K., Gilg, J. A., Cook, D. G. (2002). Infant Feeding and Blood Cholesterol: A Study in Adolescents and a Systematic Review. Pediatrics 110: 597-608 [Abstract] [Full text]  
• Dettwyler, K. A, Holmes, W., Greiner, T., Sikorski, J., Dezateux, C., Holt, A., Wilkinson, I. B, Cockcroft, J. R, Dark, P. M., Rolli, M.-J., Leeson, P., Lucas, A., Davies, S. (2001). Duration of breast feeding and adult arterial distensibility. BMJ 323: 689-689 [Full text]  
• (2001). Can Breast-Feeding Affect Vascular Function and Cardiovascular Disease?. JWatch General 2001: 7-7 [Full text]  
• Booth, I. (2001). Does the duration of breast feeding matter?. BMJ 322: 625-626 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Length of Breastfeeding

Lin Miles
bmj.com, 16 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Questions

Claire Dobson
bmj.com, 16 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Eating a Western-style diet is the real public health issue-not prolonged breastfeeding

Rona McCandlish
bmj.com, 16 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Breast feeding promotion undermined yet again

Janet Medforth
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Tempest in a teacup

Valerie A Palda
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

The problem of confounding in observational studies

Patricia B Cerrito
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

A dose-response cause and effect relationship between breastfeeding and heart disease seems unlikely

Ted Greiner
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Breastfeeding and Cardiovascular Disease

Ing-Marie Logie
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Arrogance of man

Nikki Lee
bmj.com, 17 Mar 2001 [Full text]

no need to be defensive

Wendy Holmes
bmj.com, 19 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Questions unanswered

Ellen Shein
bmj.com, 19 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Breastfeeding and heart disease - is there a connection?

Phyll Buchanan
bmj.com, 19 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Cleverer and cleverer strategy

Nicole Bernshaw
bmj.com, 19 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Milk and arterial distensibility

Jeffrey J Segall
bmj.com, 20 Mar 2001 [Full text]

A blow to the third world !

Madhavan T Sethu
bmj.com, 20 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Beneficial effects of this article

Aviram Rozin
bmj.com, 21 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Questions about the experimental design and analysis of the study

Margaret Tyson
bmj.com, 21 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Heart disease expected to decline, is it?

Julii Brainard
bmj.com, 21 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Why this Hypothesis?

David
bmj.com, 22 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Limitations of study

Luis Gabriel Cuervo
bmj.com, 21 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Some more thoughts from parents

Paul Dark, et al.
bmj.com, 23 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Breastfeeding duration and later arterial distensibility

Alan Lucas
bmj.com, 23 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Mothers panic and give up breastfeeding

Patti Rundall
bmj.com, 23 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Quality

Mark McAuley
bmj.com, 23 Mar 2001 [Full text]

LLLGB response to Duration of Breastfeeding article

Rachel O'Leary
bmj.com, 24 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Breastfeeding is the norm, not formula

Heleen Hayes
bmj.com, 24 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Comparison with another 'hot topic'

Annelies Bon
bmj.com, 25 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Role of contaminants in human milk

Allan Astrup Jensen
bmj.com, 26 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Does this study herald the return of National Dried Milk?

Anne Holt
bmj.com, 27 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Paper fails to discuss data from prospective studies

Jim Sikorski
bmj.com, 27 Mar 2001 [Full text]

So what?!

F Meyer-Bradfisch
bmj.com, 26 Mar 2001 [Full text]

Outrageous!!!!

Cassandra Webster
bmj.com, 28 Mar 2001 [Full text]

A counter argument- Barker's hypothesis

Munleng Lim
bmj.com, 30 Mar 2001 [Full text]

objectivity, value of breastfeeding, dose-response & weaning age

Elise E Morse-Gagné
bmj.com, 3 Apr 2001 [Full text]

A Valuable Lesson

Martha Schatzle
bmj.com, 5 Apr 2001 [Full text]

Is breastfeeding duration more important than diet?

Yap-Seng Chong
bmj.com, 5 Apr 2001 [Full text]

Re: A Valuable Lesson

Wendy Holmes
bmj.com, 6 Apr 2001 [Full text]

aNOTHER BREASTFEEDING OBSTACLE

Michelle Dexter
bmj.com, 7 Apr 2001 [Full text]

Duration of breast feeding and arterial distensibility in early adult life

Dominic Horne
bmj.com, 24 Apr 2001 [Full text]

Inadequate assesment of Breasfeeding

Roxana Saunero Nava
bmj.com, 24 Sep 2001 [Full text]