Health

Prolonged Breast-Feeding May Guard Against Teen Eczema

Photo of Current Affairs Current AffairsNovember 14, 2017
151 477 3 minutes read

MONDAY, Nov. 13, 2017 (HealthDay News) — Encouraging new mothers to stick with breast-feeding may halve the already small risk that infants will develop eczema when they hit their teens, new research suggests.

And while the study also found no impact on teenage asthma risk, at least one U.S. pediatrician said other studies have supported the role of breast-feeding in potentially cutting a child's risk of developing allergies or asthma.

The new findings stem from an ongoing investigation tracking some of the protective benefits of breast-feeding among infants reared in the eastern European country of Belarus.

The study didn't compare mothers who did not breast-feed with those who did, and it didn't prove a cause-and-effect link between prolonged breast-feeding and eczema or asthma risk.

Rather, researchers looked at how infants fared down the road when mothers participated in a program that encouraged breast-feeding for as long as possible, compared with otherwise healthy infants reared by mothers not enrolled in such a program.

The result: 0.7 percent of infants whose moms did not receive breast-feeding support ended up developing eczema when they were 16, compared with just 0.3 percent of those whose moms had received breast-feeding support.

However, the theory that breast-feeding might help to curb asthma risk was not supported by the new study findings.

"There is no good evidence from other studies that breast-feeding protects against asthma, so we were not surprised from that point of view," said study author Dr. Carsten Flohr.

Asked if the results likely end speculation on the asthma front, Flohr said, "You can always do more studies. But we are very unlikely to have another [large study], and it would have to be even bigger to find a very small protective effect, if there is one."

Flohr is the head of the unit for population-based dermatology research with the St. John's Institute of Dermatology and the division of genetics and molecular medicine at King's College London.

The World Health Organization recommends breast-feeding infants for four to six months, to promote resistance to allergies and illness. But prior research on whether breast-feeding may promote lung development and asthma resistance have been inconsistent, the study authors said.

According to the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, eczema is a non-contagious but chronic condition, characterized by dry, itchy skin. About 30 percent of Americans — mostly children and teens — develop it at one time or another.

For the study, investigators first recruited more than 13,500 new mothers in Belarus between 1996 and 1997.

All had started breast-feeding their infants at birth. But while half received continual breast-feeding encouragement in hospitals that had adopted a 10-step "baby-friendly" program, the other half did so in a standard-care setting.

The researchers tracked the children's eczema and asthma risk at follow-up exams conducted at the ages of 1 year, 6 years, 11.5 years, and 16 years.

At the latest follow-up, teens were examined for eczema around their eyes, neck, elbows, knees and ankles, and by questionnaire. Asthma incidence was assessed both by lung function tests and by questionnaire.

Eczema risk was notably down among those whose mothers had received breast-feeding encouragement. But no such link was seen with asthma risk, the study authors said.

The findings were published online Nov. 13 in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

Dr. Jay Lieberman, an assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, said he wasn't surprised by the eczema findings, but questioned the study's reliability.

"The problem is that — as the authors point out — you can't randomize patients to breast-feeding or not," he noted.

"Thus, while they tried to control for this, they are really only able to say that the kids of mothers randomized to a breast-feeding promotion tended to have less eczema at 16 years of age," Lieberman said.

"There is little scientific reasoning the authors provide to explain this as well," he said, adding that the findings are "absolutely not" the final word on asthma.

"There are plenty of studies that still support the role of breast-feeding to decrease the likelihood of an infant/child going on to develop allergies or asthma," he said. "If I have a mother who is going to have a child, and they ask me what they can do to decrease their child's chance of having eczema, food allergies, or asthma, I am 100 percent going to tell them to breast-feed."

More information

There's more on breast-feeding at the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Original Article

Photo of Current Affairs Current AffairsNovember 14, 2017
151 477 3 minutes read
Photo of Current Affairs

Current Affairs

Related Articles

Photo of Gene therapy for rare eye disease set to be offered on NHS

Gene therapy for rare eye disease set to be offered on NHS

September 4, 2019
Photo of British MPs push e-cigarettes as health benefit

British MPs push e-cigarettes as health benefit

August 27, 2018
Photo of HPV vaccine for boys ‘will prevent thousands of cancers’

HPV vaccine for boys ‘will prevent thousands of cancers’

July 9, 2019
Photo of Europe most vaccine-skeptic region in the world, survey says

Europe most vaccine-skeptic region in the world, survey says

June 25, 2019

151 Comments

  106. Pingback: meet my guy totally free of charge dating site

  118. Outstanding post however I was wanting to know if you could write a litte more on this subject? I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Thank you!

    Reply

  122. Ꮋi!, I wаnt to begin offering ѕeveral seo sergices оn а site foг freelancers. I’m currently usіng Fiverr buut they keep on permanently banning mү accounts аnd misappropriating mу money. What alternative reliabpe freelancing sitfes ɑrе thеre? I am alreaɗy verified ᴡith SweatyQuid аnd UpWork and a couplke of ߋthers. Thаnk yоu!

    Reply

  124. I really liked this post i read your blog pretty often, and you’re constantly coming out with some great stuff. I embedded this on my blog, and my followers really liked it.

    Reply

  133. This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.

    Reply

  134. I am not sure where you are getting your info, but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning more or understanding more. Thanks for wonderful info I was looking for this info for my mission.

    Reply

  140. We’re a group of volunteers and opening a new scheme in our community. Your web site offered us with valuable information to work on. You’ve done an impressive job and our whole community will be grateful to you.

    Reply

  142. We’re a group of volunteers and starting a new scheme in our community. Your site provided us with valuable information to work on. You have done an impressive job and our whole community will be grateful to you.

    Reply

  146. I loved as much as you’ll receive carried out right here. The sketch is attractive, your authored subject matter stylish. nonetheless, you command get got an shakiness over that you wish be delivering the following. unwell unquestionably come further formerly again since exactly the same nearly very often inside case you shield this increase.

    Reply

  150. I do believe all the ideas you’ve presented to your post. They’re really convincing and will certainly work. Nonetheless, the posts are too quick for newbies. May you please lengthen them a little from next time? Thanks for the post.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

© Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved  | 
Back to top button