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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
Infant Feeding and School Attainment in Five Cohorts from Low- and Middle-Income Countries
PLoS ONE, Volume 8, No. 8, Article e71548, Year 2013
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Description
Background:Performance in intelligence tests tends to be higher among individuals breastfed as infants, but little is known about the association between breastfeeding and achieved schooling. We assessed the association of infant feeding with school achievement in five cohorts from low- and middle-income countries. Unlike high-income country settings where most previous studies come from, breastfeeding is not positively associated with socioeconomic position in our cohorts, thus reducing the likelihood of a spurious positive association.Methodology and Principal Findings:Participants included 10,082 young adults from five birth cohorts (Brazil, India, Guatemala, the Philippines, and South Africa). The exposures variables were whether the subject was ever breastfed, total duration of breastfeeding, and age at introduction of complementary foods. We adjusted the estimates for age at follow up, sex, maternal age, smoking during pregnancy, birthweight and socioeconomic position at birth. The key outcome was the highest grade achieved at school. In unadjusted analyses, the association between ever breastfeeding and schooling was positive in Brazil, inverse in the Philippines, and null in South Africa; in adjusted analyses, these associations were attenuated. In Brazil, schooling was highest among individuals breastfed for 3-12 months whereas in the Philippines duration of breastfeeding was inversely associated with schooling; and null associations were observed in South Africa and Guatemala. These associations were attenuated in adjusted models. Late introduction of solid foods was associated with lower schooling achievement in Brazil and South Africa.Conclusion:Measures of breastfeeding are not consistently related to schooling achievement in contemporary cohorts of young adults in lower and middle-income countries. © 2013 Horta et al.
Authors & Co-Authors
Horta, Bernardo Lessa
Brazil, Pelotas
Universidade Federal de Pelotas
Bas, Abet
Philippines, Cebu
University of San Carlos
Bhargava, Santosh Kumar
India, New Delhi
Sunder Lal Jain Hospital
Fall, Caroline H.D.
United Kingdom, Southampton
Mrc Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit
Feranil, Alan Banzon
Philippines, Cebu
University of San Carlos
De Kadt, Julia
South Africa, Johannesburg
School of Clinical Medicine
Martorell, Reynaldo
United States, Atlanta
Rollins School of Public Health
Richter, Linda M.
South Africa, Johannesburg
School of Clinical Medicine
South Africa, Pretoria
Human Sciences Research Council of South Africa
Stein, Aryeh D.
United States, Atlanta
Rollins School of Public Health
Victora, Cesar Gomes
Brazil, Pelotas
Universidade Federal de Pelotas
Statistics
Citations: 10
Authors: 10
Affiliations: 7
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1371/journal.pone.0071548
e-ISSN:
19326203
Research Areas
Maternal And Child Health
Sexual And Reproductive Health
Study Design
Cohort Study
Study Locations
South Africa