Do infants fed directly from the breast have improved appetite regulation and slower growth during early childhood compared with infants fed from a bottle?

2011

Breastfeeding vs. Bottle-Feeding: Effects on Appetite Regulation in Children

Sample size: 109 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): DiSantis Katherine I, Collins Bradley N, Fisher Jennifer O, Davey Adam

Primary Institution: University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Hypothesis

Do infants fed directly from the breast have improved appetite regulation and slower growth during early childhood compared with infants fed from a bottle?

Conclusion

Direct breastfeeding during early infancy is associated with greater appetite regulation later in childhood.

Supporting Evidence

Children fed human milk in a bottle were 67% less likely to have high satiety responsiveness compared to directly breastfed children.
There was no association of bottle-feeding with young children's food responsiveness and enjoyment of food.
Direct breastfeeding was not found to affect growth trajectories from infancy to childhood.

Takeaway

Kids who were breastfed directly from the breast are better at knowing when they're full compared to those who were bottle-fed.

Methodology

Children aged 3-6 years were classified based on their feeding method in the first three months of life, and their appetite regulation was assessed using the Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire.