| Title |
Associations between exclusive breastfeeding and physical fitness during childhood
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
European Journal of Nutrition, October 2016
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s00394-016-1337-3 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Mahmoud Zaqout, Nathalie Michels, Wolfgang Ahrens, Claudia Börnhorst, Dénes Molnár, Luis A. Moreno, Gabriele Eiben, Alfonso Siani, Stalo Papoutsou, Toomas Veidebaum, Stefaan De Henauw, IDEFICS consortium |
| Abstract |
Exposure to breastfeeding improves the survival, health, and development of children; therefore, breast milk is recommended as the exclusive nutrient source for feeding term infants during the first 6 months. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the possible association between exposure to exclusive breastfeeding and physical fitness performance in children and, if so, whether this association is influenced by the breastfeeding duration. A total of 2853 (52.3 % girls) European children from the IDEFICS study aged 6-11 years with complete data on physical fitness (cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength, flexibility, balance, speed) and exclusive breastfeeding duration (never, 1-3, 4-6, 7-12 months) were included in the present study. Multivariate and mixed linear regression models were estimated and adjusted for sex, age, birth weight, diet, physical activity, body mass index, and parental factors (age, body mass index, educational attainment). We found a positive association between exclusive breastfeeding and lower-body explosive strength (β = 0.034) as well as flexibility (β = 0.028). We also found a positive association between breastfeeding and balance in boys (β = 0.039), while this association was negative in girls (β = -0.029). To improve lower-body explosive strength, 1-3 months of exclusive breastfeeding were enough; a longer duration did not lead to increasing benefit. In contrast, 4-6 months of breastfeeding were necessary to have any benefit on flexibility or balance, although this became nonsignificant after adjustment for body mass index and physical activity. Exclusive breastfeeding seems a natural way of slightly improving some physical fitness components (mainly lower-body muscle strength) and thus future health. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 4 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 1 | 25% |
| United States | 1 | 25% |
| Ireland | 1 | 25% |
| Unknown | 1 | 25% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 2 | 50% |
| Members of the public | 2 | 50% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 146 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 146 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher | 16 | 11% |
| Unspecified | 14 | 10% |
| Student > Master | 14 | 10% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 12 | 8% |
| Student > Bachelor | 12 | 8% |
| Other | 25 | 17% |
| Unknown | 53 | 36% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing and Health Professions | 28 | 19% |
| Sports and Recreations | 15 | 10% |
| Unspecified | 14 | 10% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 7 | 5% |
| Psychology | 5 | 3% |
| Other | 20 | 14% |
| Unknown | 57 | 39% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 3. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 13 November 2016.
All research outputs
#12,909,693
of 22,896,955 outputs
Outputs from European Journal of Nutrition
#1,427
of 2,398 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#155,878
of 315,610 outputs
Outputs of similar age from European Journal of Nutrition
#25
of 34 outputs
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