Infants fed a significant proportion of breastmilk by bottle grow similarly to breastfed infants in the second six months of life

• Published in: The FASEB journal Vol. 25; no. S1; p. 211.1
• Main Author: Bartok, Cynthia J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 01-04-2011
• ISSN: 0892-6638; 1530-6860
• DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.25.1_supplement.211.1

Studies to date have documented short‐ and long‐term differences in growth and body composition based on whether an infant is breastfed or formula fed, however little is known about the growth patterns of infants fed breastmilk by bottle. To date, published pilot data from our laboratory show that infants fed a substantial proportion of breastmilk by bottle grow similarly to breastfed infants during the first six months of life. The objective of this analysis was to examine whether growth differences emerge in the second six months of life in our existing sample of 19 predominantly breastfed/nursing infants (NG) and 18 infants fed breastmilk by bottle (BG) followed from birth to age 2 yr. Weight and length at 6, 9, and 12 months were collected in a laboratory setting by trained staff and the results were compared to WHO growth standards for weight, BMI, and weight velocity for 6–9 and 9–12 months. We observed no significant differences in weight (p=0.37) or BMI‐for‐age Z‐score (p=0.67) between NG and BG groups across the study period. In addition, a statistically similar proportion of infants in NG and BG groups exceeded the 85th percentile weight velocity for 6–9 and 9–12 months (p=0.24 and p=0.34, respectively). This pilot study suggests the delivery method (breast vs. bottle) for breastmilk may not dramatically affect growth during the first year of life. More research on larger samples is needed to confirm these findings.