Skip to main content

Advertising Disclaimer »

Main menu

  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • Authors/Reviewers
    • Submit Manuscript
    • Author Guidelines
    • Reviewer Guidelines
    • Open Access
    • Editorial Policies
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Online First
    • Archive
    • Blogs
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • AAP Meeting Abstracts
  • Pediatric Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Racism and Its Effects on Pediatric Health
    • More Collections...
  • AAP Policy
  • Supplements
  • Multimedia
    • Video Abstracts
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Subscribe
  • Alerts
  • Careers
  • Other Publications
    • American Academy of Pediatrics

User menu

  • Log in

Search

  • Advanced search
American Academy of Pediatrics

AAP Gateway

Advanced Search

AAP Logo

  • Log in
  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • Authors/Reviewers
    • Submit Manuscript
    • Author Guidelines
    • Reviewer Guidelines
    • Open Access
    • Editorial Policies
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Online First
    • Archive
    • Blogs
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • AAP Meeting Abstracts
  • Pediatric Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Racism and Its Effects on Pediatric Health
    • More Collections...
  • AAP Policy
  • Supplements
  • Multimedia
    • Video Abstracts
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Subscribe
  • Alerts
  • Careers

Discover Pediatric Collections on COVID-19 and Racism and Its Effects on Pediatric Health

American Academy of Pediatrics
Review Article

Effect of Infant Feeding on the Risk of Obesity Across the Life Course: A Quantitative Review of Published Evidence

Christopher G. Owen, Richard M. Martin, Peter H. Whincup, George Davey Smith and Derek G. Cook
Pediatrics May 2005, 115 (5) 1367-1377; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2004-1176
Christopher G. Owen
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Richard M. Martin
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Peter H. Whincup
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
George Davey Smith
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Derek G. Cook
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • Comments
Loading

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.

Download PDF

Abstract

Objective. To examine the influence of initial infant feeding on obesity in later life.

Methods. A systematic review of published studies investigating the association between infant feeding and a measure of obesity was performed with Medline (1966 onward) and Embase (1980 onward) databases, supplemented with manual searches. Data extraction was conducted by 2 authors. Analyses were based on odds ratios of obesity among initially breastfed subjects, compared with formula-fed subjects, pooled with fixed-effects models.

Results. Sixty-one studies reported on the relationship of infant feeding to a measure of obesity in later life; of these, 28 (298900 subjects) provided odds ratio estimates. In these studies, breastfeeding was associated with a reduced risk of obesity, compared with formula feeding (odds ratio: 0.87; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.85–0.89). The inverse association between breastfeeding and obesity was particularly strong in 11 small studies of <500 subjects (odds ratio: 0.43; 95% CI: 0.33–0.55) but was still apparent in larger studies of ≥500 subjects (odds ratio: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.85–0.90). In 6 studies that adjusted for all 3 major potential confounding factors (parental obesity, maternal smoking, and social class), the inverse association was reduced markedly (from an odds ratio of 0.86 to 0.93) but not abolished. A sensitivity analysis examining the potential impact of the results of 33 published studies (12505 subjects) that did not provide odds ratios (mostly reporting no relationship between breastfeeding and obesity) showed little effect on the results.

Conclusions. Initial breastfeeding protects against obesity in later life. However, a further review including large unpublished studies exploring the effect of confounding factors in more detail is needed.

  • infant feeding
  • obesity
  • systematic review
  • Accepted September 14, 2004.
  • Copyright © 2005 by the American Academy of Pediatrics

Individual Login

Log in
You will be redirected to aap.org to login or to create your account.

Institutional Login

via Institution

You may be able to gain access using your login credentials for your institution. Contact your librarian or administrator if you do not have a username and password.

Log in through your institution

If your organization uses OpenAthens, you can log in using your OpenAthens username and password. To check if your institution is supported, please see this list. Contact your library for more details.

Pay Per Article - You may access this article (from the computer you are currently using) for 2 days for US$25.00

Regain Access - You can regain access to a recent Pay per Article purchase if your access period has not yet expired.

Offer Reprints

PreviousNext
Back to top

Advertising Disclaimer »

In this issue

Pediatrics
Vol. 115, Issue 5
1 May 2005
  • Table of Contents
  • Index by author
View this article with LENS
PreviousNext
Email Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on American Academy of Pediatrics.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Effect of Infant Feeding on the Risk of Obesity Across the Life Course: A Quantitative Review of Published Evidence
(Your Name) has sent you a message from American Academy of Pediatrics
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the American Academy of Pediatrics web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Request Permissions
Article Alerts
Log in
You will be redirected to aap.org to login or to create your account.
Or Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Citation Tools
Effect of Infant Feeding on the Risk of Obesity Across the Life Course: A Quantitative Review of Published Evidence
Christopher G. Owen, Richard M. Martin, Peter H. Whincup, George Davey Smith, Derek G. Cook
Pediatrics May 2005, 115 (5) 1367-1377; DOI: 10.1542/peds.2004-1176

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Share
Effect of Infant Feeding on the Risk of Obesity Across the Life Course: A Quantitative Review of Published Evidence
Christopher G. Owen, Richard M. Martin, Peter H. Whincup, George Davey Smith, Derek G. Cook
Pediatrics May 2005, 115 (5) 1367-1377; DOI: 10.1542/peds.2004-1176
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
Print
Download PDF
Insight Alerts
  • Table of Contents

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • METHODS
    • RESULTS
    • DISCUSSION
    • Acknowledgments
    • Footnotes
    • REFERENCES
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • Comments

Related Articles

  • No related articles found.
  • PubMed
  • Google Scholar

Cited By...

  • Physiological consequences of transient hyperleptinemia during discrete developmental periods on body weight in mice
  • Breastfeeding among Women with Rheumatoid Arthritis Compared with the General Population: Results from a Nationwide Prospective Cohort Study
  • State Variations in Infant Feeding Regulations for Child Care
  • Infant feeding and growth trajectory patterns in childhood and body composition in young adulthood
  • Trends in Anthropometric Measures Among US Children 6 to 23 Months, 1976-2014
  • Mexican Children under 2 Years of Age Consume Food Groups High in Energy and Low in Micronutrients
  • Impact of maternal BMI and sampling strategy on the concentration of leptin, insulin, ghrelin and resistin in breast milk across a single feed: a longitudinal cohort study
  • Association Between Age and Obesity Over Time
  • Pumping human milk in the early postpartum period: its impact on long-term practices for feeding at the breast and exclusively feeding human milk in a longitudinal survey cohort
  • How colonization by microbiota in early life shapes the immune system
  • Being overweight in infancy predicts overweight in childhood regardless of infant feeding method
  • Does Insulin Explain the Relation between Maternal Obesity and Poor Lactation Outcomes? An Overview of the Literature
  • Associations between human milk oligosaccharides and infant body composition in the first 6 mo of life
  • Fetal, Neonatal, Infant, and Child International Growth Standards: An Unprecedented Opportunity for an Integrated Approach to Assess Growth and Development
  • The Role of the Pediatrician in Primary Prevention of Obesity
  • Breastfeeding Status at Age 3 Months Is Associated with Adiposity and Cardiometabolic Markers at Age 4 Years in Mexican Children
  • Maternal Prepregnant Body Mass Index and Gestational Weight Gain Are Associated with Initiation and Duration of Breastfeeding among Norwegian Mothers
  • Comparison of the China growth charts with the WHO growth standards in assessing malnutrition of children
  • Infant BMI peak, breastfeeding, and body composition at age 3 y
  • Breastfeeding Duration Is Associated With Child Diet at 6 Years
  • General and abdominal fat outcomes in school-age children associated with infant breastfeeding patterns
  • Adiposity and hepatic lipid in healthy full-term, breastfed, and formula-fed human infants: a prospective short-term longitudinal cohort study
  • Lower protein content in infant formula reduces BMI and obesity risk at school age: follow-up of a randomized trial
  • Neurodevelopment, nutrition, and growth until 12 mo of age in infants fed a low-energy, low-protein formula supplemented with bovine milk fat globule membranes: a randomized controlled trial
  • Racial and Ethnic Differences Associated With Feeding- and Activity-Related Behaviors in Infants
  • Infant formula and infant nutrition: bioactive proteins of human milk and implications for composition of infant formulas
  • Predicting adult obesity from measures in earlier life
  • Telephone-based support prolongs breastfeeding duration in obese women: a randomized trial
  • Evidence refutes claim that breastfeeding is 'obesity-related myth'
  • Breastfeeding and Complementary Food: Randomized Trial of Community Doula Home Visiting
  • Human Milk Hyaluronan Enhances Innate Defense of the Intestinal Epithelium
  • Breast milk and cognitive development--the role of confounders: a systematic review
  • The role of dietary fatty acids for early human adipose tissue growth
  • Breastfeeding Education and Support Trial for Overweight and Obese Women: A Randomized Trial
  • Childhood Obesity
  • Biological Determinants Linking Infant Weight Gain and Child Obesity: Current Knowledge and Future Directions
  • Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Children and Young Adults Born to Preeclamptic Pregnancies: A Systematic Review
  • The Human Microbiome and Its Potential Importance to Pediatrics
  • An Index Measuring Adherence to Complementary Feeding Guidelines Has Convergent Validity as a Measure of Infant Diet Quality
  • Infant regulation of intake: the effect of free glutamate content in infant formulas
  • Associations of prenatal metabolic abnormalities with insulin and adiponectin concentrations in human milk
  • Effect of breastfeeding compared with formula feeding on infant body composition: a systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk
  • Effects of breastfeeding and low sugar-sweetened beverage intake on obesity prevalence in Hispanic toddlers
  • Mechanisms of early life programming: current knowledge and future directions
  • Health economic potential of early nutrition programming: a model calculation of long-term reduction in blood pressure and related morbidity costs by use of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid-supplemented formula
  • Breastfeeding and body composition in children: will there ever be conclusive empirical evidence for a protective effect against overweight?
  • Predicting babies' risk of obesity
  • The association between breastfeeding and the cardiovascular system in early childhood
  • Fuel-Mediated Teratogenesis and Breastfeeding
  • Infants Perceived as "Fussy" Are More Likely to Receive Complementary Foods Before 4 Months
  • The Fat:Carbohydrate Energy Ratio of the Weaning Diet Programs Later Susceptibility to Obesity in Male Sprague Dawley Rats
  • Nutrition in infancy and long-term risk of obesity: evidence from 2 randomized controlled trials
  • Exposure to breast milk in infancy and risk of adult breast cancer: more scientific data are needed
  • Do Infants Fed From Bottles Lack Self-regulation of Milk Intake Compared With Directly Breastfed Infants?
  • The Burden of Suboptimal Breastfeeding in the United States: A Pediatric Cost Analysis
  • Breastfeeding, complementary (solid) foods, and long-term risk of obesity
  • Effect of growth on cardiometabolic status at 4 y of age
  • Effects of infant feeding practice on weight gain from birth to 3 years
  • Early Child Care and Adiposity at Ages 1 and 3 Years
  • State and Regional Variation in Regulations Related to Feeding Infants in Child Care
  • Are Starting and Continuing Breastfeeding Related to Educational Background? The Generation R Study
  • Summary of the workshop
  • Can infant feeding choices modulate later obesity risk?
  • Predictors of Overweight During Childhood in Offspring of Parents With Type 1 Diabetes
  • American Heart Association Childhood Obesity Research Summit Report
  • Methods Appropriate for Studying the Relationship of Breast-feeding to Obesity
  • Duration of Breast-feeding and Adiposity in Adult Life
  • Breastfeeding and reduced risk of childhood obesity: will randomized trials on breastfeeding promotion give the definite answer?
  • Impact of Infant Feeding Practices on Childhood Obesity
  • Association of Breastfeeding Intensity and Bottle-Emptying Behaviors at Early Infancy With Infants' Risk for Excess Weight at Late Infancy
  • Does initial breastfeeding lead to lower blood cholesterol in adult life? A quantitative review of the evidence
  • Decreased Full Breastfeeding, Altered Practices, Perceptions, and Infant Weight Change of Prepregnant Obese Women: A Need for Extra Support
  • Breastfeeding Helps Explain Racial and Socioeconomic Status Disparities in Adolescent Adiposity
  • Early differences in fecal microbiota composition in children may predict overweight
  • Breast-Feeding and Type 2 Diabetes in the Youth of Three Ethnic Groups: The SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Case-Control Study
  • How early dietary factors modify the effect of rapid weight gain in infancy on subsequent body-composition development in term children whose birth weight was appropriate for gestational age
  • Expert Committee Recommendations Regarding the Prevention, Assessment, and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Overweight and Obesity: Summary Report
  • Effects of prolonged and exclusive breastfeeding on child height, weight, adiposity, and blood pressure at age 6.5 y: evidence from a large randomized trial
  • Recommendations for Prevention of Childhood Obesity
  • Breast feeding and the risk of allergy and asthma
  • Risk factors for obesity in 7-year-old European children: the Auckland Birthweight Collaborative Study
  • Breastfeeding After Gestational Diabetes Pregnancy: Subsequent obesity and type 2 diabetes in women and their offspring
  • Infant feeding method and obesity: body mass index and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measurements at 9-10 y of age from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)
  • Protein intake during the period of complementary feeding and early childhood and the association with body mass index and percentage body fat at 7 y of age
  • The Effect of Breastfeeding on Cardiorespiratory Risk Factors in Adult Life
  • Influence of Breastfeeding on Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Risk Factors in Latino Youth With a Family History of Type 2 Diabetes
  • Breast feeding in infancy and social mobility: 60-year follow-up of the Boyd Orr cohort
  • Future Research in Sex Differences in Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease: Report by the Society for Women's Health Research
  • Public Health Response to the Obesity Epidemic: Too Soon or Too Late?
  • Advances in Our Understanding of the Biology of Human Milk and Its Effects on the Offspring
  • To What Extent Is the Protective Effect of Breastfeeding on Future Overweight Explained by Decreased Maternal Feeding Restriction?
  • Does breastfeeding influence risk of type 2 diabetes in later life? A quantitative analysis of published evidence.
  • Breast-Feeding and Risk for Childhood Obesity: Does maternal diabetes or obesity status matter?
  • Google Scholar

More in this TOC Section

  • Machine Learning for Child and Adolescent Health: A Systematic Review
  • Effects of Probiotics in Preterm Infants: A Network Meta-analysis
  • Adverse Childhood Experiences and Justice System Contact: A Systematic Review
Show more Review Articles

Similar Articles

Subjects

  • Obesity
    • Obesity
  • Nutrition
    • Nutrition
  • Fetus/Newborn Infant
    • Fetus/Newborn Infant
  • Journal Info
  • Editorial Board
  • Editorial Policies
  • Overview
  • Licensing Information
  • Authors/Reviewers
  • Author Guidelines
  • Submit My Manuscript
  • Open Access
  • Reviewer Guidelines
  • Librarians
  • Institutional Subscriptions
  • Usage Stats
  • Support
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Resources
  • Media Kit
  • About
  • International Access
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement
  • FAQ
  • AAP.org
  • shopAAP
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Instagram
  • Visit American Academy of Pediatrics on Facebook
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Twitter
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Youtube
  • RSS
American Academy of Pediatrics

© 2021 American Academy of Pediatrics