Conversation with Children

Did you know that breast-feeding could reduce a baby’s risk of suffering from childhood obesity by up to 30 percent? Breast milk is full of nutrients that protect the infant from infections, allergies, vomiting and diarrhea and may also aid the child’s development. Doctors at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow, Scotland, have produced new evidence to support the theory that breast-fed babies are less likely to become obese as they grow older than babies fed formula.

“Our findings suggest that breast-feeding is associated with a reduction in childhood obesity risk,” said Dr. John Reilly, who headed the research team. The impact of breast milk on obesity was evident in early childhood and could have implications for strategies to reduce obesity, which has risen to epidemic proportions in many industrialized countries.

Obese children tend to become obese adults and have a higher risk of suffering from diabetes, heart disease, stroke and other ailments linked to excessive weight. ”Breast-feeding is therefore potentially useful for population-based strategies aimed at obesity prevention, particularly with the other benefits that breast-feeding provides,” Reilly added.

In research reported in The Lancet medical journal, the doctors studied the impact of breast-feeding on 32,000 Scottish children by measuring their body mass index (BMI) when they were 39 and 42 months old. They discovered that obesity was less common among the breast-fed than the bottle babies after adjusting for factors such as birth weight, sex or socioeconomic status.

Once again, the more naturally we treat our bodies, the healthier they will be in the long run. This is very important for the health and happiness of your child. In health,

Thomas Von Ohlen, MS

Thomas Von Ohlen is a clinical nutritionist and developer of Plasma Pro software for doctors. In his 15 years in private practice he has helped thousands of people, from all over the world, achieve their health goals through education and product recommendations. His FREE newsletter is available at www.healyourbodynow.com

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Did you know that breast-fed children in the United States are 20 percent less likely to die during the first year of life than whose who are not nursed, according to a 2004 study? Researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences said they based their finding on a survey that included nearly 9,000 infant deaths in 48 states. It found breast-fed babies were 20 percent less likely to die between 1 and 12 months of life than those who were not, and that the longer babies were breast-fed, the lower the risk of early death.Aimin Chen, a physician who was one of the authors of the study, said in an interview that the protective effect appears to come from the “package of child care skills” that goes along with nursing as well as the benefits of the milk. He said data from 2000 show that 70 percent of U.S. newborns are breast-fed when they leave the hospital and at 6 months only one third are. But there are still racial and economic disparities in how widely the practice has been adopted.
Other studies have shown breast-fed babies are less likely to be overweight, have fewer behavioral problems and may show differences in intelligence. They also may grow up to have lower blood pressure.

Groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that all mothers breast-feed their babies for the first year, and two years if possible. Breast milk is a source of nutrients that allow for the normal development of the child’s nervous system as well as their immune system. NO FORMULA can take the place of mothers milk nutrition! The study was published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

In health,

Thomas Von Ohlen, MS

Thomas Von Ohlen is a clinical nutritionist and developer of Plasma Pro software for doctors. In his 15 years in private practice he has helped thousands of people, from all over the world, achieve their health goals through education and product recommendations. His FREE newsletter is available at www.healyourbodynow.com

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