Artificial vs breast feeding: relation to infant health in a middle class American community.

Abstract

The effects of breast feeding in the early months of life on such clinical phenomena as the rate of weight gain, linear growth, frequency of office visits, phone calls and types of clinical morbidity encountered in office practice during the 1st year of the infant's life were examined. The practice was located in a suburban California residential area. This report is based on observations of 113 consecutive infants seen from birth through the 1st year each with at least 4 well-check visits including the 6-month and 12-month checks. 60 of the infants were started on breast feeding and 53 on artificial feeding. Those 52 of the 60 infants who remained fed primarily at breast for the first 3 months of life and often longer were categorized as wholly breast fed. The other 61 infants were classed as bottle fed. The number and percentage of breast fed infants declined slowing during the first 4 months, and more rapidly thereafter. At 3 months, 46% of the mothers were still breast feeding, at 6 months 27%. The method of feeding during the 1st months of life appeared to exert no influence on weight gain and linear growth, or on the frequency of visits for either well- or sick-checks. During the first 6 months, the boys in both feeding groups gained weight more rapidly than did the similarly fed girls. During the second 6 months, the infants of both sexes, breast or bottle fed, gained at the same rate. Fever, gastrointestinal and respiratory disorders occurred with the same minimal frequency in both feeding groups.