Abstract
BackgroundIt has been demonstrated that children who had been breastfed remain better protected against various infections, and notably respiratory tract infections, well beyond infancy. Since the role of breastfeeding to explain why children are less affected by COVID-19 has not been studied until now, the aim of this study was to determine whether any history of breastfeeding reduces the incidence rate of COVID-19 in children.MethodsThis was a secondary analysis of an observational study on clinical and epidemiological characteristics of pediatric COVID-19 in Majorca. A total of 691 children were recruited during the 5 months of August–December 2020. Eligible participants were children under 14 who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 in pediatric emergency services. The independent explanatory variable was any breastfeeding. Bivariate analyses were conducted through the Chi-square test, the Fisher’s Exact test or the Student’s T test.All children had the same demographic, epidemiological and clinical data collected through a study team member interview and via the participants medical records.ResultsWithin the sample of children who visited emergency services with symptoms of potential COVID-19, we found higher prevalence of positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test results among those who were exclusively formula fed compared with those who were ever breastfed (OR 2.48; 95% CI 1.45, 3.51; P = 0.036).ConclusionsThe present study suggests that ever breastfeeding reduces the risk of COVID-19 among children, as documented for other infections.
Highlights
It has been demonstrated that children who had been breastfed remain better protected against various infections, and notably respiratory tract infections, well beyond infancy
We expect to provide new insight into the emergence and early outcomes of children infected with COVID-19. This is a secondary analysis of COVID IB4221/20PI, an ongoing multicentric observational study of clinical and epidemiological features of children who present for care in one of thirteen participating pediatric emergency services (ESs) located in Majorca, Spain, during the late summer and autumn 2020 period of the COVID-19 pandemic
Lower body mass index (BMI) of children was positively linked to breastfeeding rates
Summary
It has been demonstrated that children who had been breastfed remain better protected against various infections, and notably respiratory tract infections, well beyond infancy. It has been reported worldwide that children who were ever breastfed show lower blood levels of both ferritin [6] and biomarkers that are severely increased during the cytokine burst (i.e., serum monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 or uric acid) than their formula fed peers [7,8,9]. These characteristics might counterbalance the deranged biochemical pathways leading to multi-organ failure in COVID-19
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