Optimal Duration of Breastfeeding.

Abstract

* Abbreviations: aIRR — : adjusted incidence rate ratio CI — : confidence interval The American Academy of Pediatrics1 and World Health Organization2 recommend breastfeeding as the optimal method of infant feeding. Multiple other medical and health professional organizations concur with this recommendation on the basis of the evidence that exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life, with continuation after the introduction of complementary solids, promotes optimal health and well-being for mothers and infants.3–6 The reported benefits for infants are strongest in the first 12 months of life, and the benefits continue after the period of direct breastfeeding has ended.7–12 In this edition of Pediatrics , Christensen et al13 present a study demonstrating that longer duration of breastfeeding was associated with decreased risk of hospitalization for infection during the first year of life. For every extra month of any breastfeeding, adjusted analysis revealed a 4% reduced rate of hospitalization (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR] 0.96; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.93–0.99). In addition, breastfeeding for 10 to 12 months and ≥13 months reduced hospitalization for the first 2 to 3 years of life (aIRR 0.52 [95% CI 0.33–0.82] and … Address correspondence to Joan Younger Meek, MD, MS, Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, Florida State University, 250 E Colonial Dr, Orlando, FL 32801. E-mail: joan.meek{at}med.fsu.edu