Prevention of hypertension in adulthood by breastfeeding?

Abstract

The underlying causes of high blood pressure are widely recognised to be multifactorial but include consumption of a western-style diet high in sodium and low in calcium and potassium. The study reported by Atul Singhal and colleagues in today's Lancet showed that consumption of formula instead of human milk in infancy also increases diastolic and mean arterial blood pressure in later life. In addition to providing specific information relevant to the primary prevention of hypertension, this paper adds to publications reporting widespread effects of early diet on later body composition, 1 Johnston CCJ Miller JZ Slemenda CW et al. Calcium supplementation and increases in bone mineral density in children. N Engl J Med. 1992; 327: 82-87 Crossref PubMed Scopus (927) Google Scholar , 2 von Kries R Koletzko B Sauerwald T et al. Breast feeding and obesity: cross sectional study. BMJ. 1999; 319: 147-150 Crossref PubMed Google Scholar physiology, 3 Hoffman DJ Sawaya AL Verreschi I Tucker KL Roberts SB Why are nutritionally stunted children at increased risk of obesity? Studies of metabolic rate and fat oxidation in shantytown children from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000; 72: 702-707 PubMed Google Scholar , 4 Ravelli AC van der Meulen JH Osmond C Barker DJ Bleker OP Infant feeding and adult glucose tolerance, lipid profile, blood pressure and obesity. Arch Dis Child. 2000; 82: 248-252 Crossref PubMed Scopus (208) Google Scholar and cognition. 5 Lucas A Morley R Cole TJ Lister G Leeson-Payne C Breast milk and subsequent intelligence quotient in children born preterm. Lancet. 1992; 339: 261-264 Summary PubMed Scopus (955) Google Scholar , 6 Anderson JW Johnstone BM Remley DT Breast-feeding and cognitive development: a meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr. 1999; 70: 525-535 Crossref PubMed Scopus (893) Google Scholar , 7 Hurtado EK Claussen AH Scott KG Early childhood anemia and mild or moderate mental retardation. Am J Clin Nutr. 1999; 69: 115-119 PubMed Google Scholar Combined, these studies provide strong support for the recent shift from defining nutritional needs for prevention of acute deficiency symptoms to long-term prevention of morbidity and mortality. 8 Yates AA Schlicker SA Suitor CW Dietary reference intakes: the new basis for recommendations for calcium and related nutrients, B vitamins, and choline. J Am Diet Assoc. 1998; 98: 699-706 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (320) Google Scholar , 9 Roberts SB Heyman MB Tracy L Feeding your child for lifelong health. Bantam, New York1999 Google Scholar Early nutrition in preterm infants and later blood pressure: two cohorts after randomised trialsBreastmilk consumption was associated with lower later blood pressure in children born prematurely. Our data provide experimental evidence of programming of a cardiovascular risk factor by early diet and further support the long-term beneficial effects of breastmilk. Full-Text PDF An overstretched hypothesis?If the test of a good scientific idea is the volume of research it generates, the “fetal origins hypothesis” associated with David Barker and colleagues from the UK's Southampton University and elsewhere is productive indeed. Put simply, the argument runs that poor nutrition in utero and in early life outside the womb programmes an infant to the risk, many years later, of cardiovascular problems. In the past 5 years, Barker and colleagues have published 61 papers, including several reviews, on this topic. Full-Text PDF