The Association between Breastfeeding Duration and Lipid Profile among Children and Adolescents.

Yanhui Li,Luke Arnold,Jun Ma,Li Chen,Di Gao,Ying Ma,Bin Dong,Yanhui Dong,Tao Ma,Manman Chen

doi:10.3390/nu13082728

Abstract

To investigate the relationship between breastfeeding duration and lipid profile among children and adolescents, a cross-sectional survey using random cluster sampling was performed, and a national sample of 12,110 Chinese children and adolescents aged 5–19 years were collected. Breastfeeding duration and sociodemographic factors were collected by questionnaires. Fasting blood samples were obtained to test the lipid profile. Linear regression and logistic regression models were employed to evaluate the association between breastfeeding duration and lipid profile. We found that prolonged breastfeeding was related with a low level of total cholesterol (TC), LDL-C, HDL-C, and TC/HDL-C in children and adolescents. With an increased duration of breastfeeding, the magnitude of the association between breastfeeding and lipid profile enlarged. The levels of TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, and TC/HDL-C in participants who were breastfed for more than 12 months decreased by 6.225 (95% CI: −8.390, −4.059), 1.956 (95% CI: −3.709, −0.204), 1.273 (95% CI: −2.106, −0.440) mg/dL, and 0.072 (95%CI: −0.129, −0.015), respectively, compared with those who were not breastfed. The corresponding risk of high TC declined by 43% (aOR: 0.570, 95% CI: 0.403, 0.808). The association was similar in both boys and girls, but only statistically significant in children and young adolescents aged 5–14 years. This suggested that prolonged breastfeeding duration was related with low lipid levels and decreased abnormal lipid risk, especially in children and young adolescents. These findings support the intervention of prompting a prolonged duration of breastfeeding to improve the childhood lipid profile.

Highlights

Dyslipidemia is an important risk factor for coronary artery disease and stroke, which plays a vital role in the pathophysiological mechanisms of cardiovascular disease [1].Dyslipidemia, once considered in adults, has a high prevalence in children and adolescents, with approximately one in five having dyslipidemia [2,3]
We investigated the relationship between breastfeeding duration and lipid profile among children and adolescents aged 5–19 years using data from a large cross-sectional study conducted in 7 provinces in China, with the aim to provide evidence on the health effect of prolonging breastfeeding duration in children and adolescents
Children and adolescents who had prolonged breastfeeding duration were associated with lower levels of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and TC/HDL-C; a lower prevalence of high TC; and a higher prevalence of low HDL-C

Summary

Introduction

Dyslipidemia is an important risk factor for coronary artery disease and stroke, which plays a vital role in the pathophysiological mechanisms of cardiovascular disease [1]. Dyslipidemia, once considered in adults, has a high prevalence in children and adolescents, with approximately one in five having dyslipidemia [2,3]. It can be progressive throughout childhood into adulthood, and young people who have abnormal lipid levels may be at risk of cardiovascular disease in later life. As atherosclerotic changes during childhood are potentially reversible [4], early identification and intervention of dyslipidemia in children and adolescents may improve longer-term health outcomes. Data on early life determinants of dyslipidemia suggest that breast milk is a protective factor [5]

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Discussion

Conclusion