MedWire News: Breastfeeding does not reduce the chance that infants will develop hay fever, eczema, or asthma, in later childhood, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal.

The data are from an Eastern European hospital-based trial including 17 046 mother-infant pairs, in which parents were randomly assigned to a breastfeeding promotion intervention, which promoted exclusive and prolonged breast feeding, or to usual care. The total duration of breast feeding and exclusivity of breast feeding was assessed when the children were 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of age, and pediatricians evaluated the health outcomes of the children aged 6 years.

Overall, there were no significant differences in health outcomes between the two groups, with around 10 percent of parents reporting that their child ever wheezed and 5 percent observing symptoms of hay fever, while only 1 percent of children had asthma, and just over a quarter had positive skin prick tests.

These findings support results of another study recently reported by MedWire News, which suggested that prolonged and exclusive breastfeeding did not have a protective effect on asthma or allergy.

The investigators conclude: "There is already ample evidence to promote breast feeding as a public health measure. None the less, the claim that breast feeding reduces the risk for allergy and asthma is not supported by evidence."

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