Maternal overweight impacts infant feeding patterns - The STEPS Study

Abstract

Objectives: We examined how maternal overweight impacts full breastfeeding (BF), total duration of BF and the age of introduction of complementary foods (CFs) and whether these have effect on children's growth from 0 to 2 years. Subjects/Methods: From 1797 families participating in the STEPS Study, 848 children had data on BF and anthropometric data at 13 months and 2 years of age and were included in this study. Data on BF and CFs were collected using a self-administered follow-up diary. Information regarding maternal weight, height, pregnancy and delivery were received from maternity clinics and the National Longitudinal Census Files. The children's weight and length/height were recorded during the study visits at 13 months and 2 years. Results: Overweight women breastfed fully (2. 2 vs 2. 8 months, P<0. 0001) and totally (7. 4 vs 9. 0 months, P<0. 0001) for a shorter time and introduced CFs earlier (4. 1 vs 4. 3 months, P=0. 02) than normal weight women. Children of overweight women were heavier and had a higher body mass index at 2 years than children of normal weight women. At 2 years of age 30% of boys and 17% of girls were overweight or obese. However, children's obesity risk was not increased by maternal overweight (odds ratio (OR) 1. 04, P=0. 12). Longer duration of full BF (OR 0. 86, P=0. 04) and partial BF (OR 0. 91, P=0. 02) and delayed introduction of CFs (OR 0. 69, P=0. 03) were protective against obesity. Conclusions: Our study suggests that women who were overweight or obese before pregnancy breastfed for a shorter time and introduced CFs earlier than normal weight women, which may further impact children's growth. © 2014 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.