A new study suggests mothers who breastfeed their babies are giving them a brain-boost over those who formula-feed their children, due to an essential fatty acid present in breast milk.
The report published in the journal Child Development found that babies fed with formula supplemented with the essential acid DHA, appeared to have higher cognitive skills than those fed with regular formula.
Earlier research has shown that breastfed babies appear to have higher cognitive function, and that the trend appears to continue later in childhood. The suspicion has been that the DHA content makes the difference.
The study, carried out by researchers at the Retina Foundation Southwest at the University of Texas, tested the theory.
Researchers monitored 200 youngsters in three age groups after randomly assigning them to either standard or DHA-enhanced formulas:
They were given the formula either:
- within days of their birth
- after six weeks of being breast fed and weaned
- or after four to six months of breastfeeding and weaning
Then they were assessed at nine months using simple problem-solving tests.
The infants had to remove a cloth that was covering a rattle, then tug at a cloth underneath the rattle in order to bring it within reach.
Those who were breastfed were more likely to complete the steps and achieve the goal, James Drover, who helped conduct the study while doing a post-doctoral fellowship at the Retina Foundation, told The Canadian Press.
"And what we found was the children that were fed the DHA-supplemented formula were more likely to show these goal-directed behaviours. They had higher intentions scores. Not only that, but they were more likely to be successful on each trial," he said.
The study is published in the September-October issue of Child Development.
All infant formulas used in the studies were donated by Mead Johnson Nutritionals, which makes Enfamil baby formulas, among other products.
