Breastfeeding duration is inversely associated with asthma in Japanese children aged 3 years. (4th May 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Watanabe, Jun-ichi; Tanaka, Keiko; Nagata, Chisato; Furukawa, Shinya; Arakawa, Masashi; Miyake, Yoshihiro
• Is Part Of: Journal of asthma. Volume 55:Number 5(2018)
• Page Start: 511
• Page End: 516
• Publication Date: 2018-05-04
• Subjects: Asthma -- breastfeeding -- children -- cross-sectional study -- Japan; Asthma -- Periodicals; 616.238005
• DOI: 10.1080/02770903.2017.1349793
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0277-0903

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Objective : Recent meta-analyses found an inverse relationship between breastfeeding duration and asthma in children. The present cross-sectional study investigated the associations between breastfeeding duration and the prevalence of wheeze and asthma in Japanese children aged 3 years. Methods : Subjects were 6412 children who participated in the Kyushu Okinawa Child Health Study. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Wheeze was defined according to the criteria of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood. Asthma was considered present if the child had been diagnosed by a physician as having asthma. Associations of breastfeeding duration with wheeze and asthma were estimated using multivariate generalized estimating equation methods adjusted for maternal, family, and health characteristics. Results : The prevalence values of wheeze and asthma were 19.5% and 7.0%, respectively. Compared with <4 months of exclusive breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding for ≥4 months was not significantly associated with wheeze or asthma. Compared with <10 months of breastfeeding duration regardless of exclusivity, 10 to <14 months, 14 to <19 months, and 19 months or more of breastfeeding duration regardless of exclusivity were independently inversely related to asthma: the adjusted odds ratios [ORs; 95% confidence intervals (CIs)] were 0.69 (0.52–0.91, p = 0.01), 0.73 (0.56–0.97, p = 0.03), and 0.67 (0.51–0.88, p = 0.004), respectively. No association was found between breastfeeding duration regardless of exclusivity and wheeze. Conclusions : We confirmed an inverse association between breastfeeding duration regardless of exclusivity and asthma.