Abstract

Objective: Results of numerous studies have provided convincing evidence that breastfeeding reduces morbidity and mortality during the first year of life, and it is suggested that breast feeding could also reduce psychiatric problems. In this study, in a community sample of toddlers, we aimed to investigate the relation between the duration of breast feeding and psychiatric complaints of parents, particularly eating and sleeping problems.

Method: Study sample was stratified according to population rates and rural/urban ratio and it consisted of 12-42 month-old toddlers who had applied to the primary care health centers in Samsun to receive their immunization. Children (n:376) were 25,76±7,80 year-old on average. Mothers completed the Brief Infant-Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (BITSEA)- Turkish and the Child Behavior Checklist 2/3 (CBCL).

Results: Participants were grouped in terms of breast feeding durations, and the children who were weaned before 2 months or after 24 months of age had significantly higher BITSEAproblem and CBCL-total scores, and higher rates of eating problems. In addition, to explore the predictive factors of having a higher score than the subclinic cut-point on BITSEA-problem scale a logistic regression analysis was computed. This analysis revealed that in addition to maternal and paternal ages and education level, breast feeding duration was significantly associated with the severity of psychiatric complaints (X 2 = 26.47, df= 7, N=337, p<.001).

Discussion: The overall results of this study suggest that as a specific factor breast feeding duration is significantly associated with the severity of psychiatric complaints, particularly eating problems. The results provide some evidence that weaning before 2 months or after 24 months of age could be an additional risk factor on psychiatric problems in toddlers

Keywords: breast feeding, toddlerhood, psychiatric complaints, eating problems

References

  1. Atıcı A, Polat S, Turhan AH. Anne sütü ile Beslenme. Turkiye Klinikleri J Pediatr Sci ;3:1-5. Çakaloz B, Pekcanlar-Akay A. Dikkat eksikliği ve yıkıcı davranış bozukluklarında doğum öncesi, doğum ve doğum sonrası yaşanan sorun ve anne sütü alış sürelerinin psikopatoloji gelişimine katkıla- rı. Çocuk Ergen Ruh Sağlığı Dergisi 2005;12:3-10
  2. Lawrence RA. Peer support: Making a difference in breast-feeding duration. CMAJ. 2002;8;166:42-43
  3. Yağcı RV. Sağlıklı Süt Çocuğu Beslenmesi. Turkiye Klinikleri J Pe- diatr Sci 2007;3:116-119
  4. Davis MK. Breastfeeding and chronic disease in childhood and adolescence. Pediart Clin North Am 2001;48:125–141.
  5. Labbok MH. Effects of breastfeeding on the mother. Pediatr Clin North Am 2001;48:143–158.
  6. Reynolds A. Breastfeeding and brain development. Pediatr Clin North Am 2001;48:159–171.
  7. Johnson DL, Swank PR, Howie VM, Baldwin CD, Owen M. Breast-feeding and children’s intelligence. Psychol Rep ;79:1179–1185.
  8. Mortensen EL, Michaelsen KF, Sanders SA, Reinisch JM. The as- sociation between duration of breastfeeding and adult intelligen- ce. JAMA, 2002;287:2365–2371.
  9. Quinn PJ, O’Callaghan M, Williams GM, Narjman JM, Ander- sen MJ, Bor W. The effect of breastfeeding on child develop- ment at 5 years: a cohort study. Journal of Paediatr Child Health ;37:465–469. Stevens LJ, Zentall SS, Deck JL, Abate ML, Watkins BA, Lipp SR, Burgess JR. Essential fatty acid metabolism in boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Am J Clin Nutr 1995;62:761-768.
  10. Yorbık Ö, Kırmızıgül P, Demirkan S, Söhmen T. Dikkat Eksikliği Hiperaktivite Bozukluğu Olan Çocuklarda Anne Sütü Alma Süre- leri. Çocuk Ergen Ruh Sağlığı Dergisi 2003;10:115-120.
  11. Butte NF. Impact of ınfant feeding practices on childhood obesity J Nutr. 2009;139:412S-416S
  12. Jain A, Concato J, Leventhal JM. How good is the evidence linking breastfeeding and intelligence? Pediatrics, 2002;109:1044–1053.
  13. Furman L, Minich NM, Hack M. Breast-feeding of very low birth weight infants. J Hum Lact 1998;14:29–34.
  14. Lucas A, Cole TJ, Morley R, Lucas PJ, Davis JA, Bamford MF, Crowle P, Dossetor JF, Pearse R, Boon A. Factors associated with maternal choice to provide breast milk for low birthweight infants. Arch Dis Child 1988;63:48–52.
  15. World Health Organization (WHO). World Heath Organization Weekly Epidemiological Record, 1995;17:117–120.
  16. World Health Organization (WHO).Global Data Bank on Breast- feeding. Geneva: WHO. 2003
  17. Karabekiroğlu K, Rodopman-Arman A, Ay P, Özkesen M, Akbaş S, Taşdemir GN, ve ark Kısa 1-3 Yaş Sosyal Duygusal Değerlen- dirme Ölçeği (K-1/3-SDD-TR) Türkçe Versiyonunun Geçerlilik ve Güvenilirliği. 17. Ulusal Çocuk ve Ergen Ruh Sağlığı ve Hasta- lıkları Kongresi, 19-22 Nisan, İzmir. 2007
  18. Briggs-Gowan MJ, Carter AS. Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA) manual, version 2.0. New Ha- ven, CT: Yale University. 2002
  19. Achenbach T, Rescorla L. Manual for the ASEBA preschool forms and profiles. Burlington: University of Vermont. 2000
  20. Erol N, Şimşek Z, Öner Ö, Münir K. Behavioral and emotional problems among Turkish children at ages 2 to 3 years. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry, 2005;44:80-87.
  21. Thomas JM, Benham AL, Gean M, Luby J, Minde K, Turner S, Wright HH. Practice parameters for the psychiatric assessment of infants and toddlers (0-36 months) American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry, ;36:21-36. Çoşkun T. Anne sütü ile beslenmenin yararları. Katkı Pediatri Dergisi 2003;25:199-202.
  22. Angelsen NK, Vik T, Jacobsen G, Bakketeig LS. Breast feeding and cognitive development at age 1 and 5 years. Arch Dis Child ;85:183-188. Golding J, Rogers IS, Emmett PM. Association between breast feeding, child development and behaviour. Early Human Deve- lopment Suppl 1997;49:175-184.
  23. Gale CR, Martyn CN. Breastfeeding, dummy use, and adult intel- ligence. Lancet, 1996;347:1072–1075.
  24. Jacobson SW, Chiodo LM, Jacobson JL. Breastfeeding effects on intelligence quotient in 4- and 11-year-old children. Pediatrics, ;103:e71. Richards M, Wadsworth M, Rahimi-Foroushani A, Hardy R, Kuh D, Paul A. Infant nutrition and cognitive development in the first offspring of a national UK birth cohort. Dev Med Child Neurol ;40:163–167. Grattan DR, Pi XJ, Andrews ZB, Augustine RA, Kokay IC, Sum- merfield MR, Todd B, Bunn SJ. Prolactin receptors in the brain during pregnancy and lactation: Implications for behavior. Horm Behav 2001;40:115–124.
  25. Nelson EE, Panksepp J. Brain substrates of infant–mother attach- ment: Contributions of opioids, oxytocin, and norepinephrine. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 1998;22:437–452.
  26. Newton N. The quantitative effect of oxytocin (pitocin) on hu- man milk yield. Ann New York Acad Sci, 1992;652:481–483.
  27. Mezzacappa ES. A preliminary study of the effects of breast fee- ding on maternal health. Int J Behav Med 1997;4:230–241.
  28. Heck H, De Castro JM. The caloric demand of lactation does not alter spontaneous meal patterns, nutrient intakes, or moods of women. Physiol Behav 1993;54:641–648
  29. Mezzacappa ES, Guethlein W, Nelson-Vaz BA, Bagiella E. A pre- liminary study of breast feeding and maternal symptomatology. Ann Behav Med 2000;22:71–79.
  30. Alder EM, Cox JL. Breast feeding and postnatal depression. J Psychosom Res 1983;27:139–144.
  31. Alder EM, Bancroft J. The relationship between breast feding per- sistence, sexuality and mood in postpartum women. Psychol Med ;18:389–396. Cooper PJ, Murray L, Stein A. Psychosocial factors associated with the early termination of breast feeding. J Psychosom Res ;37:171–176. Susman VL, Katz JL. Weaning and depression: another postpar- tum complication. Am J Psychiatry, 1998;145:498–501.
  32. Klein DF, Skrobala AM, Garfinkel RS. Preliminary effects of preg- nancy on the course of panic disorder. Anxiety, 1995;1:227–232.
  33. Johnstone HA, Wigger A, Douglas AJ, Neumann ID, Landgraf R, Seckl JR, Russell JA. Attenuation of hypothalamic-pituitary- adrenal axis stress responses in late pregnancy: changes in feedfor- ward and feedback mechanisms. J Neuroendocrinol 2000;12:811–
  34. Toufexis DJ, Thrivikraman KV, Plotsky PM, Morilak DA, Huang N, Walker CD. Reduced noradrenergic tone to the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus contributes to the stress hyporesponsive- ness of lactation. J Neuroendocrinol 1998;10:417–427.
  35. Tu MT, Lupien SJ, Walker CD. Measuring stress responses in post- partum mothers: perspectives from studies in human and animal populations. Stress 2005;8:19–34.
  36. Kudielka BM, Hellhammer DH, Wüst S. Why do we respond so differently? Reviewing determinants of human salivary cortisol responses to challenge Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2009;34:2-18
  37. Karabekiroğlu K. Antenatal Endojen ve Eksojen Steroidlerin Fe- tal Beyin Üzerine Etkileri ve Psikiyatrik Sonuçları. Yeni Sempoz- yum, 2007;45:99-106
  38. Dennis CL. Breastfeeding initiation and duration: A 1990–2000 li- terature review. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs, 2002;31:12–32.
  39. Donath S, Amir LH. Rates of breastfeeding in Australia by state and socioeconomic status: evidence from the 1995 National He- alth Survey.. Breastfeed Rev. 2000;8:23-27

Copyright and license

How to cite

1.
Karabekiroğlu K, Akbaş S, Taşdemir GN. IS THE DURATION OF BREAST FEEDING A SPECIFIC RISK FACTOR ON PSYCHIATRIC COMPLAINTS IN TODDLERHOOD?. Turk J Pediatr Dis [Internet]. 2009 Jun. 1 [cited 2025 May 25];3(3):24-33. Available from: https://turkjpediatrdis.org/article/view/69