Duration of Breastfeeding in Infancy and Levels of Central Adiposity and Systemic Inflammation in Early Middle Adulthood (WP-24-33)
Thomas McDade, Jessica Polos, Kiarri Kershaw, Taylor Hargrove, and Stephanie Koning
Introduction: Overweight, obesity, and systemic inflammation contribute to chronic degenerative diseases that are major public health burdens associated with aging. This study investigates whether the duration of breastfeeding in infancy predicts waist circumference and chronic systemic inflammation in early middle adulthood.
Methods: Regression models were implemented with data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, a nationally representative sample of adults (33-44 years old) with information on breastfeeding history as well as measures of waist circumference, Creactive protein (CRP), and interleukin-6 (IL-6). Fixed-effects regression models were used to analyze between-sibling differences in breastfeeding duration, waist circumference, and CRP/IL6.
Results: Longer duration of breastfeeding was associated with significantly lower waist circumference and lower CRP. For individuals who were breastfed for 6-12 months versus not at all, marginal mean waist circumference was 94.8 cm (95% CI: 92.5, 97.1) and 101.7 cm (95% CI: 100.2, 103.2), respectively. Marginal mean CRP was 1.59 mg/L (95% CI: 1.38, 1.84) versus 2.10 mg/L (95% CI: 1.97, 2.24). Waist circumference mediated 57.3-93.8% of the associations between breastfeeding duration and CRP, depending on duration category. Breastfeeding duration was negatively associated with waist circumference and inflammation in sibling comparisons, but estimates were imprecise and not statistically significant.
Conclusion: The convergence of obesogenic environments and low uptake of breastfeeding for cohorts born following the historical nadir of breastfeeding in the US may contribute to epidemics of overweight/obesity and chronic inflammation that presage risk for chronic degenerative diseases of aging.