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Effects of Breast-feeding on Cognitive Function

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Breast-Feeding: Early Influences on Later Health

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((AEMB,volume 639))

The effect of breast-feeding on cognitive function has been examined in many studies, and the results show a consistent pattern with a small but significant positive effect in most studies. The effect gets smaller when controlling for relevant confounders and it has been argued that the remaining effect could be due to residual confounding. The aim of this short review is to summarise the main results from these studies and to discuss the possible causes of such an effect, possible confounders and the potential impact of residual confounding. Furthermore, data on the effects of breast-feeding on other aspects of brain development (i.e. visual acuity and head circumference) and the potential negative effects of environmental contaminants in human milk on cognitive function will be covered briefly. The most important meta-analysis and critical reviews will be discussed together with a few recent important papers.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Nutrition and Centre for Advanced Food Studies, Faculty of LIFE Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg

    K. F. Michaelsen & L. Lauritzen

  2. Danish Epidemiology Science Center, Institute of Preventive Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen

    E. L. Mortensen

  3. Department of Health Psychology, Institute of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

    E. L. Mortensen

Authors
  1. K. F. Michaelsen
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  2. L. Lauritzen
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  3. E. L. Mortensen
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. MRC Human Nutrition Research, Cambridge, UK

    Gail Goldberg  & Ann Prentice  & 

  2. London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK

    Andrew Prentice  & Suzanne Filteau  & 

  3. Institut de Recherche pour le Developpement, Montpellier, France

    Kirsten Simondon

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Michaelsen, K.F., Lauritzen, L., Mortensen, E.L. (2009). Effects of Breast-feeding on Cognitive Function. In: Goldberg, G., Prentice, A., Prentice, A., Filteau, S., Simondon, K. (eds) Breast-Feeding: Early Influences on Later Health. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 639. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8749-3_15

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