Introducing solid foods at an early age increases the risk of obesity

There are many reasons why WHO recommends that infants be exclusively breastfed during the first six months of life, but in the case of babies fed with formula milk, neither would it be appropriate to introduce solid foods too early.

Formula-fed babies who start eating solid foods before four months of age are more likely than the rest to be obese.

A team of American researchers studied 850 babies and their mothers for three years. When the babies were six months old, the mothers responded if they had been fed with breast milk, for how long, and when they had begun to give them solids, such as cereals, fruits or dairy products.

When the children were three years old, the team measured their weight and height to determine if they were obese, that is, if they were in the highest 5% body mass index (BMI) for their age and sex.

In infants raised with breastfeeding for at least four months, the age of introduction of solids in the diet (before 4 months, at 4-5 months or after 6 months) did not influence whether or not they were obese at three years of age.

But the results changed in babies fed with formula from the beginning or those who stopped breastfeeding before four months. These babies had 25% chance of being obese at three years if they had begun to eat solids before four months of age, figures much higher than in the rest of the cases analyzed.

The researchers point out that one of the most frequent mistakes is to add cereals to formula milk, thus contributing excessive calories to the baby. Besides of inadequate nutritional contribution, remember that there is a risk of developing food allergies at such early ages.

The study has been published in the journal "Pediatrics" with the title "Timing of Solid Food Introduction and Risk of Obesity in Preschool-Aged Children" ('The time of the introduction of solid foods and the risk of obesity in children in preschool age ').

In short, the investigation seems to confirm that Exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months of the baby reduces the risk of obesity in the child, and that there is no hurry to give solid foods when they are fed with artificial milk, and especially before four months it would be inadvisable.

Video: No link between childhood obesity and solid food (March 2024).