Reference
Belfort, M. B., Knight, E., Chandarana, S., Ikem, E., Gould, J. F., Collins, C. T., Makrides, M., Gibson, R. A., Anderson, P. J., Simmer, K., Tiemeier, H., & Rumbold, A. (2022). Associations of Maternal Milk Feeding With Neurodevelopmental Outcomes at 7 Years of Age in Former Preterm Infants. JAMA Network Open, 5(7), e2221608. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.21608
Review
The study by Belfort et al. (2022) examined the association between maternal milk feeding and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 7 years of age in preterm infants born at less than 33 weeks of gestation. The prospective cohort study involved 586 infants from five Australian perinatal centers who were enrolled in the Docosahexaenoic Acid for Improvement of Neurodevelopmental Outcomes study between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2005.
The researchers measured maternal milk intake, including mean volume (milliliters per kilogram per day) during neonatal hospitalization and total duration (in months), as well as neurodevelopmental outcomes at 7 years of age. The outcomes assessed were IQ, academic achievement, ADHD symptoms, executive function, and behavior.
The results showed that higher maternal milk intake during neonatal hospitalization was associated with better performance IQ, reading, and math scores, and fewer ADHD symptoms. Longer duration of maternal milk intake was associated with higher reading, spelling, and math scores. Interestingly, the study found that maternal milk feeding was not associated with improved full-scale IQ, verbal IQ, executive function, or behavior. Most associations were stronger among infants born at lower gestational ages, particularly less than 30 weeks.
In conclusion, the findings of Belfort et al. (2022) suggest that maternal milk feeding during neonatal hospitalization and after discharge might be associated with better school-age performance IQ and academic achievement, and with a reduction in ADHD symptoms, particularly among infants born at less than 30 weeks gestation.
