Exclusive breastfeeding and infantile colic: a cohort study

TL;DR

Exclusive breastfeeding in early life is linked to a lower risk of infant colic compared to mixed feeding.

Contribution

This study provides new evidence on the protective effect of exclusive breastfeeding against infant colic.

Findings

Exclusive breastfeeding was associated with a 67% lower odds of colic in infants under 10 weeks.

Colic prevalence peaked at 7–9 weeks and nearly disappeared after 12 weeks of age.

Infants who transitioned to exclusive breastfeeding after initial formula use also had lower colic odds.

Abstract

Infant colic or excessive crying in early life is a common symptom without a clear understanding of etiology and management. Breastfeeding has both short and long-term health benefits for mothers and children.

This study was a secondary analysis of a prospective intervention trial on breastfeeding promotion in Vietnam. A total of 856 mother-infant dyads were included to investigate the association between sources of nutrition and infant colic. Data on the exclusive breastfeeding were collected twice in 1-week and 4-weeks after delivery. Colic cases were defined using Rome IV criteria.

The prevalence of colic was 17.2% (95%CI: 14.6 to 19.7%) among infant 3–21 weeks of age, peaked at 7–9 weeks (23.7%, 95%CI: 17.4 to 30.0%), and almost dismissed after 12 weeks (3.6%, 95%CI: 0.08 to 7.2%). In multivariable analyses, compared with mixed feeding, infants under 10 weeks who had exclusive breastfeeding since birth were significantly less likely to have colic (aOR = 0.33; CI: 0.18 to 0.60) after controlling for maternal age, educational level, pre-pregnancy body mass index, parity, mode of delivery, sex assigned at birth of infants, gestational weeks at the delivery, birth weight, group randomization, and infant age. The odds of having colic were also lower among infants who received some formula feed during the first week but then received breastmilk exclusively afterward compared with those received mix feeding since birth.

We observed the lower prevalence of colic among exclusive breastfeeding infants compared to those had mixed feeding. Further studies should be undertaken to examine the relationship between exclusive breastfeeding and infant colic.

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