Role of breastfeeding in preventing childhood obesity

Watch Video: Role of breastfeeding in preventing childhood obesity by Barbara J. Moore, PhD, ...
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Role of breastfeeding in preventing childhood obesity

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Breastfeeding has been found to be protective against childhood obesity. There are a number of studies of this issue and what we discovered is that breastfeeding for the first six months of life, actually exclusive breastfeeding for the 6 months of life and thereafter for as long as it’s convenient. But for the first sic months of life, its exclusive breast feeding and then after that you’ll start to introduce solid food. But the point is, what is exclusive breast feeding, it’s no sugar water, no infant formula, no cereal in the bottle or in the bowl, nothing but human breast milk for the first 6 months of life. That is strongly associated with lower rates of obesity in children. In fact, what’s interesting is that the CDC put out these growth charts for infants and in America, our infants were getting primarily formula fed when they’re growing faster and heavier and so a decision was made approximately 2 years ago to adopt the World Health Organization in growth charts for infants and to use those growth charts in America. Why? Because almost all of the babies in the WHO growth charts, that population of babies in which that growth chart are based are breastfed. What we decided is that it makes sense to use breastfed babies as the standard against which baby growth pattern should be compared, in order to determine which babies are growing too fast and which babies aren't growing fast enough. We now use the WHO growth chart for infants and then from ages 2-20, we use the original CDC growth charts and of course, we use the one for BMI to evaluate kids in as far as the obesity is concerned.

Watch Video: Role of breastfeeding in preventing childhood obesity by Barbara J. Moore, PhD, ...

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Barbara J. Moore, PhD

President, Shape Up America!

Barbara J. Moore, PhD is president and CEO of Shape Up America!, a nonprofit organization founded in 1994 by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop. The mission of SUA is to raise awareness of obesity as a health issue through its award-winning website, Shapeup.org  and other communication channels.  Considered a leading authority on obesity in the United States, Dr. Moore served on the Institute of Medicine Committee on Prevention of Obesity in Children in Youth, which produced the landmark 2005 report Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance. Moore received her PhD in nutritional science from Columbia University. Her postdoctoral training in nutrition and physiology was at the University of California at Davis. She held an academic position at Rutgers University and also served in industry as General Manager of Program Development at Weight Watchers International.  She held several federal government positions at the White House and the National Institutes of Health before joining Shape Up America! in 1995. She holds a BA from Skidmore College and an MS in nutrition from Columbia University’s Institute of Human Nutrition. 

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