Breast-feeding influences thymic size in late infancy
| Autor: | D. L. Jeppesen, M. D. M. Engelmann, Annette Kjær Ersbøll, K. Fleischer-Michaelsen, H. Hasselbalch |
|---|---|
| Předmět: |
Male
medicine.medical_specialty Milk Human business.industry Dose-Response Relationship Immunologic Infant Physiology Thymus Gland Breast milk Dose–response relationship Breast Feeding Endocrinology Immune system Internal medicine Pediatrics Perinatology and Child Health Cohort medicine Humans Female Infant Food Ultrasonography skin and connective tissue diseases business Breast feeding |
| Zdroj: | Scopus-Elsevier University of Copenhagen Hasselbalch, H, Engelmann, M D, Ersbøll, A K, Jeppesen, D L & Michaelsen, K F 1999, ' Breast-feeding influences thymic size in late infancy ', European Journal of Pediatrics, vol. 158, no. 12, pp. 964-967 . < http://link.springer.de/link/service/journals/00431/papers/9158012/91580964.pdf > |
| Popis: | We have previously shown that breast-fed infants have a considerably larger thymus at 4 months than formula-fed infants. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether breast-feeding also influences the thymic size in late infancy. In a cohort of 50 infants, all being partially breast-fed when recruited at 8 months, ultrasound assessment of the thymic index (a volume estimate) was performed at both 8 and 10 months of age. At 10 months the thymic index was significantly higher in those still being breast-fed compared to infants who had stopped breast-feeding between 8 and 10 months of age (P=0.05). This difference became more significant when controlled for the influence of infectious diseases (P=0.03). In infants still breast-fed at 10 months there was a significant correlation between the number of breast-feeds per day and their thymic index (P=0.01). Conclusion The effect of breast-feeding on thymus size is likely to be caused by immune modulating factors in breast milk. Breast milk influences thymic size in late infancy. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|