Breastfeeding and early white matter development: A cross-sectional study
| Autor: | Irene Piryatinsky, Nicole Waskiewicz, Holly Dirks, Douglas C. Dean, Michelle Han, Katie Lehman, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Sean C.L. Deoni |
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| Rok vydání: | 2013 |
| Předmět: |
Male
Cognitive Neuroscience Breastfeeding T1 Longitudinal Relaxation Time Breast milk Nerve Fibers Myelinated MCR Multicomponent Relaxometry MRI Magnetic Resonance Imaging Article Developmental psychology White matter 03 medical and health sciences Myelin water fraction 0302 clinical medicine Neuroimaging 030225 pediatrics medicine Image Processing Computer-Assisted Humans Cognitive skill MWF Myelin Water Fraction VFM mcDESPOT Derived Myelin Water Fraction Parietal lobe Brain Infant Cognition Brain development Magnetic Resonance Imaging T2 Transverse Relation Time medicine.anatomical_structure Breast Feeding Cross-Sectional Studies Neurology Myelin Child Preschool Myelin maturation Female White matter development Psychology Breast feeding Infant imaging 030217 neurology & neurosurgery |
| Zdroj: | Neuroimage |
| ISSN: | 1095-9572 |
| Popis: | Does breastfeeding alter early brain development? The prevailing consensus from large epidemiological studies posits that early exclusive breastfeeding is associated with improved measures of IQ and cognitive functioning in later childhood and adolescence. Prior morphometric brain imaging studies support these findings, revealing increased white matter and sub-cortical gray matter volume, and parietal lobe cortical thickness, associated with IQ, in adolescents who were breastfed as infants compared to those who were exclusively formula-fed. Yet it remains unknown when these structural differences first manifest and when developmental differences that predict later performance improvements can be detected. In this study, we used quiet magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to compare measures of white matter microstructure (mcDESPOT measures of myelin water fraction) in 133 healthy children from 10 months through 4 years of age, who were either exclusively breastfed a minimum of 3 months; exclusively formula-fed; or received a mixture of breast milk and formula. We also examined the relationship between breastfeeding duration and white matter microstructure. Breastfed children exhibited increased white matter development in later maturing frontal and association brain regions. Positive relationships between white matter microstructure and breastfeeding duration are also exhibited in several brain regions, that are anatomically consistent with observed improvements in cognitive and behavioral performance measures. While the mechanisms underlying these structural differences remains unclear, our findings provide new insight into the earliest developmental advantages associated with breastfeeding, and support the hypothesis that breast milk constituents promote healthy neural growth and white matter development. Highlights • First investigation of breast-feeding and early infant brain myelination. • Breastfed infants shown improved brain development by 2 years of age. • Duration of breastfeeding is positively associated with behavioral performance. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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