Breast-feeding duration for the prevention of excess body weight of mother–child pairs concurrently: a 2-year cohort study

Objective To examine the association between breast-feeding duration and the risk of excess body weight (children >85th percentile, mothers BMI≥25·0 kg/m 2 ) concurrently in mother–child pairs two years after delivery. Design Prospective cohort study in Joinville, Brazil. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the independent relationship between breast-feeding duration and risk of excess body weight. Setting Brazilian public maternity hospital. Subjects Three hundred and five mother–child pairs. Results At 2-year follow-up, 23·6 % of mother–child pairs had excess body weight. Children breast-fed for Conclusions Breast-feeding for a longer duration has a parallel protective effect on the risk of excess body weight in mother–child pairs two years after birth. Since members of the same family could be influenced by the same risk factors, continued promotion and support of breast-feeding may help to attenuate the rising prevalence of overweight in mother–child pairs.