Infant Feeding and Blood Cholesterol: a Study in Adolescents and a Systematic Review

Objective: To examine the influence of infant feeding method on serum total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.

Methods: A cross-sectional study of 13- to 16-year-olds and a systematic review of studies (all observational) on the effects of infant feeding on cholesterol in infancy (<1 year), childhood or adolescence (1-16 years), and adulthood (> or =17 years) were conducted using random effects models. Differences are presented as breastfed-bottle-fed. A total of 1532 individuals (92% white; 55% male; mean age: 15.1 years) in 10 British towns were studied, and 37 studies with 52 observations on TC (26 in infancy, 17 in childhood or adolescence, and 9 in adulthood; corresponding figures for LDL were 7, 4, and 6) were reviewed.

Results: Mean TC in childhood or adolescence (including the new study) was not related to infant feeding pattern (mean TC difference = 0.00; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.07 to 0.07 mmol/L). However, in infancy, mean TC was higher among those breastfed (mean TC difference = 0.64; 95% CI: 0.50-0.79 mmol/L), whereas in adults, mean TC was lower among those breastfed (mean TC difference = -0.18; 95% CI: -0.30 to -0.06 mmol/L). Patterns for LDL were similar to those for TC throughout.

Conclusions: Breastfeeding is associated with increased mean TC and LDL levels in infancy but lower levels in adulthood/adult life. These results suggest that breastfeeding may have long-term benefits for cardiovascular health and may have implications for the content of formula feed milks.