>Does it really say ONLY????
>Katherine A. Dettwyler, Ph.D.

Yes.  By "formula only" they mean "exclusively formula-fed."  They did a
nice job of creating five feeding categories:

"based on the percentage of breastfeedings an infant received: breast milk
only (100% of feedings were breast milk), high mixed (89% to 99% of
feedings were breast milk), middle mixed (58% to 88% of feedings were
breast milk), low mixed (1% to 57% of feedings were breast milk), and
formula only (0% of feedings were breast milk)."

And they also used breastfeeding as the standard to which the other 4
feeding categories were compared:

"Specifically, when each feeding group was compared with infants who
received breast milk only (referent), there was a small but steady
increase in the risk of developing diarrhea as the amount of breast milk
an infant received decreased...A dose-response relationship also emerged
when we assessed the effect of feeding on ear infections.  Again, as the
amount of breast milk an infant received decreased, relative to the
referent group, the risk of developing an ear infection steadily
increased, up to an 80% increased risk among low mixed (P=.003) or formula
only (P<.001) infants.  When we adjusted the model, the magnitude of the
effect diminished but the associations in both the low mixed (P=.02) and
formula only (P<.001)  groups remained significant.

These researchers should get an award--I think it is the first study to
report infant feeding data with breastfeeding as the standard!

Ginna Wall, MN, IBCLC, Lactation Services Coordinator
University of Washington Medical Center, Mailbox 356153
1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle WA 98195
Voicemail: (206)548-6368, Fax: (206)548-7665