Thanks for this, Esther.

This study has already appeared as a discussion item on national TV here.

The full text of the study is here:

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/bmj.39304.464016.AEv1

The study - team led by Kramer - is a well-organised and robust one 
as far as I can tell,  and it comes from the Belarus-based PROBIT 
cohort. What it doesn't do (I don't think), is to distinguish the 
effects of *exclusive* bf to 6 mths - the intervention group had more 
exclusive breastfeeding to 3 mths and overall the group incidence of 
asthma was not lessened compared to the control group, but  the 
hypothesis has never been that  short term exclusive bf (under 6 
mths) is protective, has it? Also  what was the effect on individual 
babies  of excl bf to 3 mths, compared to invidual babies bf for a 
shorter time or with more formula? As  well  as comparing groups, I 
wonder if the study could compare indviduals within the groups. Maybe 
they did - I have not had time to really look closely at the study.


What  has annoyed me today is the  headline on the Press Association 
press release about this
paper - quite erronoeously, it says 'Asthma risk for breastfed
babies'.

http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jXaJRpN6AkRCeNrylmOf-wNWZf-Q

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc, tutor, UK

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