Asthmatic Women Who Breastfeed Could Cause Decreased Lung Airflow in Children

Women with asthma who breastfeed may pass lung irritation onto their children according to new research. In a study published in the November issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, researchers found that women with asthma who nursed their children had children with decreased airflow in the lungs.

"Longer breastfeeding in infancy is associated with improved lung function in later childhood, with minimal effects on airflow in children of non-asthmatic mothers," wrote Theresa W. Guilbert, M.D., of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Arizona Respiratory Center at the University of Arizona in Tucson as quoted in a press release. "However, longer breastfeeding in children of mother with asthma demonstrates no improved lung growth and significant decrease in airflows later in life."

Researchers measured the airflow and lung volume for each woman and infant in the study. When the information was analyzed, it was found that lower airflows were associated with infants who were being fed by mothers who have asthma.

"Breast fed children with non-atopic and non-asthmatic mothers had an increase in lung volume and no decrease in their airflows," wrote Dr. Guilbert in a press release. "However, children of mothers with asthma who were breastfed four months or more did not demonstrate any improvement in lung volume. Further, they had a significant reduction in airflows, suggesting that the risk for increased asthma in children of asthmatic mothers may be partly due to altered lung growth."

Dr. Guilbert thinks that breast milk from a woman without asthma may have factors that increase the development of the lungs for babies. In particular, Dr. Guilbert thinks it might be connected to a cytokine that controls elastin production, affecting the function and structure of the lungs.

"These findings suggest that growth factors in milk have the potential to modify lung development, which might account for some of the protective effect of breastfeeding against wheeze," wrote Dr. Guilbert, as quoted in a press release.

A study conducted on mice found that mice nursed by asthmatic mothers developed airway inflammation even if they had been born from non-asthmatic mice. However, Dr. Guilbert is reluctant to make any recommendations against breastfeeding, despite the clinical data of this latest study.

"It is premature to suggest any change in breastfeeding recommendations based on one study, particularly given the multiple well-documented benefits of breastfeeding," Dr. Guilbert said in the press release issued by the American Thoracic Society.

Sources:

American Thoracic Society, "Breastfed babies breathe better, except when mom has asthma" Eurekalert

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-11/ats-bbb102407.php