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Bottle Fed Babies More Likely to Overeat
When it comes to maintaining a healthy weight, well all know that how much you eat is just as important as what you eat. But when we are talking about babies, researchers now believe that how food is consumed might also matter.
A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention compared the eating habits of babies who were bottle fed for the first six months of life against those who were breast fed. What they found was that those who took most of their meals via bottle were less able to self-regulate how much they ate. The bottle fed babies simply ate more, a fact that researchers suspect may increase their risk of developing a weight problem later in life.
The researchers looked at 1,250 infants at 7, 9, 10 and 12 months of age. Of the babies who had been exclusively breast-fed for the first six months of their lives, only 27% always or usually finished what was offered in a bottle or cup. That number rose to 54% among babies who were both bottle and breast fed during the first six months. And for those who were exclusively bottle fed as infants, 68% always or usually finished off their bottle or cup.
Experts have long suspected that breast milk helps prevent excessive weight gain by simply being breast milk. The hormones leptin and adiponectin are believed to help regulate appetite and metabolism. However, in this study, it didn’t matter if the bottle fed babies were given formula or breast milk — they still ate more.
The researchers theorize that this so-called “bottle effect” may be due to the simple fact that bottle fed babies are encouraged to finish what is offered to them whereas breast fed babies are allowed to stop when they are full. This encouragement to eat more, they say, may interfere with a baby’s innate ability to self-regulate their calorie intake, therefore messing up their appetite cues.
Further studies are needed to confirm whether this “bottle effect” will impact a child’s weight later in life. However, researchers say that parents would do well to pay attention to babies’ cues when bottle feeding. When they push it away, put it away.
Image: Micah Sittig/Flickr
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6 Comments
[...] Bottle Fed Babies More Likely to Overeat [...]
May is Pregnancy Awareness Month | Strollerderby commented on May 11 10 at 12:08 pmPlumbLucky commented on May 11 10 at 11:27 amInteresting, but I didn’t think this was new. Our pediatrician mentioned it when our little guy was fairly young. (He did get bottles at the sitter’s house, hence the conversation with the ped – his babysitter would offer his milk in smaller increments, offering more based on his cues, rather than fixing one six or eight oz bottle and chucking the remainder. Worked for me since it wasted far less milk, since he would eat only til he decided he was done and wanted nothing to do with it afterwards!)
He still decides when he’s “done” with a meal by telling us and then refusing to have anything else to do with food.
Andrea commented on May 11 10 at 11:59 amI breastfed (no bottles) my 18 mth old son till he was one. Just as when he was breastfeeding, he lets you know very clearly when he has eaten enough and doesn’t want anymore. We’ve never encouraged him to finish but when his grandparents do he doesn’t budge- when he’s done he’s done and he’s got a great body weight. I’ve suffered with weight issues most of my life and am so happy to see my son listening to his own body as to when to eat and when to put down the spoon.
kristen h commented on May 11 10 at 1:05 pmI was breastfed exclusively and I am an overeater. It is something I battle daily. My mother was obsessed with her weight and also an overeater, and her solution was to get a gastric bypass 5 years ago, and it has ruined her health. I formula fed both of my daughters due to a medication I take, and they are both where they should be weight- wise, and they both know when they are full. My 11 month old, who still gets a bottle, will push it away when she is done, and I never force the issue. I think children take their cues when to stop eating from their parents, and I am trying like hell to break the cycle and not pass on my disorder to my children. I try to reinforce the idea to them that they only need to eat until they are full, and that all types of food should be enjoyed… now I wish I could get myself to do the same. I don’t want them to grow up with the love/hate/shame relationship with food that I have.
lysa commented on Jul 08 11 at 8:44 pmI think that maybe this comes about because of the amount of milk that a baby is supposed to drink each day? Mine drinks about 4-5 ounces each feeding and can last a few hours and yet there is information overload that we need to hit a required a amt each day – therefore we encourage finishing the bottle. However, my daughter often signals NO means NO by using a tongue or pretending to sleep with her mouth open. Remove the bottle and viola! She’s magically awakened in an instant. Return the bottle and she pretends to sleep again.
Erin commented on Feb 24 12 at 9:50 amI exclusively bottle fed both my daughters, and neither one struggle with weight issues. The Doctor actually said that they are right where they are suppose to be.
I used the amount the doctor told me (which is the same amount they should be getting if breastfed) and no more no less. I think a bigger issue as far as kids struggling with weight issues is 1)Genetic 2) because of lack of exercise. Not whether they are bottle fed or breastfed. I use to feel guilty when I read articles like this, because I wasn’t able to breast feed. But as my daughters got older and none of the things everyone and the articles said would happen,happened; I stopped feeling guilty.
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