Kirsten Simondon|F Simondon|R Costes|Valérie Delaunay|Aldiouma Diallo
Breast-feeding is associated with improved growth in length, but not weight, in rural Senegalese toddlers
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
prolonged breastfeeding frequently associated malnutrition lessdeveloped countries even adjustment socioeconomic confounders however rural senegal breastfeeding prolonged child stuntedwe aimed test whether lower heightforage children weaned late explained height weaning whether prolonged breastfeeding associated impaired growtha cohort 443 senegalese children recruited dispensaries 2 mo age visited homes 6mo intervals approximately 15 3 age weight length arm circumference triceps skinfold thickness measured sixmonth increments analyzed relation breastfeeding breastfed compared weaned children breastfeeding duration season maternal housing use multiple linear regressionthe mean duration breastfeeding 241 mo quartiles 1 3 219 264 heightforage age 3 negatively associated age weaning p 001 association disappeared adjustment heightforage infancy length increments significantly greater second third years life children breastfed longer durations p 005 tended greater breastfed weaned children second year life p 005 third year life breastfed children greater length increments weaned children subgroup poor housing p interaction 005 growth weight differ significantly according breastfeedingprolonged breastfeeding improved linear growth negative relation heightforage duration breastfeeding due reverse causality