language development and breastfeeding

[Katie Alcock]

Well-controlled studies that introduce long-chain fatty acids into infant
formula e.g. 

Willatts, P., Forsyth, J. S., DiModugno, M. K., Varma, S., & Colvin, M.
(1998). Effect of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in infant formula
on problem solving at 10 months of age. Lancet, 352(9129), 688-691.

control for any "bonding" or SES effects of breastfeeding - and an effect on
some types of cognitive behaviour is shown in preverbal infants (e.g.
problem solving in the above study).

However other studies with similar designs e.g.

Auestad, N., Scott, D. T., Janowsky, J. S., Jacobsen, C., Carroll, R. E.,
Montalto, M. B., et al. (2003). Visual, cognitive, and language assessments
at 39 months: A follow-up study of children fed formulas containing
long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids to 1 year of age. Pediatrics, 112(3),
E177-E183.

have shown no effect on language of supplemented formula. This study however
failed to show an effect of breastfeeding itself, either, which has been
fairly commonly found: it's just that there are so many confounds of
breastfeeding itself.

And others e.g. 

Birch, E. E., Garfield, S., Hoffman, D. R., Uauy, R., & Birch, D. G. (2000).
A randomized controlled trial of early dietary supply of long-chain
polyunsaturated fatty acids and mental development in term infants.
Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 42(3), 174-181.


have shown improvements on e.g. the Bayley Scales - Cognitive, but this was
only on the non-language sections, and there were no differences in the
language sections.

Katie Alcock


Katie Alcock, DPhil
Lecturer
Department of Psychology
University of Lancaster
Fylde College
Lancaster LA1 4YF
Tel 01524 593833
Fax 01524 593744
Web http://www.psych.lancs.ac.uk/people/KatieAlcock.html