Breastfeeding guards against ear infections

GALVESTON, Texas, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- Breastfeeding protects children otherwise made susceptible to ear infections by abnormalities in specific human genes, say U.S. researchers.

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston say about 19 percent of children are prone to chronic and recurrent ear infections, known to physicians as "otitis media." These infections can interfere with language development and lead to learning difficulties.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, examined genetic samples taken from 505 children in Texas and Kentucky, about 60 percent of whom were classified as "otitis media susceptible" because they had suffered an ear infection before the age of 6 months; had undergone three or more episodes of acute otitis media within a six-month period; had four or more episodes within a 12-month period; or had six or more episodes by age 6.

The researchers found that breastfeeding neutralized the effect of the infections even in children with a genetic predisposition, according to Janak A. Patel.

"Not only that, they were protected from recurrent infections even later in childhood, long after they stopped breastfeeding," he said.