Girls get more boost from breast-feeding than boys

By Will Dunham

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Breast-feeding gives all infants numerous health advantages compared to baby formula, but in at least one respect girls get a greater benefit from breast milk than boys, researchers said on Monday.

The researchers tracked a group of very low birth weight, pre-term infants in Buenos Aires to gauge the protective effect of breast-feeding against respiratory infections in babies.

They found that infant girls who were breast-fed were far less likely than baby boys who were breast-fed to develop serious respiratory infections requiring hospitalization.

A lot of research has shown that breast-fed babies enjoy a range of health benefits compared to those given baby formula beyond combating respiratory infections.

These include fewer ear, stomach or intestinal infections, digestive problems, skin diseases and allergies, and less risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. And some research has shown breast-fed babies are smarter, too.

"There are many, many different diseases that are protected against by breast-feeding. It's a great source of nutrition. It's important for development. Everyone benefits from breast-feeding," Dr. Fernando Polack of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, one of the researchers, said in a telephone interview.

"Now, in the specific case of acute respiratory diseases like bronchiolitis and viral infections of the respiratory tract, it seems that there is greater benefit in girls than in boys. And that benefit is substantial," he said.

Bronchiolitis is an infection of the airways of the lungs seen most often in infants between about 3 and 6 months old.