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15th November 2005 Breastfeeding could reduce risk of coeliac disease A new study has revealed that breastfed babies are at half the risk of developing an intolerance to foods containing gluten, such as bread and pasta, than their bottlefed counterparts.Gluten intolerance, also known as coeliac disease, affects approximately one per cent of the UK population, who suffer from such distressing symptoms as chronic diarrhoea and fatigue due to a reaction to the protein found in foods containing wheat, rye and barley. Although genes play a part in determining if someone will develop the condition, environmental factors in early life are also believed to prime the immune system to react to gluten later on. Researchers from Central Manchester Children's University Hospital reviewed six studies on breastfeeding and the risk of coeliac disease between 1996 and 2004, involving more than 900 youngsters with coeliac disease and almost 3,500 healthy children. The research revealed that the longer a child was breastfed, the lower the risk of gluten intolerance – of up to 52 per cent. The researchers, in an article for Archives of Disease in Childhood, said: "Breastfeeding during the introduction of dietary gluten and increased duration of breastfeeding were associated with decreased risk of developing coeliac disease.” However, it currently remains unclear whether breastfeeding merely delays the onset of symptoms or provides a permanent protection against the disease. Researchers are equally uncertain about how breastfeeding can protect a child against coeliac disease. They have suggested that it simply may be that a child is exposed to less gluten during weaning if being breastfed or that breastfeeding may also reduce the number of stomach infections suffered, thus reducing the potential to weaken the lining of the bowel, or it may curb the immune response to gluten. Where to next?
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