Early breastfeeding, even if it only lasts a few days, could be instrumental in protecting a newborn's health, researchers indicate.
In addition to breastfeeding, researchers found that oral probiotics and prenatal use of glucocorticoids decreased a prematurely born infant's risk of NEC.
While infant exposure to flame retardant substances is primarily through breast milk, adults also face risks from inhaling or ingesting the toxic chemicals.
Researchers call for guidelines making human milk or human milk-based infant formula the standard of care for very low birth weight newborns, to lower NEC risks
Researchers found pasteurized human milk products did not negatively affect preterm infants' gut bacteria, suggesting it does not increase the risk of NEC, which has been linked to cow's milk infant formula products.
Researchers found clinical trials conducted to confirm infant formula nutritional claims often had a high rate of bias, if any such trials were even conducted.
Researchers say the predatory marketing tactics used to promote baby formula has led to a reduction in breastfeeding, which is more healthy for newborns.
Researchers warn of increased health risks for low birth weight and premature infants fed formula like Similac or Enfamil, instead of human milk.
There is no need to feed infant formula to babies if they can be fed human milk instead, according to pediatricians
Benefits of Breastfeeding include increased child intelligence, displayed through verbal skills and knowledge of spatial relationships
