title: Breastfeeding and bone mass at the ages of 18 and 30: prospective analysis of live births from the Pelotas (Brazil) 1982 and 1993 cohorts.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effect of total breastfeeding, breastfeeding duration and type of breastfeeding at 3 months of age on bone mass at 18 and 30 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective, longitudinal study was conducted with two birth cohorts (1982 and 1993) in Pelotas, Southern Brazil. Measurements of bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD) at 18 and 30 years of age were obtained by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Information on breastfeeding was collected during the first 4 years of life. Analyses were performed by linear regression and stratified by sex.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1109 and 3226 participants provided complete information on breastfeeding in early life and bone mass at 18 and 30 years, respectively. No association between breastfeeding and bone mass was observed in women at both ages nor among men at age 30. Among men at the age of 18, BMC and BMD were higher among those breastfed regardless of duration (p=0.032 and p=0.043, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite a very weak positive effect of breastfeeding (yes/no) on BMC and BMD at age 18 in men, most findings pointed to a lack of association between breastfeeding and bone mass until young adulthood.
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ludmila Correa
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Muniz
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ana Maria Baptista
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Menezes
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria Cecília Formoso
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Assunção
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando Cesar
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Wehrmeister
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jeovany
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Martínez-Mesa
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Physical Education, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marlos Rodrigues
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Domingues
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Denise Petrucci
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Gigante
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Bernardo Lessa
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Horta
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Barros
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015519:Bone Density; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D001938:Brazil; D001942:Breast Feeding; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D011446:Prospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult