title: Breastfeeding and the risk of dental caries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To synthesise the current evidence for the associations between breastfeeding and dental caries, with respect to specific windows of early childhood caries risk.
  
  
  METHODS
  Systematic review, meta-analyses and narrative synthesis following searches of PubMed, CINAHL and EMBASE databases.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Sixty-three papers included. Children exposed to longer versus shorter duration of breastfeeding up to age 12 months (more versus less breastfeeding), had a reduced risk of caries (OR 0.50; 95%CI 0.25, 0.99, I(2) 86.8%). Children breastfed >12 months had an increased risk of caries when compared with children breastfed <12 months (seven studies (OR 1.99; 1.35, 2.95, I(2) 69.3%). Amongst children breastfed >12 months, those fed nocturnally or more frequently had a further increased caries risk (five studies, OR 7.14; 3.14, 16.23, I(2) 77.1%). There was a lack of studies on children aged >12 months simultaneously assessing caries risk in breastfed, bottle-fed and children not bottle or breastfed, alongside specific breastfeeding practices, consuming sweet drinks and foods, and oral hygiene practices limiting our ability to tease out the risks attributable to each.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Breastfeeding in infancy may protect against dental caries. Further research needed to understand the increased risk of caries in children breastfed after 12 months.
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tham
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bowatte
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.|Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Dharmage
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.|NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence for Chronic Respiratory Disease, School of Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, Australia.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: M X Z
authors.initials: MX
authors.lastname: Lau
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.affiliation: Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Vic., Australia.|Institute of Inflammation and Repair, University of Manchester, UK.
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Lung Health Unit, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Vic., Australia.|Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Lodge
mesh_terms: D001942:Breast Feeding; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019422:Dietary Sucrose / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009910:Oral Hygiene; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D019422:Dietary Sucrose
keywords: Breastfeeding; Child; Dental caries; Meta-analysis; Systematic review