Living close to natural green space can mitigate some of the changes in infant gut bacteria associated with formula feeding, according to new research published in the journal Environment International.
“Not every infant can be breastfed,” said Anita Kozyrskyj, pediatrics professor at the University of Alberta. “This is one of the first pieces of evidence for a nature-related intervention that could possibly help promote healthy gut microbial composition in infants who are not breastfed.”
“We consider breastfeeding to be the desirable state, and we know that a breastfed infant is at reduced likelihood of many conditions later in life—for example, developing respiratory infections and becoming overweight,” said Kozyrskyj, who is principal investigator for SyMBIOTA, a research team that studies how changes in infant gut microbiota can lead to the development of obesity, allergies and asthma in children.
The researchers examined fecal samples taken during routine home visits from 355 four-month-old infants who are part of the CHILD Cohort Study—a national study that is following nearly 3,500 Canadian children from before birth to adolescence with the goal of discovering root causes of allergies, asthma and chronic disease.
Read more at University of Alberta Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry
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