Breast milk lowers blood pressure

Breast-fed babies grow up to have lower blood pressure than bottle-fed children, British researchers reported yesterday.

This could mean they will have lower blood pressure as adults, and thus a lower risk of heart disease, the top killer in the industrialised world, the researchers said.

For every three months a child was breast fed, his or her systolic blood pressure reading - the top number - went down 0.2 points, on average.

Breast-feeding time did not significantly affect diastolic blood pressure - the lower number.

Richard Martin, a senior lecturer in epidemiology and public health at the University of Bristol in Britain, who led the study, said: "A one per cent reduction in population systolic blood pressure levels is associated with about a 1.5 per cent reduction in all-cause mortality."

He said this was equivalent to a reduction in premature death of about 8000 deaths a year in the United States and 2000 deaths a year in Britain.

Lower blood pressure is directly linked to lower risk of heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and other related illnesses.

Breast-fed babies are also less likely to be overweight, have fewer behavioural problems and may show differences in intelligence, other studies have shown.

- REUTERS