Why Breastfed Babies are Smarter-it's not the Milk, it's the Mama!

An article in the Deseret News Mormon Times, Family section from March 23rd 2014 discusses a recent study on why Breastfed Babies are statistically more likely to be reading ready by age 4. The study concluded that it had nothing to do with anything in the breast milk itself, but it does have something to do with who it is that chooses to breastfeed. 
 

Daughter in law Sara, a dedicated breastfeeding mom with baby number four

The conclusions were drawn from national data collected between 2001-2007 of 7,000 kids followed from birth to 5 years of age. Interactions between mothers and children were observed and videotaped. What they found was that the mothers choosing breastfeeding were more likely to interact with their children in ways that enhanced their intellectual development. 
 

Daughter Elizabeth, another dedicated breastfeeding mom with her nursing toddler

It turns out that mothers who breastfed 3 months and beyond tended to be better educated and more likely to read to their children daily. It seems that these moms were more likely to research best practices for raising children which convinced them to breastfeed for extended periods and helped them learn good parenting skills. Significantly, less educated breastfeeding moms did not have children with academic advancements.
The better educated breastfeeding mothers observed were more tuned in to their children's emotional cues. The researchers found that "being attentive to a child's emotional cues and reading consistently with the child could make a difference of 2-3 months in brain development in children by age 4 when they are entering preschool."  They also point out that better educated mothers were more informed parents and had fewer obstacles to the type of parenting that produced the positive results. The article didn't discuss at all why better educated non-breastfeeding moms didn't also have children with advanced readiness. I wonder if the breastfeeding moms were with their children for greater amounts of time and had more opportunities to interact effectively with them. It is easier for bottle fed babies to be cared for by others.
 

Sara with her fifth breastfed baby, reads with her oldest-a book he made at school

One expert reviewer of the study said that the children in the study who were breastfed for at least 6 months did better than others because they also "experienced the most optimal parenting practices" That's why they were reading-ready at 4 years she said. 

The connection between reading to children and optimal reading readiness  is not a new discovery. Years ago I read conclusions of research that listed several factors in the home that give children the best start to becoming good readers. I used to promote these factors in my parent newsletters when I taught preschool.

The critical behaviors are:
1. Read daily to children. (Nothing wrong with reading several times daily!)
2. Have lots of books available for children in the home. I love public libraries.

3. Read a lot yourself so children see you reading.

My son and his wife reading at a big family gathering while the children play in the spray and play and others of us visit with each other

In the study the observations of mothers reading to children who turned out to be be developmentally advanced showed that they were following their babies' cues as they read, lingering where the baby/child showed interest and interacting with the child about the book rather than plowing through it just reading out loud. "The responsive, supportive moms reacted to (the child's) gestures and expressions and that turned out to be very important to cognitive development."

The really good news about this is that anyone can read to children and interact responsively in the process. So bottle feeding moms, dads, grandparents, caregivers, even older siblings can do the same thing if they are aware of how to do it and why. Higher education isn't a prerequisite either. Any motivated parent, relative or care-giver can educate themselves from multiple sources and be the same kind of engaged and savvy nurturer as the well educated breastfeeding mothers identified in this study. 

Interestingly, the study indicates this interactive daily reading should start by nine months of age, so don't wait until they are walking and talking to start reading to them every day!