On Nov 10, 7:02 pm, Sarah Vaughan wrote:
Banty wrote:
I've always thought that being smart to the degree of ignoring social
conventions had more to do with that. Like the math whiz who works as a school
custodian, submitting papers to mathematical journals (may be apocryphal story
though ...).

Heh - I thought that was the plot of 'Good Will Hunting'? ;-)

Anyway, it would probably help if I gave the context here - the debate
was about the studies showing a correlation between breastfeeding and
increased IQ, and - if that association is real and not due to a
confounder - what it means in practice. I must say I was never terribly
impressed by the kind of numbers I was hearing - in the studies being
discussed, the average difference was seven IQ points, which just didn't
really sound like that much in practice to me. But the question came
up, and it got me wondering whether I was right about that or not.

Here is a report on a study saying that breastfeeding does not boost
IQ.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5398738.stm
Breast milk 'does not boost IQ'

Breastfed babies are smarter because their mothers are clever in the
first place, not because of any advantage of breastfeeding itself, a
study suggests. Researchers found breastfeeding mothers tended to be
more intelligent, more highly educated, and likely to provide a more
stimulating home environment.

However, they stressed that there were still many advantages to
breastfeeding.

The British Medical Journal study was carried out by the Medical
Research Council and University of Edinburgh.

Lead researcher Geoff Der said: "This question has been debated ever
since a link between the two [high IQ and breastfeeding] was first
discovered in 1929.

"Breastfed children do tend to score higher on intelligence tests, but
they also tend to come from more advantaged backgrounds."

The researchers analysed data from more than 5,000 children and 3,000
mothers in the US.

They found that mothers who breastfed tended to be more intelligent,
and when this fact was taken into account, most of the relationship
between breastfeeding and the child's intelligence disappeared.

The rest was accounted for by other aspects of the family background.

Sibling comparison

The researchers also looked at families where one child was breastfed
and another was not.

This confirmed the earlier results - the breastfed child was no more
intelligent than his or her sibling.

Putting the results together with other studies that measured the
mother's IQ confirmed this pattern.

Mr Der said: "This research shows that intelligence is determined by
factors other than breastfeeding.

"But breastfeeding has many benefits for both mother and child. It's
definitely the smart thing to do."

Breastfeeding has been linked to a range of health benefits.

Just one day of breastfeeding is thought to be enough to stabilise a
baby's blood sugar levels, and provide natural antibodies against
disease.

Breastfed babies have been shown to be less prone to diarrhoea,
vomiting, and respiratory infections. Breastfeeding may also have a
long impact on reducing blood pressure and obesity.

The World Health Organization recommends that babies should be
breastfed for at least the first two years.

The UK has one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Europe - almost a
third of women in England and Wales never try to breastfeed, compared
with just 2% in Sweden.

Low rates

Rosie Dodds, of the National Childbirth Trust, said the study was not
conclusive.

She said a study in the Philippines - where, unlike the West, poorer
women are more likely to breastfeed - showed that breastfed children
were likely to be more intelligent.

However, she added: "Women do not breastfeed because of any benefit to
their baby, they do it because it feels like the natural thing to do.

"It is important that women make a decision that is right for them,
and their family, and they should not be pressurised either way, but
we would like to see more support for women who do decide they want to
breastfeed."

The Department of Health said breastfeeding was the best form of
nutrition for infants.

"We know that the composition of breast milk meets the individual
needs of each baby and that, as a result, breastfeeding can make a
major contribution to public health."