New research suggests that babies who are fed on demand have higher IQs and perform better on standardized tests than their peers who were fed on a schedule. The feeding patterns of over 10,000 babies were studied by researchers from Essex and Oxford Universities. They looked at breastfed babies and bottle fed babies and found that babies who were on a regimented feeding schedule were not as intelligent as their peers who were fed when they were hungry.
The research is still in it’s infancy and it is too early to give a definitive answer regarding a causal link between IQ and infant feeding patterns. Researchers are, however, confident about their findings.
“This research is based on large-scale data and we are confident that there is a very low risk that the results arose by chance.”-Dr Iacovou
The study also concluded that mothers who fed their babies on a schedule found parenting more enjoyable than their fed-on-demand counterparts. The reason? They were able to get more sleep.
Carmen Calvo
www.placentabenefits.info/carmencalvo
