¹Administration of Food and Nutrition, Ministry of Health, Sulaibikhat, Kuwait

Correspondence: Dr N Al-Qaoud, Administration of Food and Nutrition, Ministry of Health, PO Box 42432, Sulaibikhat, Kuwait. E-mail: alqaoudnawal@yahoo.com

Received 3 June 2008; Accepted 15 January 2009; Published online 1 April 2009.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine whether breastfeeding and its duration are associated with a reduced risk of overweight and obesity among 2291 Kuwaiti pre-school children. No significant association of breastfeeding or its duration was found with either overweight or with obesity after adjusting for the effects of confounders. Girls were at 32% higher risk of becoming obese than were boys. Children of 4 and 5 years were nearly three times at higher risk of overweight or obese than a child of less than 4 years. Children with higher birth weight had double the risk of obesity than a child of normal birth weight. Maternal obesity was a strong predictor of obesity in their children. A child with an obese mother was nearly twice at higher risk of being overweight and thrice at higher risk of being obese compared with a child born to a mother of normal weight.