Weight loss therapy with Peanut Butter

        

What if there was a weight loss therapy you can spoon straight out of a jar? A new study has revealed that snacking on peanut butter or peanuts up to four times a week could be the key to fighting obesity.

The 12-week study  showed that Hispanic middle school children, at high risk for being overweight or obese, reduced their Body Mass Index (BMI) when they adhered to a nutrition intervention that included a snack of peanuts, compared to those children who did not.

"Obesity is the most pressing health issue facing us today,". "We'd like to think it's preventable, but from where I sit right now, there hasn't been a lot shown to be very effective on a large scale.".

The study acknowledged that snacking is more common during the adolescent years and that the unhealthy eating habit can lead to an unhealthy weight. This is especially true if a student doesn't have access to other meals during the school day.

Instructors guided 257  schools through a program of physical activity and nutrition education. About half the students received a snack of peanuts or peanut butter three to four times a week, while the rest received the snack fewer than once a week.

Following the 12-week intervention, students spent 12 more weeks maintaining the healthy snacking habit. At the end of the period, those students who received the snack more regularly experienced a decrease in their overall BMI compared to those who did not receive the regular peanut snack.

The researchers conclude that afterschool programs and schools can replace energy dense, unhealthy snacks with peanuts to provide a healthier alternative for children (researchers in the study ensured students did not suffer from nut allergies.

The fight against obesity needs creative solutions that help people manage their weight, appetite and hunger by offering socially acceptable food choices.

Want to be Slim.

                                                                                                                                             

Staying slim or getting back in shape couldn’t have been easier, if this new study is to be believed.  the easiest strategy to keep your weight down  is to drink more water.  The study examined the dietary habits of more than 18,300 US adults and found that the majority of people who increased their consumption of plain water by one percent managed to reduce their total daily calorie intake as well as their consumption of saturated fat, sugar, sodium and cholesterol.

The findings showed that people who increased their consumption of water by one, two or three cups daily decreased their total energy intake by 68 to 205 calories daily and their sodium intake by 78 to 235 grams. "The impact of water intake on the diet was similar across race or ethnicity, education and income levels and body weight status," said researcher Ruopeng An, professor at the University of Illinois in the US.

"This finding indicates that it might be sufficient to design and deliver universal nutrition interventions and education campaigns that promote water consumption in replacement of beverages with calories in diverse population subgroups without profound concerns about message and strategy customization," An noted.

The researchers found that on average, participants consumed about 4.2 cups of plain water on a daily basis, accounting for slightly more than 30 percent of their total dietary water intake.  Their average calorie intake was 2,157 calories, including 125 calories from sugar sweetened beverages and 432 calories from discretionary foods, which are low-nutrition, calorie-dense foods such as desserts, pastries and snack mixes that add variety to but are not necessary for a healthy diet.

A small but statistically significant increase in daily consumption of water was associated with a 8.6-calorie decrease in daily energy intake, as well as slight reductions in the intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and discretionary foods along with their consumption of fat, sugar, sodium and cholesterol.

When you are thirsty your first choice should be a glass of water. Moreover, in most cases, the starting point for your hunger pangs is probably low levels of electrolyte in your body. To control voracious hunger, first reach out for a glass of water and then wait for five minutes before you decide to eat something. Drinking water fills up the space and prevents overeating.

This is not the first time that science has shown the benefits of drinking more water.  In 2014 found that drinking 500ml of water half-an-hour before eating the three main meals of the day may help you lose weight. It was then concluded that drinking more water can boost your metabolism, flush out toxins and act as an appetite suppressant which is why it is important to drink before meals.

"Water is a nutrient that your body needs. It maintains the balance of your bodily fluids, digestive functions and helps in the maintenance of your body temperature. You should drink about 8 to 10 glasses of water everyday to keep your body hydrated. So, drink up!

Pyramid healing

In today’s world stress and tension rule pretty much the entire universe. These issues are caused due to the lack of positivity and direction in the lives of individuals. Sleeping pills and muscle relaxants have made their way into the homes of millions as an easy escape from psychological problems. But there is a better alternative; your subconscious mind, which is not as mysterious or as inaccessible as you might think. It is only our thought process that makes us calm or agitated.

  


To deal with all these problems, what we have to do is to change the turbulent behaviour into peaceful behaviour through Pyramid therapy which is done under a geometrical shaped structure that is formed by four equilateral triangles of the same size on a square base in such a manner that it forms an apex on that square base.

It is one of the most powerful tools to heal your chakras and harmonise your mind, body and soul. The pyramid’s power is considered to have supernatural or paranormal properties. This power is said to preserve food, maintain the sharpness of razor blades, improve health, trigger sexual urges and cause other dramatic effects.

The concept of pyramidology is said to have originated from many parts of the world but Egypt is on the top when it comes to talking about the subject indepth and the mystery surrounding it.
Now coming back to chakras that also mean the wheels of light in Sanskrit. The chakras are the seven power points in the human body that circulate energy or the life force also known as prana. They are vertically aligned in the center of the body close to the spine. If the chakras are unbalanced — not properly aligned or blocked — it can affect physical and mental health. The spiritual development is also connected with the good health of the chakra.

Pyramid has a special property to deflect any type of cosmic radiations that fall on its apex downwards through its base line at the bottom where this deflected cosmic radiation, with the help of magnetic field of Earth’s gravitational force, create a new and powerful bio-energy field.
Secondly as pyramid deflects all radiations that fall on its apex through its bottom from all of its four sides, the inner center of the pyramid remains unaffected and safe, and surrounded by a powerful bio-energy field on all sides, which helps to preserve the things and objects kept in the pyramid for a long time.

Pyramids have a strong ionisation effect within the body. Negative ions enhance the oxygen intake of the human body and through that, strengthen well-being. Meditating under pyramid or just taking a nap under a pyramid helps to synchronise the seven chakras of the body.

Many people experience feelings ranging from calmness to extreme euphoria during their meditation sessions inside the pyramids. Most people, who have experimented with pyramid meditation, describe themselves as experiencing a total relaxation of their body, followed by the shutting out of unnecessary external stimuli and irrelevant thoughts and finally achieving an altered state of consciousness which allows them to concentrate on deeper inner levels.

sleep mistakes you’re probably making after 9pm

 

 Your ability to fall asleep at a reasonable time, stay asleep and wake up feeling well-rested the following morning depends on the steps you take hours before your head hits the pillow. And many of them go beyond basic sleep hygiene and focus more on daily habits that are surprisingly easy to rectify. Struggling with sleep despite your best efforts? These nine behaviours might be to blame if they're a part of your evening routine after 9pm.

- You're occasionally eating a huge dinner Inconsistency when it comes to evening meals can wreak havoc on your sleep. It's okay to eat an early or late dinner, so long as you aim at eating at the same time every night. As for quantity, sticking with bigger breakfasts and smaller dinners has been shown to stabilise blood sugar, while big meals that include more fatty foods, delicious as they may be, take longer to digest and keep the body awake. If your sleep is suffering, keep dinner on the lighter, healthier side.

 
You're checking your work email Once you're finally home from office and preparing to unwind, the
last thing you should do is reach for your smartphone to check and see if your boss sent you an urgent, 'Reply ASAP' email. If it's really that urgent, they'll call. Otherwise, take a deep breath and meditate on the fact that any residual work from today can, in fact, wait until the following day. The evening is time set aside for you. A recent study found that even push notifications are just as distracting as actively seeking out office-related messages, so go ahead and silence your phone, too, so you can focus on your down time.

- You're ordering a few more cocktails This attempt to relax after a stressful day is actually preventing you from sleeping soundly later. While a cocktail or two may seem to make you more sleepy and help you drift off faster, the quality of your sleep suffers and you often wake up feeling the consequences the following morning. If you're going to indulge in alcohol, drink a glass of water for every alcoholic beverage you consume and close that tab three hours before you plan to call it night.

- You're bickering with a loved one It's a cliche because it's true! Going to bed angry doesn't offer much in the way of sound sleep, especially if you have Type A tendencies. Overthinkers struggle with letting go of stressful thoughts at all times of the day, but in the evening, the habit of ruminating can keep you mentally alert even when your body is physically sending you 'time for bed' signals. It's often best to address the things that are irritating you and then work together with the other person to let them go. It'll make your personal relationships stronger and your morning mood sweeter.

- You want to go on a movie watching binge Stop right there. You've experienced this deep, dark rabbit hole one too many times before and know very well what is about to happen. It doesn't matter if you're 'catching up' on the latest seasons of one of your favourite series or if you're simply bored and looking to explore a new one. You get hooked, and 30 minutes becomes three hours before you even blink. All that screen time is scientifically proven to affect your body's production of melatonin - the hormone produce in your body to tell you that it's time to go to bed. The sooner you shut down all electronic devices that are in your bedroom, the sooner you'll drift off into dreamland. Better still, try not having any such devices in your bedroom to avoid the temptation.

- You're indulging in that after-dinner cappuccino Of course it tastes wonderful, but this caffeinated beverage from heaven is best enjoyed earlier in the day - before 2 pm if possible. While the human body doesn't metabolise caffeine in one, uniform way, most available research confirms that if you call it quits with the stimulant by mid-afternoon, it shouldn't affect the quality of your sleep later that evening. Caffeine is another compound that counters the body's natural production of melatonin, so if you're looking to increase your Z's, stick to water or herbal tea in the evening.

Rap music may trigger early sex in teens

 
Listening to rap music frequently can lead to having early sex in teenagers, warn researchers, adding that rap music is more likely to have sexually explicit messages than other music genres.

According to researchers from the University of Texas' health science center at Houston (UTHealth), when middle school youth listen to rap music for three or more hours each day, they are more likely to believe that their peers are having sex and subsequently more likely to initiate sex by ninth grade.

"Rap music influences your beliefs about what you think your peers are doing. It's a norming agent that tells you that certain things are ok, like drinking alcohol or having sex. It gives you the idea that everyone is doing it," said Kimberly Johnson-Baker, lead author and faculty associate at UTHealth's school of public health.

"The more you're listening to it, the more you're conforming, so you could see how it would set up a belief about what your peers are doing," Johnson-Baker added.

In an analysis of 443 youth enrolled in a longitudinal evaluation study in Houston, middle school students were surveyed about how often they listened to rap music and whether they believed their peers were having sex.

At follow up in ninth grade, the same youth were surveyed about whether they had initiated sex.

Youth who listened to rap music three hours or more each day in seventh grade were 2.6 times more likely to report having had sex two years later.

However, researchers found that the association was partially mediated by perceived peer sexual behaviour because youth who believed their peers were having sex were 2.5 times more likely to initiate sex, regardless of the additional factors.

Johnson-Baker emphasised that when adolescents hear sexually explicit messages in a song, they are looking to their friends to confirm whether such behaviour is happening around them.

If their friends confirm it, youth are more likely to initiate sex. But if friends are being critical of the themes in the music, they may be convinced that it's not happening around them.

"Perceived peer sex is the most powerful predictor of future sex and addressing perceived peer behaviour with youth is really important," Johnson-Baker noted in a paper published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

Rap music and forms of progressive hip-hop education can be used as tools to deconstruct sexually explicit messages adolescents receive.

"Parents can play a more proactive role by having open conversations with their kids regarding the themes in rap music while setting clear expectations for responsible sexual and dating behaviour,"

Want to live longer? Think positively!

Certain psychological factors such as quick thinking and feeling healthy may be very strong predictors of how long we will live, a new study has found. Researchers from  examined 29 years' worth of data collected from 6,203 adults who ranged in age from 41 to 96 years old when they began the study.
 
Aggregating data from 15 different tasks, researchers looked at participants' cognitive performance across five domains of ability - crystallised intelligence, fluid intelligence, verbal memory, visual memory, and processing speed. The tasks - all well-established measures of cognitive ability - were administered up to four times over a 12-year period, allowing researchers to assess participants' baseline performance and change in performance over time for each domain
.
To gauge participants' health, researchers used the Cornell Medical Index, a measure that includes detailed checklists of a total of 195 pathological symptoms related to physical and psychological disorders. Finally, the researchers looked at participants' subjective reports of various lifestyle factors, including perceived health, number of prescribed medicines, sleep patterns, hobbies, leisure activities, and social interactions. Using two types of statistical analysis, researchers were able to assess the relative importance of a total of 65 different variables in predicting participants' mortality risk.

The results showed subjective health and mental processing speed to be two of the strongest predictors - that is, better perceived health and smaller decreases in processing speed over time were associated with reduced mortality risk.

Being a woman was also associated with reduced mortality risk, while years of smoking tobacco was linked with an increased risk of early death. "Our study shows that two psychological variables, lower self-rated health and age-related decrements in processing speed, appear to be especially important indicators of elevated mortality risk in middle-age and older adults,"."This information may facilitate diagnostic accuracy and timely interventions,".

The findings may provide useful insights to health professionals, who need better methods for identifying individuals at risk of early death, researchers said.

Dating sites may be spreading HIV says study

Dating websites and apps may be behind the growing number of newly HIV infected men in the US, a new study has said, cautioning people about the risks of sexual encounters arranged online.
More than 60% of men in the US state of Rhode Island who had sex with men and were diagnosed with HIV in 2013 reported meeting their sexual partners online in the preceding year, said the study that interviewed 70 of the state's 74 newly diagnosed people.

In 2013, 74 Rhode Island residents were newly diagnosed with HIV. Three in five were gay, bisexual, or others. And of the 43 people, 22 told researchers they believed a man they met online gave them the virus.
"This is a statewide study that included nearly all individuals newly diagnosed with HIV across an entire state."This is one of the first studies to document how common internet site use is among people newly diagnosed with HIV and highlights important opportunities to partner with hookup sites to advance public health,".
Many of the individuals newly diagnosed in Rhode Island were diagnosed late in the course of their infection, the study showed. Researchers said this suggested that they may have been living with HIV for a long time, and potentially unknowingly transmitting HIV to other people, including partners they met online.
Companies that produce online dating and apps should partner with public health groups, to share public health messages about the risks of sexual encounters arranged online, researchers said. For instance, sites and apps could provide affordable advertising access to help prevent infection in communities that are most impacted by HIV,

Just walking around can help you live longer

Even if you do not sweat it out in the gym very morning, swapping out just a few minutes of sedentary time with some sort of movement can help you live longer, suggests new research.

In the study involving over 3,000 people aged 50 to 79, the researchers found that the least active people were five times more likely to die during the study period than the most active people and three times more likely than those in the middle range for activity.

“You needn’t break a sweat to experience the reduced likelihood of mortality,” said University of Pennsylvania study lead author Ezra Fishman. “Activity doesn’t have to be especially vigorous to be beneficial. That’s the public health message,” Fishman noted.

The findings were published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. For the study, the participants wore ultra-sensitive activity trackers, called accelerometers, for seven days, generating data compiled by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For these same people, the agency then tracked mortality for the next eight years.

“When we compare people who exercise the same amount, those who sit less and move around more tend to live longer,” Fishman said. “The folks who were walking around, washing the dishes, sweeping the floor tended to live longer than the people who were sitting at a desk”, Fishman added.

Though the scientists did not discover any magic threshold for the amount a person needs to move to improve mortality, they did learn that even adding just 10 minutes per day of light activity could make a difference. Replacing 30 minutes of sedentary time with light or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity produced even better results. “When it comes to physical activity, ‘more’ is better than less, and anything is better than nothing,”

Swapping out just a few minutes of sedentary time with some sort of movement, such as walking around or doing dishes, is associated with a reduced mortality risk, a new study has claimed.

Researchers looked at data from about 3,000 people aged 50 to 79 who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

For the study, subjects wore ultra-sensitive activity trackers, called accelerometers, for s ..

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Not just alcohol, but salt too damages your liver

Too much of salt can damage liver
High intake of salt not only increases the blood pressure but can also damage liver in adults, a US study warns. When researchers administered adult mice with high-salt diet, they noticed significant changes in their liver such as decrease in cell proliferation, change in the shape of cells and early death of cells. All these lead to liver fibrosis, a condition that leads to excessive accumulation of scar tissue and gradually lead to live failure. Salt helps regulate water movement within the body and carry out the nerve impulses.
 

Gamers using thin avatars are more likely to be physically active
Gamers who use thin avatars in games are more likely to do more physical activity compared to those using obese avatars, a University of California study shows. The participants were randomly assigned to a normal weight or obese avatar as well as normal weight or obese opponent in a tennis game. It was found that participants, even with higher BMI (body mass index), showed increased physical activity when they used thin avatars compared to those using obese avatars. Researchers feel it has real-world implications and these video game avatars can be used to encourage people to increase physical activity.

Keeping mind active can delay Alzheimer’s
Keeping the mind active can delay Alzheimer’s disease even though it can’t cure it, a new study suggests. Researchers from Mayo Clinic found that people who are more mentally active and carry APOE4 (a gene linked to Alzheimer’s) show lower deposition of amyloid protein in the middle age. Increased deposition of this protein in brain tissue leads to Alzheimer’s disease. “The takeaway message from the research is that keeping your mind active is very important in delaying symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease,” said lead author Prashanthi Vemuri.

Sharing videos can empower people with intellectual disabilities
Recording and sharing videos of people with intellectual disabilities on YouTube can help encourage people with similar condition, a Canadian study suggests. Researchers from Concordia University helped eight intellectually disabled people write and direct short videos highlighting important aspects of their lives. These videos were then shared with a focus group to get their feedback before it was uploaded on YouTube. When the videos were shown to people with similar intellectual disabilities, they praised it and felt inspired by the success of their peers.

Short-term memory linked to distraction
People with short-term memory are more likely to get distracted while driving and doing other high pressure activities, claims a US study. Researchers from Simon Fraser University used electroencephalogram (EEG) to study memory and distraction in people. They found that people who did well in memory tests handled distractions better compared to those who didn’t perform well and couldn’t suppress distractions in time. Distraction is a leading cause of injury and even death while driving. 

These seven super foods are your skin's best friends!

 

 

Having good, healthy skin in these times of increasing pollution levels should be considered an achievement, really.
Every morning is all about how someone found a new zit on their face, or never-there-before pigmentation, dark spots, acne, blackheads, etc.
 
Rushing to the nearest store and blowing your hard-earned money on beauty creams and face washes to get rid of the problem skin is the first thing on the list in these situations.
But why do that when you could be saving time by resisting the problem in the first place?


 









 How? Eating well, that's how! Instead of buying expensive creams and skin care treatments, stock up your kitchen with the seven super foods that will provide you with all the nutrients required to get that beautiful, glowing skin that youve always wanted.

Salmon is known to be a source rich in the highest amount of essential Omega-3 fatty acids, that are responsible for the maintenance of cell membranes. They help in reducing skin pores, fine lines and wrinkles and also contribute in protecting the skin from harmful rays of the sun.

These berries are full to the brim with antioxidants and fight against free radical damage to the skin. Rich in Vitamin C, strawberries help fight signs of ageing by reducing wrinkles and providing moisture to the skin.

Considered one of the healthiest foods, avocados are a rich source of Vitamin E. Adding this super food to your diet, will in turn add that beautiful glow to your skin. A small tip: When combined with foods rich in vitamin C, vitamin E can also reverse the signs of aging.

Let's talk about beverages for a change. The antioxidant powers of green tea are not unheard of. Green tea not only keeps you physically fit, but the polyphenols in it help fight of free radical damage and reduce signs of aging.

Turkey meat, especially the dark part is an amazing source of zinc. Zinc helps maintain collagen levels and protects skin cells from damage.

Although brown rice can't prevent signs of aging, they can certainly delay the process. Brown rice helps maintain the firmness and elasticity of your skin. This is because it is full of Selenium.

Rich in beta-carotene, carrots work their wonder on the skin when beta-carotene is converted to vitamin A in the body. This aids in growth and repair of skin cells.   

Eating excess fish during pregnancy exposes baby to obesity

     

Expecting mothers, take note. Women who ate more than the recommended three servings of fish per week while pregnant gave birth to children at a higher risk of obesity than expectant moms who ate less, says a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Paediatrics found an association between higher fish intake and the likelihood of rapid growth and obesity in offspring, but researchers cautioned that they had not proven any cause and effect.
Pregnant women are often concerned about how much fish to consume, since it can be good for the developing brain of the foetus but also contains pollutants such as mercury which can be harmful. Researchers said more work needs to be done, and that for now it would be “speculative” to hypothesise that “fish-associated contaminant exposure may play a role in the observed associations.”


The study, led by Leda Chatzi, a doctor at the University of Crete, analysed data from more than 26,000 pregnant women and their children in European and US studies. The study relied on women’s reports of how much fish they consumed weekly while pregnant, and followed their children until the age of six to uncover links between maternal fish intake and childhood growth.
The amount of fish women ate varied from an average of 0.5 times per week in Belgium to 4.45 times per week in Spain. “High fish intake was eating fish more than three times per week,” said the study.
Watch: What kind of fish should be avoided during pregnancy?
“Women who ate fish more than three times per week when they were pregnant gave birth to children with higher BMI values at two, four and six years of age compared with women who ate fish less,” said the study. “High maternal fish intake during pregnancy also was associated with an increased risk of rapid growth from birth to two years and with an increased risk of overweight/obesity for children at ages four and six years compared with maternal fish intake while pregnant of once a week or less.”


The effect of excessive of fish intake was greater in girls than boys. The study did not delve into what kinds of fish the women ate, nor did it study levels of contaminants like methyl mercury.
The takeaway message, said study authors, was that pregnant women should follow recommended guidelines for fish intake and not exceed three servings per week.

Don’t skip breakfast if you want to remain active

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Eating breakfast may not only make people lose weight, but can also make them more physically active and reduce food intake later in the day, reveals a study.

According to the team, increasing activity can improve health in sedentary people, making them more active by controlling their blood sugar levels.

“Despite many people offering opinions about whether or not you should eat breakfast, to date, there has been a lack of rigorous scientific evidence showing how, or whether, breakfast might cause changes in our health,” said lead researcher James Betts from the University of Bath in Britain.

The results highlight some of these impacts, but “how important” breakfast is still really depends on the individual and their own personal goals, Betts added.

The team wanted to study the possible links between breakfast, body weight and health.

In the study, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition , researchers split obese individuals aged 21 to 60 into two groups: “fasting” and “breakfasting”, measuring several outcomes during a six-week period.

The “breakfasting” group was asked to eat at least 700 calories by 11 a.m., which the first half of the group consumed within at least two hours of waking up.

The fasting group was allowed only water until noon.

“For example, if weight loss is the key, there is little to suggest that just having breakfast or skipping it will matter. However, based on other markers of a healthy lifestyle, like being more active or controlling blood sugar levels, there is evidence that breakfast may help,” Betts noted.

It is important to bear in mind that not everybody responds in the same way to breakfast, and that not all breakfasts are equal.

“The effects of a sugary cereal, compared to a high-protein breakfast, are likely to be quite different,” said Enhad Chowdhury, another researcher.

Sleeping with a baby boosts breast-feeding

 

  

New mothers who bring their babies into their bed are more likely to carry on breastfeeding for longer, a new study found.

But those who go to the baby’s cot are more likely to stop breastfeeding before six months.

Breast milk is the healthiest way to feed a baby and the NHS recommends exclusive breastfeeding for around the first six months.

Thereafter giving the baby breast milk alongside other food help the babies continue to grow and develop healthily.

It said breastfed babies have less chance of diarrhoea and vomiting, fewer chest and ear infections, less likelihood of becoming obese and therefore developing type 2 diabetes and other obesity-related illnesses later in life.

Breast milk is the healthiest way to feed a baby and the NHS recommend exclusive breastfeeding for around the first six months 

They have fewer hospital visits and the longer breastfeed, the longer the protection lasts and the greater the benefits.

The Durham University study found those mothers who bed shared with their infant for at least an hour a week were more likely to carry on breast feeding past six months.

And those who expressed a desire to breast feed during pregnancy were more likely to bed share too.

Professor Helen Ball of the Parent-Infant Sleep Lab in the, Department of Anthropology said: “”We previously found that mothers who bed-share were twice as likely to breastfeed their baby for at least six months than mothers who began breastfeeding but didn’t bed-share.

“In this paper we show that mothers with the strongest intent to breastfeed are the ones who sleep with their babies the most.

“These mothers therefore need information on how to make bed-sharing while breastfeeding as safe as possible.

New mothers who bring their babies into their bed are more likely to carry on breastfeeding for longer, a new study found

“Women with strong motivation to breastfeed frequently bed-share.

“Given the complex relationship between bed-sharing and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) appropriate guidance balancing risk minimisation with support for breastfeeding mothers is crucial.”

The study published in Acta Paediatrica followed 678 women recruited at mid-pregnancy.

They were asked whether recommendations to avoid bed-sharing due to concerns such as SIDS may stop them from achieving their breastfeeding goals

The women provided weekly snapshots of breastfeeding and bed-sharing behaviour for 26 weeks following birth.

Bed-sharing at home was defined for at least one hour per week.

It found 299 women or 44 per cent “rarely” or “never” bed-shared, 192 or 28 per cent did so “intermittently” and 187 or 28 per cent did so “often.”

These three groups did not differ significantly in marital status, income, infant gestational age, maternal age or delivery mode.

Significantly more participants who bed-shared “often” reported strong prenatal breastfeeding intent at 70 per cent compared to 57 per cent and 56 per cent of women in the “intermittent” and “rare” bed-share groups.

They also attached high prenatal importance to breastfeeding at 95 per cent compared to 87 per cent and 82 per cent respectively.

Significantly more women who bed-shared frequently were breastfeeding at six months than those who intermittently or rarely bed-shared.