SynthesisPloS one2017
Breastfeeding effects on DNA methylation in the offspring: A systematic literature review.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 28 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 69 citations in OpenAlex.
- Breastfeeding association with DNA methylation in the pregnancy and childhood epigenetics (PACE) consortium.Clinical epigenetics · 2026Pooled it
- Animal and plant protein intake during infancy and childhood DNA methylation: a meta-analysis in the NutriPROGRAM consortium.Epigenetics · 2024Pooled it
- Associations between body size, nutrition and socioeconomic position in early life and the epigenome: A systematic review.PloS one · 2018Pooled it
- Epigenome-Wide Association of Infant Feeding and Changes in DNA Methylation from Birth to 10 Years.Nutrients · 2020Trial
- Breastfeeding in Infancy and Adult Health: A Narrative Review.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Infant Feeding Practices Among Indigenous Women in Northwest Territories, Canada: Results From the Maternal and Infant Health Project.Food science & nutrition · 2025Article
- Human breast milk and its impact on inflammatory bowel disease.Journal of smooth muscle research = Nihon Heikatsukin Gakkai kikanshi · 2025Review
- Microbiota-immune-brain interactions: A new vision in the understanding of periodontal health and disease.Periodontology 2000 · 2024Review
- Can Breastfeeding Prevent Long-Term Overweight and Obesity in Children? A Population-Based Cohort Study.Nutrients · 2024Article
- Breastfeeding: science and knowledge in pediatric obesity prevention.Frontiers in medicine · 2024Article
- Maternal outcomes related to Genetic and epigenetic Variation in the oxytocin system: A scoping review.Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology · 2023Article
- An integrative framework and recommendations for the study of DNA methylation in the context of race and ethnicity.Discover social science and health · 2023Review
- Article
- Breastfeeding and Allergy Effect Modified by Genetic, Environmental, Dietary, and Immunological Factors.Nutrients · 2022Review
- Bioactive compounds in mothers milk affecting offspring outcomes: A narrative review.Pediatric obesity · 2022Review
- Health of the Newborn and Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review.Revista brasileira de ginecologia e obstetricia : revista da Federacao Brasileira das Sociedades de Ginecologia e Obstetricia · 2022Review
- The metabolic conditioning of obesity: A review of the pathogenesis of obesity and the epigenetic pathways that "program" obesity from conception.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2022Review
- Review
- Perinatal and Early-Life Nutrition, Epigenetics, and Allergy.Nutrients · 2021Review
- Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBreastfeeding benefits both infants and mothers. Recent research shows long-term health and human capital benefits among individuals who were breastfed. Epigenetic mechanisms have been suggested as potential mediators of the effects of early-life exposures on later health outcomes. We reviewed the literature on the potential effects of breastfeeding on DNA methylation.
methodsStudies reporting original results and evaluating DNA methylation differences according to breastfeeding/breast milk groups (e.g., ever vs. never comparisons, different categories of breastfeeding duration, etc) were eligible. Six databases were searched simultaneously using Ovid, and the resulting studies were evaluated independently by two reviewers.
resultsSeven eligible studies were identified. Five were conducted in humans. Studies were heterogeneous regarding sample selection, age, target methylation regions, methylation measurement and breastfeeding categorisation. Collectively, the studies suggest that breastfeeding might be negatively associated with promoter methylation of LEP (which encodes an anorexigenic hormone), CDKN2A (involved in tumour suppression) and Slc2a4 genes (which encodes an insulin-related glucose transporter) and positively with promoter methylation of the Nyp (which encodes an orexigenic neuropeptide) gene, as well as influence global methylation patterns and modulate epigenetic effects of some genetic variants.
conclusionsThe findings from our systematic review are far from conclusive due to the small number of studies and their inherent limitations. Further studies are required to understand the actual potential role of epigenetics in the associations of breastfeeding with later health outcomes. Suggestions for future investigations, focusing on epigenome-wide association studies, are provided.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.