The range of breastfeeding benefits continue to mount up as shown in the online journal, “Pediatrics,” as conducted by a team of researchers from Australia. These include the boost in academic achievement in both boys and girls, but more significantly in boys.An associate professor at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, Dr. Weny Oddy, revealed that the long-chain fatty acids present in breast milk buoy up brain development of infants that are breastfed for at least 6 months.

Oddy said evidence also suggests that breastfeeding improves the relationship between mother and child, helping bonding, and also indirectly, cognitive growth. And since males are “known to be more vulnerable to adversity during critical periods of development than females, therefore the neuro-protective effect of estrodiols, the female hormones, in breast milk, would have greater benefits for boys," she explained.

The study was conducted by researchers from the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Perth, the Curtin Health Renovation Research Institute, Centre for Developmental Health, and the National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University of Technology, also in Perth.

Also, researchers learned that those children that have been breastfed for at least six months when they were babies grew to be more excellent academically when they reached the age of ten. This is especially true for boys. A group of researchers from The Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Perth, the Curtin Health Renovation Research Institute, Centre for Developmental Health, and the National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University of Technology published new findings on an online journal of Pediatrics on December 20. The co-author and associate professor at the telethon Institute for Child Health Research, Dr. Wendy Oddy, told the media that the study they have done is a good contribution in support to the claim that breastfeeding is beneficial in the long run.

According to Oddy, there are many ways in which breastfeeding can boost academic achievement. First is that breastfeed milk has a lot of essential nutrients in supporting the development of the brain specifically in terms of long-chain fatty acids.

Males in particular are more prone to critical problems during the development as compared to females. With this being said, the neuro-protective effects of estrodiols will be very beneficial for boys.

Breastfeeding also improves the relationship of the mother and child, helping the child during cognitive development. In addition, it also helps in developing language skills in children because of the time the mother spends to the child when breastfeeding.Oddy and her group conclude that breastfeeding for a baby is good especially if done for 6 months or longer. This will help children during their academic years. However, the effect of breastfeeding is different according to gender. It is more effective among males.