Breast milk may be best for premature babies' brain development

Babies born before their due date show better brain development when fed breast milk rather than formula, a study has found. Experts say that helping mothers to provide breast milk in the weeks after giving birth could improve long-term outcomes for children born pre-term. Premature birth has been linked to an increased possibility of problems with learning and thinking skills in later life, which are thought to be linked to alterations in brain development.
Studies have shown that pre-term birth is associated with changes in the part of the brain's structure that helps brain cells to communicate with one another, known as white matter. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh studied MRI brain scans from 47 babies from a study group known as the Theirworld Edinburgh Birth Cohort.