A team of researchers on Friday said that infants who were exclusively fed breast milk during their hospitalisation at birth were 22 per cent less likely to develop asthma in early childhood.

Although the birth hospitalisation lasts only a few days, it sets a critical foundation for establishing breastfeeding, which can influence health outcomes like childhood asthma, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics ‘2024 National Conference and Exhibition’ in Orlando, Florida.