Researchers found that among 44 babies with a particular autism “risk” gene, those who were breast-fed longer spent more time looking at images of “happy” eyes and shied away from “angry” eyes.

 

The findings, published online Sept. 14 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that breast-feeding might enhance social development in certain at-risk infants.

 

However, the authors and other experts stressed that the study offers no evidence that breast-feeding ultimately affects a child’s odds of developing autism, or that it lessens the severity of autism symptoms. 

 

Long-term studies are “absolutely required” to answer those questions, said lead researcher Kathleen Krol, of the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, in Leipzig, Germany. 

 

 

“It could be just as likely that the emotional biases we found in 7-month-old infants will diminish later in life and have little impact on the future behavior of the child,” Krol said.

 

Plus, eye recognition tests are not an established way to gauge autism risk, said Dr. Ruth Milanaik, director of the neonatal neurodevelopmental follow-up program at Cohen Children’s Medical Center, in New Hyde Park, N.Y.  Milanaik, who was not involved in the study, said it was well done. But she agreed that no conclusions can be drawn without long-term research. 

 

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in 68 U.S. children has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder -- a group of developmental disabilities that affect a person’s ability to communicate and interact socially. 

 

The severity ranges widely: Some kids speak little or not at all, and focus obsessively on only a few interests; others have relatively mild problems with socializing and subtler communication -- such as “reading” other people’s facial expressions and body language.

 

By Daily Trust