The study, published on the Lancet Global Health journal, was carried out on almost 6,000 children, starting in 1982. At 30 years of age, the IQ, education and current income of the participants was recorded.
Children who were breastfed for over a year proved to have higher IQ scores by up to four points than those who were breastfed for a month or less.
They had also spent more time in education and had higher incomes.
Dr Bernardo Lessa Horta, one of the co-ordinators for the study, said, ‘It’s suggesting that the positive effect of breastfeeding on IQ leads to higher income. This is our main finding at the moment.’
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