Bottle ‘as good as breast’ for baby bonding

BREAST-FEEDING makes no difference to the strength of the bond between mother and baby, researchers have found.

Some post-natal health experts have long argued for using breast ahead of bottle to improve the parent and child’s relationship.

But new research at the University of Lincoln has shown that mothers who bottle-fed reported just as strong a bond as mothers who breast-fed.

Questionnaires were completed by 3,000 mothers, asking about signs of anxiety and indicators of a positive child-parent relationship.

It found no indication of stronger bonding among breast-feeders. Researcher Abigail Davis said: ‘Current literature is based on the idea that breast-feeding facilitates bonding. Our study aligns with the few empirical studies which do not show this association.’