TEMPO.CO, Utah : A study suggests that formula milk may increase the risk of obesity to babies. Ben Gibbs, a sociology professor at the University of Brigham Young, Utah, US said that babies consuming formula milk will find difficulty controlling their diet pattern in their later ages, especially when the mother controlling the portion of the milk tends to give more than that baby needs.

"Specifically, babies who sleep with a bottle of formula milk has a 30-percent greater risk of obesity at the age of 2," said Gibbs as quoted by Daily Mail, Tuesday, May 28 May. Gibbs studies 8,000 mothers who breastfed and those feeding the baby with formula milk at the age of 9 months old.

During the evaluation at the age of 24 months (2 years), most of the babies who are fed with formula milk have obesity. According to Gibbs, the incorrect portion makes the babies get used to a big portion. Their diet pattern in later days will not be good, as they demand big portion, while those who are fed with breast milk have the right portion.

However, Gibbs said that babies who are fed with formula milk in the evening do not always grow into obese adults. The research also shows that obesity happens not only because of genetic and biological factors, but also because the pattern of the milk feeding.

In the meantime, Dr. Cynthia Mann, pediatrician in Hamden, Connecticut, said that babies do not have to be fat to look healthy. The fatness level of a baby is not the same as the clinical level of fatness since babies are born with extra fat to keep them warm.

She emphasized that although feeding babies with formula milk can lead to obesity, it does not mean that parents should restrict the intake of calories to the babies. In fact, parents only have to be more cautious in giving formula milk. Above all, breast milk is always the best choice.

ANINGTIAS JATMIKA