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	Podcast:		UC Science Today
	Episode:		Understanding the cellular benefits of breastfeeding
	Category:		Science & Medicine
	Duration:		00:01:03
	Publish Date:		2016-08-30 19:00:00
	Description:		From colonizing microbiomes to lowering the risk of allergies, breastfeeding is well known to have many health benefits in children. But what’s happening on the cellular level is a little more uncertain. According to epidemiologist Janet Wojcicki of the University of California, San Francisco, early breastfeeding may in fact be linked to longer telomeres. These are the protective caps on our DNA. Shorter telomeres are known to increase the risk of chronic disease later on in life. "Early exclusive breastfeeding and breastfeeding to 6 months of age were associated with longer telomeres when children entered kindergarten/elementary school. Cause we know from other studies that breastfeeding has a whole array of benefits – immunological, protective against respiratory illnesses, protective against obesity. But we don’t really know in all cases what the mechanism is. And so the fact that it’s impacting at the cellular level was very exciting."
	Total Play:		0