Babies who are breastfed score better on intelligence tests down the road, according to a new study that suggests support for new moms could boost the brainpower of the next generation. The study of more than 1,300 moms and their babies, who were breastfed for periods ranging from less than a month to more than a year, found that each month of breastfeeding bolstered a 0.3-point increase in intelligence by age 3 and 0.5-point increase by age 7. The differences held up even when the researchers controlled for parental intelligence, income, employment and education, and the benefit was biggest when babies were breastfed exclusively for the first six months -- a target endorsed by experts but often untenable for working moms. "We should do whatever we can do to help women carry out their decision to breastfeed," said study author Dr. Mandy Belfort, a neonatologist at Boston Children's Hospital, assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, and lead author of the study published Tuesday in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. Read more http://abcnews.go.com/Health/breastfed-babies-smarter-study-finds/story?id=19807844
