Early infant diet and risk of type 1 diabetes mellitus in Belgrade children

Objectives This study investigated whether an infant diet is associated with the development of type 1 diabetes. Methods A case-control study was conducted in Belgrade from 1994 to 1997. A total of 105 patients with recent onset diabetes (≤16 y old) were compared with 210 controls chosen among children with skin disease (first control group). Cases and controls were individually matched by age (±1 y), sex, and place of residence. Eighty-six children with diabetes were also compared with their siblings (second control group). Results According to univariate logistic regression analysis, when cases were compared with the first control group, the risk of type 1 diabetes was greater for children who were breast fed less than 4 mo (odds ratio = 2.09, 95% confidence interval = 1.30 to 3.36) and who received cow’s milk at younger than 5 mo (odds ratio = 3.39, 95% confidence interval = 2.04 to 5.66). According to univariate analysis, when cases were compared with their relatives, only early introduction of supplementary milk was associated with a higher risk for diabetes (odds ratio = 5.75, 95% confidence interval = 2.91 to 11.36). After adjusting for different confounding variables, infant diet was not independently associated with diabetes. Conclusions The results obtained do not support the hypothesis that infant diet is related to the occurrence of type 1 diabetes.