Breastfeeding can protect an immature baby from urinary tract infections, Dr. Itzhak Levy and his colleagues found.

They performed a case controlled study that was conducted in a tertiary care neonatal intensive care unit between 1995 and 2003. Their study group included all premature infants less than 37 weeks gestation diagnosed with a urinary tract infection.

It was found that the main organism present was a klebsiella species. Baby boys were found to be more prone to urinary infections.

Breastfeeding  was associated with a lower risk of infection with a 95% confidence interval. Doctors explain that maternal immunoglobulins passed through breast milk must have a protective effect.