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Breast Milk

Breast milk and breastfeeding featured article

Nutrition in the first year of life is crucial to an infant's development and lifelong health. Early nutritional deficits are intrinsically linked to impaired mental and physical growth. Consequently, the risk of developing metabolic and cardiovascular diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension in childhood and later life is likely determined by early feeding and nutritional status.

Breastfeeding is the biologically superior way to feed an infant. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant's life and continued breastfeeding while introducing age-appropriate foods until an infant is 12 months old or older. This provides the infant optimal nutrition and immunity while supporting growth and development.

Breastfeeding provides many benefits to infants and mothers. For example, research in developing and industrialized nations demonstrates that breastfeeding is associated with reduced risk of...

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breast milk

The effects of nicotine and cigarette smoke exposure on breast milk and breastfeeding

Posted on April 3rd 2022 (about 3 years)

In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick describes some of the harmful effects of nicotine and cigarette smoke exposure on breast milk quality and breastfeeding duration.

breast milk

Breast milk contains stem cells, which can be passed to the infant | The Biology of Breast Milk

Posted on April 3rd 2022 (about 3 years)

In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick describes the strange phenomenon and role of mammary stem cells in breast milk.

breast milk

Beneficial microbes are transferred to the baby while breastfeeding | The Biology of Breast Milk

Posted on April 3rd 2022 (about 3 years)

In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick describes the unique community of microbes present in human breast milk.

Topic Pages

  • Nicotinamide riboside

    Nicotinamide riboside is a precursor of NAD+, a coenzyme necessary for energy production and cellular repair. It is available from food and supplements.

News & Publications

  • Breastfeeding for six months or more appears to reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems developing in mothers for at least three years after delivery, according to new study. www.scimex.org
    Metabolic Syndrome Breast Milk Cardiovascular

    Breastfeeding benefits mothers by promoting post-partum weight loss and reducing the risk of certain types of cancer later in life. A new study suggests that breastfeeding also supports maternal cardiometabolic health. Women who breastfed for at least six months were leaner and had lower blood pressure than those who didn’t.

    Researchers conducted health check-ups on 160 mother-child pairs enrolled in Screening Tests to Predict Poor Outcomes of Pregnancy, a long-term study that assessed women’s risk for pregnancy complications. They assessed the women’s cardiometabolic health via blood pressure, body measurements, and serum metabolic markers (glucose and lipids). They determined breastfeeding duration via the children’s health records.

    They found that the cardiometabolic health of women who breastfed for at least six months was considerably better than those who did not breastfeed, as evidenced by lower body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure. These differences persisted even after considering factors like BMI, socioeconomic status during early pregnancy, prenatal smoking, and maternal age during early pregnancy. In women who had experienced pregnancy complications (such as preeclampsia or gestational diabetes), breastfeeding for at least six months reduced blood pressure, insulin, and triglycerides, while increasing HDL cholesterol levels.

    These findings suggest that breastfeeding for a minimum of six months benefits the cardiovascular health of mothers, particularly those who experienced pregnancy complications. They also highlight the importance of breastfeeding as a potential means to reduce the risk of cardiovascular issues in women following childbirth. However, the investigators conceded that this was a small study, potentially hindering its translatability to a broad audience. Learn more about the maternal benefits of breastfeeding in our overview article.

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  • Breast milk lipid molecule stimulates brain stem cells to produce oligodendrocytes, effectively reversing white matter damage in neonatal mice. corporate.dukehealth.org
    Brain Development Breast Milk

    Premature infants are at greater risk for developing cerebral palsy, a motor disability caused by brain injury-related white matter losses, impairing movement, balance, and posture. However, a new study in mice indicates that a cholesterol-like molecule present in breast milk may protect against cerebral palsy. Mice administered breast milk were protected from the harmful effects of white matter losses.

    Researchers tested the ability of several oxysterols (naturally occurring cholesterol-like molecules) in human breast milk to promote the production of oligodendrocytes, a type of cell that stimulates white matter development. They found that the oxysterol 20-alpha hydroxycholesterol induced oligodendrocyte production through the sonic hedgehog pathway – a well-known pathway involved in neurodevelopment.

    Then, they gave neonatal mice that had experienced inflammation-driven brain injury and subsequent white matter losses 20-alpha hydroxycholesterol. They found that the compound promoted white matter formation, reversing the animals' brain injuries.

    These findings suggest that 20-alpha hydroxycholesterol, a compound present in breast milk, influences neonatal white matter development and may benefit infants at risk for cerebral palsy or other brain injury-related disorders. Learn more about the benefits of breast milk in our overview article.

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  • Fast food diet before pregnancy can impact breast milk and baby’s health www.joh.cam.ac.uk
    Diet Breast Milk Lactate

    Fast food during pregnancy harms both mother and offspring and interferes with milk production.

    Fast foods – burgers, fries, pizzas, sugar-sweetened drinks, and many others – are often high in calories, saturated fat, added sugars, and salt. Regular consumption of fast foods is associated with an increased risk for many chronic diseases. Findings from a recent study suggest that eating fast food during pregnancy negatively influences maternal health during pregnancy and undermines the nutritional quality of a mother’s breast milk.

    Breast milk is a complex and highly dynamic fluid that changes in composition in response to the growing infant’s needs. It contains both nutritional and non-nutritional components and is profoundly influenced by maternal health and dietary intake.

    The investigators fed one group of mice a high-fat, high-sugar diet that mimicked the nutritional content of fast food before, during, and after pregnancy. They fed another group a normal diet. They assessed the mothers' metabolic health, milk output, and milk composition, and assessed the offspring’s health.

    They found that the mice that ate the high-fat, high-sugar diet were heavier and had higher blood glucose and insulin levels during pregnancy than the mice that ate the normal diet. They also had fatty livers and showed signs of changes in their pancreatic tissues. More of the offspring born to the mice that ate the high-fat, high-sugar diet died during the lactation period due to poor maternal mammary gland development and diminished milk protein production.

    These findings suggest that eating foods that are high in fat and sugar (such as fast foods) during pregnancy negatively influences maternal health and undermines the nutritional quality of a mother’s breast milk. Learn more about breast milk and breastfeeding in our overview article.

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  • Babies Breastfed for a Year or More Better Protected Against Adult Obesity www.newsweek.com
    Obesity Development Breast Milk

    Breastfeeding for a year or longer protects infants against obesity in later life.

    Obesity is a condition in which a person has too much body fat. Having obesity increases a person’s risk for many chronic diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and others. New research suggests that breastfeeding for a year or longer protects infants against obesity in later life.

    Breastfeeding is the biologically superior way to feed an infant. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life and then continued breastfeeding while introducing age-appropriate foods until an infant is 12 months old or older. This provides the infant optimal nutrition and immunity while supporting growth and development.

    To model short-term versus long-term breastfeeding in humans, the investigators weaned one group of rat pups at three weeks of age (typical weaning time) and another group at four weeks of age (delayed weaning time, comparable to a year or more in humans). Once the animals were weaned, half of each group were fed a normal diet, and half were fed a high-fat diet until they reached adulthood. The investigators measured the animals' bodyweight, analyzed their body composition, and measured their energy expenditure.

    They found that rats that ate a normal diet and were weaned at the typical and delayed times did not differ in terms of bodyweight in adulthood. But rats that had a delayed wean time and were fed a high-fat diet were leaner than those that were weaned at the typical time and fed a high-fat diet. The delayed rats also had higher energy expenditures and more active brown fat, a type of fatty tissue involved in thermogenesis, or heat production. The delayed rats' brown fat contained higher quantities of various proteins involved in thermogenesis, including fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). FGF21 activates neurons in the brain involved in metabolic regulation.

    These findings suggest that prolonged breastfeeding protects against obesity in later life, likely mediated by the influence of FGF21 on metabolic regulation. Learn more about the beneficial effects of breastfeeding for both infants and mothers in our overview article.

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  • Sugars found in human breast milk boost cognitive flexibility. www.tandfonline.com
    Nutrition Development Breast Milk

    Breastfeeding during early childhood is associated with positive life outcomes, ranging from improved metabolic health to greater cognitive ability. Researchers believe this effect stems from human breast milk being particularly rich in indigestible sugars, many of which are exclusive to the human species and known as human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs). Now, a new study reports that a particular class of HMOs may be uniquely crucial – at least when it comes to cognitive development.

    The researchers conducted their study in piglets, whose anatomical and cognitive development resembles that of human children. Starting at two weeks of age, piglets were randomly selected to receive one of four milk replacement formulas: a control formula mimicking the oligosaccharide composition of pig milk, and three others containing various types of HMOs.

    Eight weeks later, piglets were transitioned to a solid diet and trained on a challenging memory task that required them to remember which four out of 16 possible locations in a large arena contained hidden food rewards. For an extra challenge, they started each new trial from a different drop-off point, which meant that they had to actively engage with their surroundings to navigate to the rewarded spots.

    Then the animals completed a test of cognitive flexibility – the ability to adapt to changing environments and rules. The researchers baited a new set of four locations with the food rewards and watched how quickly piglets reacted to the change. They found that the piglets that had consumed formula containing sialylated HMOs (HMOs containing a special sugar called sialic acid) were better learners than their peers, especially those whose formula mimicked pig milk. This last group were slowest to learn the new reward locations and more likely to accidentally re-visit spots where they had already collected a reward – a sign of short-term memory lapse.

    These results suggest that sialylated HMOs are a particularly crucial component of breast milk for the development of flexible cognition. This effect might be underpinned by the oligosaccharides' high content of sialic acid, which is found in brain cell membranes and implicated in regulating cellular communication, developmental gene activity, and myelination, (the process of coating neuronal axons in fatty tissue that speeds up signaling). Learn more about HMOs and other beneficial components of breast milk in this episode featuring Dr. Rhonda Patrick.

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