New research reveals the remarkable complexity of human milk
Two major international studies are providing new insight into how human milk is regulated, showing that some components respond to maternal nutrition, while others remain stable or reflect biological processes involved in lactation and infant growth.
Two major international studies have provided new insight into the complexity of human milk, with researchers finding that some components respond to maternal nutrition while others remain stable or reflect biological processes involved in lactation and infant growth. Conducted by the International Milk Composition (IMiC) Consortium, a global collaboration led by the University of Manitoba, the studies involved over 1,000 mother-infant pairs from Canada, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, and Pakistan.
The findings, published in Science, reveal that human milk is not simply a reflection of maternal diet but a highly regulated biological system. Some components, such as B vitamins, selenium, and triglyceride profiles, respond clearly to maternal nutritional supplementation, while others do not change. These results could help in designing maternal nutritional supplements more deliberately to optimize the delivery of nutrients to breastfed infants, particularly in settings where maternal undernutrition is common.
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