Breast Buddies Natural Parenting And Breastfeeding Support Forum

Subject: Breastmilk Composition Fri Oct 05, 2007 12:05 am

As hormones levels change in the days after birth, the mother's body starts to make more plentiful amounts of milk. Colostrum gradually changes into mature milk--the stuff babies have been thriving on for thousands of years. Milk's basic ingredients are fat, proteins, lactose, vitamins, minerals, and water. This is true of milk from all kinds of mammals. Yet, the proportions of these ingredients differ, as do the kinds of protein and fat. This is what makes each species' milk uniquely suited to its young. It's also why cow's milk and cow's milk-based formulas are not the ideal food for human infants.

Calorie and fat content of various milks

A changing nutrient for changing needs.
The fat content of human milk changes constantly. Typically, fat levels are low at the beginning of a feeding and high at the end. Babies nurse eagerly to get the low-fat, thirst-quenching foremilk, then slow down and linger over the high-fat dessert at the end of their meal. Babies who nurse again soon after the end of the last feeding get more high-fat milk, so babies who breastfeed more frequently during a growth spurt get more calories. Longer intervals between feedings bring down the fat content of the milk stored in the breast. This nutritional fact of human milk is one of the many reasons why the rigid 3 to 4 hour scheduled style of feeding is biologically incorrect.
Smarter fats.
The special kind of fat in human milk is important to brain development. As newborn babies grow, the nerves are covered with a substance called myelin which helps the nerves transmit messages to other nerves throughout the brain and body. To develop high-quality myelin, the body needs certain types of fatty acids--linoleic and linolenic--which are found in large amounts in human milk.

Breast milk: 22kcal per ounce *1.2g of fat per ounce
Cow's milk:whole:19 kcal, 1.o g fat per ounce
Goats milk:18 kcal, 0.90g fat per ounce
Soy milk:18 kcal, 0.5 g fat per ounce
Formula:20 kcal, 1.06 g fat pre ounce
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/milkcalories.html

* on average; 22 kcal per ounce, range:13- 35kcal per ounce;
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/change-milkfat.html#average

Nutrients

Breastmilk:

cholesterol: 43 mg/cup
fat: 11.2 g/cup

whole cow's milk
cholesterol: 33 mg/cup
fat: 8 g/cup

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/bmilk-composition.html#Nutrients

Protein

Protein is a prime example of how human milk is unique nutrition for human babies. Human milk is low in protein, at least when compared with the milk of other species, especially cow's milk. This isn't a nutritional deficiency; there are good reasons for this. Human infants are designed to grow slowly.
Though the protein content of human milk is generally low, the types of amino acids that make up these proteins are important. One particular amino acid, taurine, is found in large amounts in human milk. Studies show that taurine has an important role in the development of the brain and the eyes. The body can't convert other kinds of amino acids into taurine, so its presence in human milk is significant--so significant that some formula manufacturers have begun adding it to artificial baby milks.

According to "Breastfeeding and Human Lactation" (Riordan and Auerbach, 1999), the protein content of mature human milk from well-nourished mothers is about 0.8-0.9 grams of protein per deciliter. Another source says that in the second year of life, 500 ml of breastmilk provides 38% of baby's protein requirements (UNICEF/Wellstart: Promoting Breastfeeding in Health Facilities: A short course for Administrators and Policy Makers; WHO/CDR 93.4).

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/bmilk-composition.html#Nutrients

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/2/t020800.asp
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Subject: Re: Breastmilk Composition Sat Oct 06, 2007 9:49 pm

http://health.discovery.com/encyclopedias/illnesses.html?article=1875breast milk
Written by Lanette Meyer, CD
Last reviewed on 9/21/2006

Overview

After giving birth to an infant, a woman's body produces breast milk because of the release of hormones triggered by the birth.

How does the nutrient affect the body?

Breast milk is the best source of nutrition for an infant. Breast milk can provide all or nearly all the nutrition an infant needs during the first 6 to 12 months of life. Both the American Dietetic Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics support breastfeeding for the first 4 to 6 months of life. They also support breastfeeding supplemented by solid foods for at least 12 months.

Information

During the first few days after birth, a woman's body produces a watery fluid called colostrum. Colostrum is high in protein, zinc, and other minerals. It contains less fat, carbohydrates, and calories than breast milk. Between the third and sixth day after birth, colostrum changes to a transitional form of breast milk. During this time, the amount of protein and immune factors in the milk gradually decrease, while fat, lactose, and calories in the milk increase. By the tenth day after birth, the mother produces mature breast milk. Colostrum and human milk are both rich in antibodies and have anti-infective factors. These help protect the newborn infant from viruses and bacteria that the infant was exposed to in the birth canal. They also help to protect the infant's immature gut from infection. Breast milk also promotes the growth of bacteria in the digestive tract. These bacteria are helpful rather than harmful and assists with the digestion of food. In addition, breast milk contains immune factors that help an infant fight infection. These immune factors also help prevent the infant from developing possible food allergies. Most women have similar nutrients in their breast milk, but these may vary slightly because of what a woman eats and how her body produces the breast milk. If the mother does not eat a healthy diet, she may produce less milk containing smaller quantities of nutrients. A woman who is breastfeeding should eat 500 calories per day more than her usual healthy intake. This helps her make sure she provides the infant with the quality and quantity of milk needed. Milk content can also change from one time of the day to another, and from beginning to end of a breast-feeding session. The nutrients in breast milk also change from the early months of infancy to the later months of infancy. These changes match the changing nutritional needs of the growing infant. The proteins in human breast milk are mostly whey and casein. Cow's milk contains more casein, and human breast milk contains more whey. Whey is more easily tolerated by an infant's digestive system. The fat in human breast milk is easily absorbed by an infant's digestive system. An enzyme called lipoprotein lipase helps an infant absorb the fat in breast milk. A mother's breast milk contains essential fats. It also contains cholesterol. Both are needed by infants to make tissues in the nervous system. The amount of fat in breast milk rises greatly at the end of a breastfeeding session. This may be nature's way of making an infant feel full and stop feeding. Breast milk contains large amounts of lactose, which is a carbohydrate. Lactose is used in tissues of the brain and spinal cord, and it provides the infant with energy. Bacteria in the infant's intestines feed on lactose and produce B vitamins. Lactose may also help the infant absorb essential nutrients such as calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. Human breast milk contains only a small amount of iron, but the iron in breast milk is easily absorbed. Fifty percent of the iron in human breast milk is absorbed compared with only 4 to 10 percent of the iron in cow's milk or commercial infant formulas. Breast milk contains all the vitamins an infant needs for good health. The actual amount of each vitamin can vary, depending on a woman's diet and genetic makeup.
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