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Breastfeeding Health Superfood Breastmilk is much more than just a food
Breastfeeding is considered to be the best nutrition for a baby, because in breast milk are in optimal composition all the nutrients that the child needs in the first few months of life. Alone 200 different sugar molecules make human breast milk the most complex of all mammals. For this reason, research is always faced with a great challenge when it comes to the question of what different effects milk has for mother and child. It is clear, however, that the yellowish-white secretion of the mammary glands has far more functions than merely nourishing the child. Swiss researchers are currently reporting this in the journal "Trends in Biochemical Sciences".
Ideal composition of nutrients
Midwives and pediatricians recommend freshly baked mothers to breastfeed their newborns over and over again. Not without reason, since breast milk is considered by experts to be the ideal food for a baby since it contains all the elemental nutrients, e.g. Contains proteins, calcium, iron and fatty acids. But the task of milk is not only in the pure nutrition of the child. Rather, she is a true all-round talent, for example, by reducing infant mortality and protecting against infectious diseases, write Thierry Hennet and Lubor Borsig of the University of Zurich in their review article.
Studies show that breast milk has many positive effects for the child. (Image: JenkoAtaman / fotolia.com) Milk shot about the fourth day after birth
The breast begins to form milk as early as the second half of pregnancy This is called "premilk" or "colostrum" and is used to theoretically be able to care for premature babies directly after birth. This milk is less viscous than the actual breast milk, but contains a higher concentration of protein, vitamin A and carbohydrates. As a result, the child is sufficiently nourished and strengthened after the birth - even if the mother produces only a few drops. From about the third or fourth day after birth, the so-called "milk injection" takes place. This can be a bit painful, especially if milk production is very abrupt. From now on, each breast forms an average of 450 grams of milk a day over the first few weeks. Depending on how intensely breastfed, it can still be after 15 months 200 grams per day, the researchers said in their article.
Intestinal bacteria have an influence on obesity risk
Shortly after birth, the milk is not only responsible for the child's diet, but also supports the development of a healthy intestinal flora. Because the numerous sugar molecules colonize the hitherto germ-free intestine of the child apparently with bacteria. "Babies do not have machinery to digest these sugars, so they're actually for the bacteria - it's like a seedbed, and the mother's milk is the fertilizer," Hennet told the news agency APA. Over time, the composition of the sugar molecules and thus also the totality of bacteria in the intestine (microbiome), which affect not only the intestinal health itself, but the entire metabolism of the child. Experts, for example, assume that intestinal bacteria could be closely related to overweight (obesity).
Also, recent studies show that breastfeeding is positive for the development of the child's immune system. According to Hennet and Borsig, especially after birth, many bioactive proteins such as antibodies, cytokines, defensins or lactoferrin would be found in breast milk. These act as a kind of protective screen, because they keep the baby from pathogens until it takes over the defense after about a month. From then on, the number of maternal antibodies in milk drops significantly, as does the variety of sugar molecules. By contrast, the proportion of fat increases, which promotes the child's growth, the researchers say.
Critics see no benefit from the mother's milk
The topic "Breastfeeding" repeatedly causes controversial discussions. Despite the many positive effects, critics see no added value through breast milk and emphasize that children would develop completely normal without them. In addition, it is repeatedly stated that pollutants such as heavy metals or pesticides get into the milk and could possibly be a danger to the health of infants. Recently, for example, various media reports about the finding of glyphosate in breast milk caused considerable uncertainty. However, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) had given the all-clear, as no glyphosate could be detected according to a recent study.
"We have to be careful about making any recommendations," Hennet said. "On the one hand, breast milk is the product of millions of years of evolution and certainly has the optimal nutrients for a newborn; but the question is: how long does a newborn really need this care? We believe families should make that choice - not scientists, "says Hennet. (No)