Lisa Willis Assignment 2 Mothers Milk: A Rich Opportunity

1) Discuss how breastfeeding could be associated with evolution. Recently, researchers have performed studies to explore the theory that the breast milk that a mother produces may be influenced by evolutionary factors. The authors state that according to this theory an infants chance of survival is increased by breastfeeding as much as possible and that mothers must also consider their ability to breastfeed future offspring. Several studies have also supported that the milk that male and females consume is very different, presumably because healthy males can produce more offspring than females. For example, it has been proven that the milk that male human infants receive contains more fat and protein than that which female infants receive. (Powe et al, 2010). This has even been proven to be a trend among other species, such as the rhesus macaques. In a 2010 study the breast milk consumed by male infant macaques was found to contain much higher levels of cortisol even though the mothers did not have more cortisol in their blood. The effect of the cortisol in the male macaques is not yet understood but it was observed that the males that had consumed the cortisol rich milk developed bold behavior (Sullivan et al, 2010). 2) How could you explain that different mothers produce different sets of HMOs ( human milk oligosaccharides)? The article states that recent advances in technology have helped researchers to discover that there are more than 200 different human milk oligosaccharides. But even

with the available technology it is not clear exactly why different mothers produce different combinations of HMOs. Despite being carbohydrates, instead of serving as a source of nutrients HMOs function as a means to develop certain friendly gut bacteria, which are crucial as pathogenic bacteria proliferates. What I infer from the article is that the HMOs that are present in the mothers milk are dependent upon the mothers environment and her own physiological composition, determining which bacteria will be most valuable to the survival of her infant, which will of course vary widely from one individual to another. Supportive of this theory, in a 2005 study glycans in an infants intestinal epithelia were compared to HMOs collected from the mothers mammary epithelial cells and were found to share the same structural pattern protecting against the same pathogens (Newburg et al, 2005). 3) Do you agree that breast milk could impact the health status of an adult (that was breastfed as an infant)? The numerous benefits of breastfeeding an infant are easily proven, and according to the article supported by many studies proving that breastfeeding protects against multiple conditions such as necrotizing enterocolitis, diarrhea (which can dehydrate infants and lead to death), and ear infections. However, whether or not these benefits could impact the health status of an adult is less clear. Some studies in favor of breastfeeding have included connections between type 2 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, intelligence, and childhood obesity. One such study performed by the European Childhood Obesity Project found that infants who received a high-protein formula became heavier than those who consumed a low-protein formula (like that of breast milk) or breast milk. Though the research is still in its infancy (no pun intended), I do believe that breast milk could impact the health status of an adult.

4) Discuss the intriguing link between breastfeeding and intelligence From 2002-2005 a large study gave IQ tests to over 13,000 Belarusian children of approximately 6 years of age, and compared the results between those who were breastfed and those who were not. The children that were breastfed not only performed better academically but also scored an average of 5.9 points higher than the children who were not breastfed (Kramer et al, 2008). Despite this difference, in this study there was no conclusive evidence that could attribute this disparity specifically to the consumption breast milk as infants. However the article also discusses a study in 2007 in which psychologist Avshalom Caspi identified a gene present in breast milk that may have an impact on brain development. Babies who were breastfed and also possessed the specific variant of the FADS2 gene had a higher IQ (about 4.1 points) than those who also possessed the gene but were not breastfed (Caspi et al, 2007). The presence and relation of this gene to breastfeeding could provide an explanation and better understanding of the IQ difference found in the earlier study. 1. Caspi A.et al. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA104 (47), 1886018865 (2007) 2. Kramer M. S. et al. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 86, 17171721 (2007) 3. Powe C. E. et al. Am. J. Hum Biol. 22(1), 50-54 (2010) 4. Newburg DS, Ruiz-Palacios GM, Morrow AL (2005) Human milk glycans protect infants against enteric pathogens .Annu Rev Nutr 25:37-58 5. Sullivan E. C.et al.Developmental Psychology DOI: 10.1002/dev.20483 (2010)