TY - JOUR
T1 - Predictors of Human Milk Fatty Acids and Associations with Infant Growth in a Norwegian Birth Cohort
AU - Criswell, Rachel L
AU - Iszatt, Nina
AU - Demmelmair, Hans
AU - Ahmed, Talat Bashir
AU - Koletzko, Berthold V
AU - Lenters, Virissa C
AU - Eggesbø, Merete Å
N1 - Funding Information:
The research leading to these results received funding from the project “Early Nutrition”, grant agreement no. 289346 under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007-2013) (R.L.C., M.A.E.) and by funds from the Norwegian Research Council’s MILPAAHEL program, project No. 213148.F20 (N.I.).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors.
PY - 2022/9/17
Y1 - 2022/9/17
N2 - Triglyceride-bound fatty acids constitute the majority of lipids in human milk and may affect infant growth. We describe the composition of fatty acids in human milk, identify predictors, and investigate associations between fatty acids and infant growth using data from the Norwegian Human Milk Study birth cohort. In a subset of participants (
n = 789, 30% of cohort), oversampled for overweight and obesity, we analyzed milk concentrations of detectable fatty acids. We modelled percent composition of fatty acids in relation to maternal body mass index, pregnancy weight gain, parity, smoking, delivery mode, gestational age, fish intake, and cod liver oil intake. We assessed the relation between fatty acids and infant growth from 0 to 6 months. Of the factors tested, excess pregnancy weight gain was positively associated with monounsaturated fatty acids and inversely associated with stearic acid. Multiparity was negatively associated with monounsaturated fatty acids and n-3 fatty acids while positively associated with stearic acid. Gestational age was inversely associated with myristic acid. Medium-chain saturated fatty acids were inversely associated with infant growth, and mono-unsaturated fatty acids, particularly oleic acid, were associated with an increased odds of rapid growth. Notably, excessive maternal weight gain was associated with cis-vaccenic acid, which was further associated with a threefold increased risk of rapid infant growth (OR = 2.9, 95% CI 1.2-6.6), suggesting that monounsaturated fatty acids in milk may play a role in the intergenerational transmission of obesity.
AB - Triglyceride-bound fatty acids constitute the majority of lipids in human milk and may affect infant growth. We describe the composition of fatty acids in human milk, identify predictors, and investigate associations between fatty acids and infant growth using data from the Norwegian Human Milk Study birth cohort. In a subset of participants (
n = 789, 30% of cohort), oversampled for overweight and obesity, we analyzed milk concentrations of detectable fatty acids. We modelled percent composition of fatty acids in relation to maternal body mass index, pregnancy weight gain, parity, smoking, delivery mode, gestational age, fish intake, and cod liver oil intake. We assessed the relation between fatty acids and infant growth from 0 to 6 months. Of the factors tested, excess pregnancy weight gain was positively associated with monounsaturated fatty acids and inversely associated with stearic acid. Multiparity was negatively associated with monounsaturated fatty acids and n-3 fatty acids while positively associated with stearic acid. Gestational age was inversely associated with myristic acid. Medium-chain saturated fatty acids were inversely associated with infant growth, and mono-unsaturated fatty acids, particularly oleic acid, were associated with an increased odds of rapid growth. Notably, excessive maternal weight gain was associated with cis-vaccenic acid, which was further associated with a threefold increased risk of rapid infant growth (OR = 2.9, 95% CI 1.2-6.6), suggesting that monounsaturated fatty acids in milk may play a role in the intergenerational transmission of obesity.
KW - human milk
KW - infant growth
KW - obesity
KW - triglyceride fatty acids
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85138710694&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/nu14183858
DO - 10.3390/nu14183858
M3 - Article
C2 - 36145232
SN - 2072-6643
VL - 14
JO - Nutrients
JF - Nutrients
IS - 18
M1 - 3858
ER -