Association of breast milk gamma-linolenic acid with infant anthropometric outcomes in urban, low-income Bangladeshi families: a prospective, birth cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Background/objectives

Infant linear-growth faltering remains a major public health issue in low- and middle-income countries and suboptimal breast milk composition may be a local, population-specific risk factor. The relationship between early post-natal breast milk fatty acid (FA) composition and infant growth at 1 and 2 years of age was investigated prospectively in 563 families in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Subjects/methods

A maternal breast milk sample drawn before infant age 6 weeks was analyzed for percentage composition of 26 FAs, and infant length for age Z score (LAZ) was measured longitudinally to infant age 2 years. Individual FAs were tested as predictors of the infant growth outcomes.

Results

Of 26 tested FAs, %gamma-linolenic acid (%GLA) was mostly significantly associated with increase in LAZ from 6 to 52 weeks (?LAZ(52-6w)), and also to 104 weeks. The association was consistent over all breast milk stages with estimated effect size of +0.05 ?LAZ(52-6w) per 20% change in %GLA (p value?=?3?×?10^-6), and stronger for ?LAZ(104-6w) at +0.06 (p value?=?8?×?10^-7), explaining 1% of the outcome variance. Infant serum zinc measurements at 6 and 18 weeks of age were included in adjusted analyses, suggesting at least partial independence of infant zinc levels. The association was strongest in 417/563 (74.1%) families with %GLA <0.2%. Breast milk arachidonic acid fraction was within normal range with weaker evidence of association in early breast milk stages.

Conclusions

This study found that %GLA in breast milk was independently associated with infant linear growth, albeit with small effect size, in a predominantly slum-dwelling, low-income, Bangladeshi cohort.

SUBMITTER: Mychaleckyj JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7214250 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature