Fatty acid composition of human milk in Western Iran

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the fatty acid composition of mature human milk in Western Iran with special focus on trans fatty acids. Design: Observational study. Methods: Milk samples were collected from 52 lactating mothers aging 19-39 y, from Western Iran. Subjects were asked to complete a diet questionnaire. Milk fatty acids were measured as 2-nitrophenylhydrazide derivatives by high-performance liquid chromatography. Results: Saturated fatty acids were the main fraction of human milk (41.3%). Medium-chain fatty acids (C8:0-C14:0) constituted 24%, oleic acid (C18:1o9) accounted for 30.9% and elaidic acid (C18:1T), the trans isomer of oleic acid, comprised 11.3% of the total milk fatty acids. Linoleic (C18:2o6) and linolenic (C18:3o3) acid contents were 13.8 and 1.1%, respectively. The level of the polyunsaturated fatty acids was 1.4% for arachidonic (C20:4o6) and 0.2% for eicosapentaenoic (C20:5o3) acid. Conclusions: The milk from Iranian lactating mothers, as compared to that from the American or European mothers, contained high levels of medium-chain and trans fatty acids. This difference may be attributed to the maternal diet with low animal protein and animal fat but with high carbohydrate and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils that carry large amounts of trans fatty acids. As the detrimental effects of trans fatty acids on blood lipids and cardiovascular diseases have been emphasized in the literature, a reduction of trans fatty acid content in the diet of Iranian mothers is suggested.

Dietary trans fatty acid intake and maternal and infant adiposity

“…A 2005 study in Iran found that increased maternal intakes of trans fatty acids leads to increased amounts of trans fatty acids in the breastmilk (Bahrami and Rahimi, 2005). Other studies have also reported strong correlations between maternal and infant plasma trans fatty acid concentrations (Koletzko and Muller, 1990;Craig-Schmidt, 2001).…”

“…Aihaud et al (2006) have also attributed the risk of breastmilk to overweight and obesity in later life to its fatty acid content. The fatty acid composition of human milk is reported to be influenced by maternal dietary fatty acid composition (Anderson et al, 2005;Bahrami and Rahimi, 2005;Koletzko et al, 2005). Although the fatty acid composition of infant formula differs from breastmilk, it remains constant over time, whereas the fatty acid composition of human milk varies greatly from one mother to another and even within a breastfeeding episode (Koletzko and Rodriquez-Palmero, 1999;Koletzko et al, 2005).…”

“…Although breastmilk composition is relatively stable as a whole, the fatty acid composition of the maternal diet reflects the fatty acid composition of her breast milk (Francois et al, 1998;Bahrami and Rahimi, 2005). These changes can occur hourly depending on the maternal eating pattern and diet composition (Francois et al, 1998).…”

Discrimination among geometrical isomers of α-linolenic acid methyl ester using low energy electron ionization mass spectrometry

“…. While the naturally occurring isomers have mainly cis configuration, trans fatty acids appear naturally in milk [1,2] and can be artificially produced by heating and hydrogenation of vegetable oils [3]. Investigation of function and possible adverse effects of trans fatty acids on human health have been carried out extensively in recent years [4,5].…”

Adipose Tissue Trans Fatty Acids and Risk of Coronary Artery Disease: A Case-Control Study

“…A recent report indicates that the mean level of TFA consumption in Iran, as compared to the level in most of other countries, is high [16] . This difference may be attributed to the hydrogenated oils available in Iran that carry large amounts of TFA.…”