(Poly)phenols in Human Breast Milk and their health benefits for the newborn

Abstract

Human breast milk is the first food source available to newborns and is responsible for healthy growth and development during the first months of life. Human breast milk contains vitamins, hormones, cytokines, microbiota, and immune cells that are responsible for such healthy conditions. Nonetheless, knowledge of the vast array of molecules present in human breast milk and their potential health effects is still lacking. The effects of mothers diets on the molecules present in human breast milk are also generally unknown. The health benefits of (poly)phenols have been largely increasing but their presence in breast milk has been put largely aside. The impact of the mothers diet in the presence and quantification of these molecules in milk has also been overlooked. Above all, the potential benefits of (poly)phenols for newborns are just a vast emptiness of what is known about (poly)phenol research.

Insights into the early-life chemical exposome of Nigerian infants and potential correlations with the developing gut microbiome

“…The breast milk also contained polyphenols such as flavonols, flavones, and isoflavones. Several studies have shown that polyphenols are abundant in human breast milk and they could be beneficial to the infants (Lu et al 2021, Song et al 2013, Carregosa et al 2023). In contrast, toxic xenobiotics, such as mycotoxins, were detected at a low prevalence in breast milk.…”

“…The breast milk samples from this cohort were previously analyzed with a targeted LC-MS/MS workflow focusing on polyphenols (Berger et al 2024), and similar analytes and patterns were observed between both assays. Several studies have shown that polyphenols are abundant in human breast milk and they could be beneficial to infants (Lu et al 2021, Song et al 2013, Carregosa et al 2023).…”