Evolutionary and Sociocultural Aspects of Human Milk Composition
| Status: | Recruiting |
|---|---|
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | Any |
| Updated: | 4/21/2016 |
| Start Date: | May 2014 |
| Contact: | Michelle K McGuire, PhD |
| Email: | smcguire@wsu.edu |
| Phone: | 208-596-5032 |
It is well-known that breastfeeding protects infants from illness, especially in the poorest
regions of the world. The full nature of this protective effect, however, is less well
understood. A major barrier to understanding is the fact that almost nothing is known about
the factors that influence the considerable variation in milk composition around the globe,
or about the effects of this variation on infant health. This INSPIRE project represents the
first comprehensive investigation of the global differences in human milk composition along
with the various microbial, evolutionary, environmental, and sociocultural factors that
might influence both milk composition and infant health. An international, interdisciplinary
collaboration of physiologists, nutritional scientists, anthropologists, microbiologists,
and mathematicians will collect biological data from breastfeeding women and their infants,
in concert with extensive anthropologic and ecological data, in both developed (US, Spain,
Sweden) and developing countries (Central African Republic, Gambia, Ghana, Peru, and Kenya).
To test the possibility of a correlation between milk oligosaccharide composition, milk
microbiota, and the gastrointestinal microbiome of infants, milk samples and infant fecal
samples will be analyzed using state-of-the-art biochemical and genomic techniques. This
study will allow important cross-cultural comparisons of milk composition and infant feeding
practices; it also will utilize sophisticated computational methods to integrate the
extensive, diverse body of combined biological and anthropological data to elucidate the
relationships among sociocultural factors, evolutionary history, environmental exposures,
microbial constituents and milk composition. The researchers predict that what is considered
"normal" milk composition in one population may not support optimal health in another. This
information is crucial to the humanitarian quest to understand how infant nutrition and
overall health can be improved around the world. In addition, this project will provide
extensive research training opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral
scientists.
regions of the world. The full nature of this protective effect, however, is less well
understood. A major barrier to understanding is the fact that almost nothing is known about
the factors that influence the considerable variation in milk composition around the globe,
or about the effects of this variation on infant health. This INSPIRE project represents the
first comprehensive investigation of the global differences in human milk composition along
with the various microbial, evolutionary, environmental, and sociocultural factors that
might influence both milk composition and infant health. An international, interdisciplinary
collaboration of physiologists, nutritional scientists, anthropologists, microbiologists,
and mathematicians will collect biological data from breastfeeding women and their infants,
in concert with extensive anthropologic and ecological data, in both developed (US, Spain,
Sweden) and developing countries (Central African Republic, Gambia, Ghana, Peru, and Kenya).
To test the possibility of a correlation between milk oligosaccharide composition, milk
microbiota, and the gastrointestinal microbiome of infants, milk samples and infant fecal
samples will be analyzed using state-of-the-art biochemical and genomic techniques. This
study will allow important cross-cultural comparisons of milk composition and infant feeding
practices; it also will utilize sophisticated computational methods to integrate the
extensive, diverse body of combined biological and anthropological data to elucidate the
relationships among sociocultural factors, evolutionary history, environmental exposures,
microbial constituents and milk composition. The researchers predict that what is considered
"normal" milk composition in one population may not support optimal health in another. This
information is crucial to the humanitarian quest to understand how infant nutrition and
overall health can be improved around the world. In addition, this project will provide
extensive research training opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral
scientists.
Inclusion Criteria
- Breastfeeding or pumping at least 5 times daily (to assure adequate milk production)
- Self-reported healthy women and infants
- ≥ 18 yr of age (maternal)
- 1-3 mo postpartum
Exclusion Criteria
- Current indication of breast infection (e.g., breast pain, discomfort, lumps,
mastitis with fever, red streaks, or hard red portions of the breast)
- Breast pain that the woman does not consider "normal" for lactation/breastfeeding
- Any antibiotics to mother or infant in the previous month (30 days)
- Infant has had signs/symptoms of acute illness in the previous 7 days including the
following: fever, diarrhea (≥ 3 excessively "loose" stools in a day), vomiting not
associated with feeding, severe cough, rapid breathing
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