HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Brenna, J T. Articles by Arterburn, L. M Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Brenna, J T. Articles by Arterburn, L. M Agricola Articles by Brenna, J T. Articles by Arterburn, L. M

Docosahexaenoic and arachidonic acid concentrations in human breast milk worldwide^1,2,3,4

¹ From the Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (JTB and BV); the Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (RGJ); Mead Johnson & Company, Evansville, IN (DAD and JAB); and Martek Biosciences Corporation, Columbia, MD (LMA)

Concentrations of the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs) docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n–3) and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n–6) in human breast milk are important indicators of infant formula DHA and AA concentrations, and recent evidence suggests that neural maturation of breastfed infants is linked to breast-milk LCPUFA concentrations. We report a descriptive meta-analysis that considered 106 studies of human breast milk culled to include only studies that used modern analysis methods capable of making accurate estimates of fatty acid (FA) profiles and criteria related to the completeness of reporting. The final analysis included 65 studies of 2474 women. The mean (±SD) concentration of DHA in breast milk (by wt) is 0.32 ± 0.22% (range: 0.06–1.4%) and that of AA is 0.47 ± 0.13% (range: 0.24–1.0%), which indicates that the DHA concentration in breast milk is lower than and more variable than that of AA. The highest DHA concentrations were primarily in coastal populations and were associated with marine food consumption. The correlation between breast-milk DHA and AA concentrations was significant but low (r = 0.25, P = 0.02), which indicates that the mean ratio of DHA to AA in regional breast milk varies widely. This comprehensive analysis of breast-milk DHA and AA indicates a broad range of these nutrients worldwide and serves as a guide for infant feeding.

Key Words: Lactation • docosahexaenoic acid • arachidonic acid • infant nutrition • descriptive meta-analysis

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. Rai and B. Larson Driving research in infant and children's nutrition: a perspective on industry Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, May 1, 2009; 89(5): 1530S - 1532S. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. M. M. Madden, C. F. Garrioch, and B. J. Holub Direct Diet Quantification Indicates Low Intakes of (n-3) Fatty Acids in Children 4 to 8 Years Old J. Nutr., March 1, 2009; 139(3): 528 - 532. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. L. Berseth, W. H. Johnston, S. I. Stolz, C. L. Harris, and S. H. Mitmesser Clinical Response to 2 Commonly Used Switch Formulas Occurs within 1 Day Clinical Pediatrics, January 1, 2009; 48(1): 58 - 65. [Abstract] [PDF]

				H. A. Hess, B. A. Corl, X. Lin, S. K. Jacobi, R. J. Harrell, A. T. Blikslager, and J. Odle Enrichment of Intestinal Mucosal Phospholipids with Arachidonic and Eicosapentaenoic Acids Fed to Suckling Piglets Is Dose and Time Dependent J. Nutr., November 1, 2008; 138(11): 2164 - 2171. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. R. Weseler, C. E. H. Dirix, M. J. Bruins, and G. Hornstra Dietary Arachidonic Acid Dose-Dependently Increases the Arachidonic Acid Concentration in Human Milk J. Nutr., November 1, 2008; 138(11): 2190 - 2197. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L. Xie and S. M. Innis Genetic Variants of the FADS1 FADS2 Gene Cluster Are Associated with Altered (n-6) and (n-3) Essential Fatty Acids in Plasma and Erythrocyte Phospholipids in Women during Pregnancy and in Breast Milk during Lactation J. Nutr., November 1, 2008; 138(11): 2222 - 2228. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				F. A. Muskiet, R. S Kuipers, E. N Smit, and J. C. Joordens The basis of recommendations for docosahexaenoic and arachidonic acids in infant formula: absolute or relative standards? Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, December 1, 2007; 86(6): 1802 - 1803. [Full Text] [PDF]

				J T. Brenna, B. Varamini, D. A Diersen-Schade, J. A Boettcher, and L. M Arterburn Reply to FAJ Muskiet et al Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, December 1, 2007; 86(6): 1803 - 1804. [Full Text] [PDF]

				V. P Carnielli, M. Simonato, G. Verlato, I. Luijendijk, M. De Curtis, P. J. Sauer, and P. E Cogo Synthesis of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in preterm newborns fed formula with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, November 1, 2007; 86(5): 1323 - 1330. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]