0027

DHA AND AA CONTENTS IN BREAST MILK

Zhang Weili¹, Wu Shangmei¹, Qian Jihong¹, Yang Hongwei², Zhuang Manli³, Cao Lijuan⁴, Wu Yuli¹, Cao Xiaolan¹

¹Shanghai Xinhua Hospital，Shanghai Second Medical University；

²Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital；

³Zhoushan Maternity and Infant Hospital；

⁴Shanghai Chongming Maternal and Children Health Care Institute；Shanghai, China

Objective: In order to know the fatty acid content of breast milk in different regions of China

Methods: The fatty acid composition of breast milk from 109 lactating women in three regions was analyzed by capillary gas chromatography. Twenty-seven milk samples were obtained from Shanghai urban, 15 samples from Shanghai suburb (Chongming county) and 67 samples from Zhoushan island of Zhejiang province.

Results: The contents of linoleic acid (LA) and a-linolenic acid (LNA) in the mature breast milk from Shanghai urban women were 28.61±6.09% and 2.81±0.68%, respectively, which were significantly higher than that from Shanghai suburb women (LA, 19.64±3.4% and LNA, 2.7±0.8%) and Zhoushan island women (20.03±3.11% and 2.48±0.55%), whereas the DHA content of the breast milk from Zhoushan women was 0.61±0.21%, which was significantly higher than that from Shanghai urban women(0.51±0.25%, p<0.01) and Shanghai suburb women(0.42±0.16, P<0.01). The contents of arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in colostrum were significantly higher than that in mature breast milk.

Conclusion: The study show that the difference of fatty acid composition of breast milk may be due to different diet habits of different countries and regions. Higher levels of LA and LNA of breast milk in our study may be related to a large proportion of vegetarian diet of lactating women in our country. More fish and seafood intake by Zhoushan island women may account for the relatively higher DHA level in their milk. Higher levels of AA and DHA in colostrum are much beneficial to the growth and development of newborn infants.

Key words: Breast milk, Fatty acid, AA, DHA, LA, LNA