2023-05-22 11:00:13
Researchers showed that the breast milk of vegan women contains as much vitamin B2 and carnitine as breast milk of women who eat everything
A vegan diet does not affect the concentration of vitamin B2 and carnitine in breast milk. These two nutrients are mainly found in animal products and are essential for the development of the baby. This has emerged from research by the Emma Children’s Hospital of Amsterdam UMC.
The researchers showed that breast milk from vegan women contains just as much vitamin B2 and carnitine as breast milk from women who eat everything. Lead researcher Hannah Juncker: “Babies who receive breast milk from vegan mothers are therefore unlikely to have an increased risk of a deficiency of these nutrients, while you might expect that if you know that their mothers do not consume animal products.”
More vegans
In the past four years, the number of vegans has doubled in Europe alone. Juncker: “What a mother eats has a major influence on the composition of breast milk and is important for the development of the child. The increase in vegan diets worldwide, including among nursing mothers, has raised concerns about the nutritional value of their breast milk. We therefore wanted to find out how a vegan diet influences the concentration of two nutrients that mainly come from animal products.”
Striking finding
The researchers determined the concentrations of vitamin B2 and carnitine in breast milk and in the blood of 25 women with a vegan diet. They compared this to the breast milk and blood of 25 women who eat anything. The results showed that vitamin B2 concentration in both blood serum and breast milk was the same in both groups.
It turned out that the concentration of carnitine in the blood of vegan women was much lower than in the control group. While this concentration in breast milk was comparable. Juncker: “That is a striking finding because with a low blood concentration in the mother you would also expect little carnitine in breast milk. A possible explanation is that the mammary gland manages to maintain the carnitine concentration. But we don’t know exactly how this is possible.”
Vitamin B2 in carnitine
Vitamin B2 is essential for all kinds of biological processes in the body. Previous studies have shown that a deficiency of vitamin B2 in a baby can lead to anemia, neurological problems and eye problems. Carnitine plays an important role in energy metabolism. In severe cases, a lack of carnitine can lead to low blood sugar or problems with the heart or brain in a newborn.
Previous studies suggested that breastfeeding women should increase their consumption of animal products to avoid breast milk deficiencies. The results of this study show that this is probably not necessary for these two nutrients because a vegan diet has no influence on them.
Breast milk bank
This study was done with milk from the Dutch Breast Milk Bank. Information about donating breast milk to the Dutch Mother Milk Bank can be found on the website.
The results of this study were presented May 17 at the annual meeting of the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN) in Vienna. The research was made possible thanks to a financial contribution from Stichting Steun Emma Kinderziekenhuis.
Bron: Amsterdam UMC
Tags for this article:
#Vegan #womens #breast #milk #important #nutrients