Breast Milk Facts
Breast milk really is amazing. It’s a miracle of nature that fascinates all of us at SMA Nutrition. Our experts have been researching breast milk facts it for over 70 years and, wow, we’ve learned a lot.
Here’s just a few of breast milk’s super powers – some of them might surprise you.
Breast milk is super-clever
It knows the difference between day and night. In the evenings it produces more melatonin to help baby sleep.1
Breast milk is dynamic
It changes as baby’s needs change. Breast milk can evolve from day to day, week to week, feed to feed and even over one single feed.2
Your breast milk is unique
No baby is quite like yours and no breast milk is like yours either. It’s perfectly composed to meet the needs of your special newborn. And no one else.3
Breast milk is not ‘size-ist’
Whether you have an ample or petite bosom, you can still produce the same amount of milk.
Breast milk is a great medicine
When your baby is sick, you produce more immune cells in your milk to help protect them. Amazing.4
Breast milk is a great teacher
It helps baby learn good taste. The more healthy foods you eat, the more baby will enjoy them. Love veggies and fruit? Baby will get a taste for them too.5
Breast milk is nature’s immunisation
HMOs (Human Milk Oligosaccharides) are the unique carbohydrates that help to make human milk so special and are just one of the many things that make breast milk amazing. They encourage friendly bacteria and prevent harmful bacteria from growing, boosting your baby’s immune system.6
Breast milk knows if your baby is a boy or girl
Research suggests that the energy content of breast milk increases by 25% when baby is a boy. That’s nearly 200 calories more. How amazing is Mother Nature? 7-8
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- Steinberg et al., Tryptophan Intake Influences Infants' Sleep Latency. The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 122, Issue 9, 1 September 1992, Pages 1781–1791
- Khan et al., Variation in fat, lactose, and protein composition in breast milk over 24 hours: associations with infant feeding patterns. J Hum Lact. 2013 Feb;29(1):81-9.
- Khan et al., Variation in fat, lactose, and protein composition in breast milk over 24 hours: associations with infant feeding patterns. J Hum Lact. 2013 Feb;29(1):81-9.
- Riskin A, Almog M, Peri R, Halasz K, Srugo I, Kessel A. (2012) Changes in immunomodulatory constituents of human milk in response to active infection in the nursing infant.
Pediatr Res 71:220-225. - Forestell CA, Mennella JA: Early determinants of fruit and vegetable acceptance.
Pediatrics. 2007; 120: 1247-54. 10. Galloway AT, Lee Y, Birch LL: Predictors and consequences of food neophobia and pickiness in young girls. J Am Diet Assoc. 2003; 103(6): 692-8. - Forestell CA, Mennella JA: Early determinants of fruit and vegetable acceptance.
Pediatrics. 2007; 120: 1247-54. 10. Galloway AT, Lee Y, Birch LL: Predictors and consequences of food neophobia and pickiness in young girls. J Am Diet Assoc. 2003; 103(6): 692-8. - Thakkar SK et al. Dynamics of human milk nutrient composition of women from Singapore with a special focus on lipids. Am J Hum Biol 2013;25:770-9
- Powe CE et al. Infant sex predicts breast milk energy content. Am J Hum Biol 2010;22(1):50-4.
