In my previous posting I had already explained about prebiotics in breast milk which dominantly represented by oligosaccharides. In this present posting, I want to emphasis the discussion about oligosaccharides in breast milk.

In 1900, Moro noted that breast milk contained intestinal microflora growth factors. However, those factors, known as oligosaccharides, and their structure, were unidentified until many years later. Oligosaccharides are a complex mixture of approximately 130 compounds present in breast milk, such as Lacto-N-fucopentaose, Lacto-N-difucohexaose, Lacto-N-novopentaose, etc. Oligosaccharides are known as the third most abundant component in breast milk, after lactose and lipids. The following principal components of oligosaccharides are found in breast milk: sialic acid, N-acetylglucosamine, L-fucose, D-glucose, and D-galactose. Those components combine in different ways to form 130 different oligosaccharides.

During the first month of life, breast milk is considered to be a very satisfactory immune-nutrient due to its content in simple and complex oligosaccharides and its promotion of the growth of bifidobacteria-enriched intestinal microflora. It is unknown if changes in the composition of oligosaccharides are due to a programmed adaptation of milk composition to suit the needs of the infant, associated with the increasing maturation of infant’s immune system, or with the ageing of the cells responsible for milk production.

Oligosaccharides are possessed anti-infective effect due to their capacity to inhibit the adhesion of bacteria to the epithelial surfaces of human. Therefore, they are playing an important protective role against infection in gastrointestinal, respiratory, and urogenital tracts. Oligosaccharides are also having important role in the expression and development of brain and central nervous system functions in babies. It is sialic acid which is a basic component of brain ganglioside and glycoprotein, and the high content in sialic acid of breast milk during the first week of lactation coincides with a period of rapid synthesis of brain sialoglycoproteins and gangliosides.

Both simple and complex oligosaccharides represent not only a nutritional complement to the daily diet, but they also may provide health benefits. The beneficial effects of consuming oligosaccharides, both for nursing children and during other stages of life, have demonstrated their safety and efficacy. One proof of this is their ever more frequent inclusion in food products. Oligosaccharides are often used as ingredients in the formulation of functional foods. Functional food is a range of processed food whose inclusion in the human diet promotes physical and mental wellbeing. A functional oligosaccharide should comply with two requisites: it should not decompose during digestion and should be used mainly by the bacteria inhabiting the human colon.

From the information above we know that God’s creation, breast milk, provide valuable information for us that can be pointed as references to create something useful for human being.


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