The Breastfeeding is key in the care of premature baby, since it constitutes a true natural medicine that helps improve the structure of the heart and reduce the incidence and severity of some diseases typical of prematurity, such as necrotizing enterocolitis, among others.
And it is that breast milk, which is a live and dynamic fluid, adapts its composition to the needs of the baby, so the milk of a mother who has given birth prematurely, differs from that of a mother who has done it at term. A true wonder of nature that we are going to analyze.
The composition of preterm milk
Premature babies (born with less than 37 weeks gestation) unlike full-term babies are born with restricted growth, committed to nutritional level and physiologically immature.
Breast milk (which is an intelligent fluid) adapts to the needs of the baby, so if we compare early premature milk with the milk of a mother who has given birth at term, we find substantial differences:
Premature milk has higher levels of protein, sodium, fat, and free amino acids. This is because the premature baby has higher protein requirements Than the term born baby.
It also has higher levels of some vitamins and minerals.
It presents higher levels of immunological factors, including cells, immunoglobulins and anti-inflammatory elements. Among them, lactoferrin stands out, an anti-infection and anti-inflammatory protein whose function is to protect the baby against early infection.
This composition of the preterm milk is especially important for the gastrointestinal and neurological development of the baby, as well as to confer immunological protection."The level of concentration of this protein in preterm milk is another demonstration of the variable composition of breast milk. It is much higher in the milk of mothers who give birth prematurely and more specifically in premature colostrum" - we explains Leon Mitoulas, head of breastfeeding research at the Medela company.
Premature feeding with less than 1,500 grams
All these properties make it extremely important that the premature baby be fed breast milk (preferably from his mother, and if this is not possible, through donation banks).
However, we must bear in mind that, according to UNICEF, This nutritional composition cannot completely cover the calcium, phosphorus and occasionally protein requirements of premature infants below 1,500 grams.
So, in those cases, the so-called “breast milk fortifiers” would be added to breast milk, which baby growth and development rates improve, preserving the immunological, metabolic and binding benefits.
Adapting to the growth of the baby
As the premature baby grows, breast milk also changes and adapts to each stage of its development. In this way, the levels of its components decrease in the first weeks after birth, until reaching the concentrations present in the term milk.
Similarly, the lactoferrin protein - which, as we have seen, has especially high levels, especially in the colostrum of the first five days of life - is reduced to 50 percent in mature milk at the month of breastfeeding, and at two months, the levels they stabilize at approximately one third of the values in colostrum.
On the other hand, during the first months of the baby they occur progressive increases in fat and energy concentrations, while carbohydrates first increase and then end up stabilizing.
But this adaptation of breast milk to the needs of the baby does not occur only in the milk of premature mothers, but also in the milk of mothers who have given birth at term:
In this way, the baby's first milk (colostrum) would stand out for be very rich in leukocytes and development factors, as well as in immunological components that are responsible for offering maximum protection to the newborn.
From the fifth day until the first two weeks of the baby's life, approximately, the so-called "transition milk" It has a more nutritious function, since it provides a higher content of fat, lactose and water-soluble vitamins than colostrum and, therefore, supplies more calories to the newborn.
From two weeks to the first month of life, milk is considered mature and stable in terms of its composition. She alone gives the child all the nutritional substances and calories that he requires for normal development and growth during the first six months of life, and it is recommended to offer it until two years of age or more with complementary feeding.
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Via medela
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