Nutritional composition of breast milk in Chinese women: a systematic review

As breast milk is considered nature's best food for infant growth and development, understanding its nutritional composition is crucial for optimising the components of infant formula milk. In this study, we aimed to summarise the available evidence on the nutritional composition of breast milk from Chinese women, in particular, the macronutrients, fatty acids and minerals.

We searched PubMed, Embase, and Chinese databases for articles about human breast milk from Chinese women published in English or Chinese between 1999 and 2015. We classified the data in 35 articles from the literature search into three lactation stages: colostral, transitional and mature milk.

The content of each component varied greatly during the three lactation stages. Protein content decreased from colostral milk to mature milk (mean±SD, 1.64±0.32 g/dL vs 1.22±0.12 g/dL). In contrast, lipid content increased from colostral milk (2.36±1.17 g/dL) to mature milk (3.39±1.24 g/dL). Colostrum contained more linoleic acid (LA) than transitional and mature milk, while colostrum contained less α-linolenic acid (ALA) than transitional and mature milk. As lactation progressed, the ratios of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (AA) to total fatty acids decreased while the potassium (K), zinc (Zn), and copper (Cu) concentrations decreased significantly, but their standard deviations were large. Magnesium (Mg) and manganese (Mn) concentrations showed significant differences across the three lactation stages.

The stage of lactation was an important factor affecting the nutritional composition of breast milk from Chinese women.