Low breastmilk vitamin A concentration is prevalent in rural Ethiopia

There is scant information on the breastmilk vitamin A (BMVA) concentration of lactating women in developing countries, partly due to lack of methods applicable in-field.

To assess BMVA concentrations of samples collected from lactating women of children aged 6-23 months, in Mecha district, Ethiopia.

Data on socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics were collected from randomly selected lactating women (n = 104). Breast milk samples were collected and vitamin A concentrations were analyzed using HPLC and iCheck FLUORO then the two measurements were compared.

The prevalence of underweight (BMI < 18.5 kg/m²) among lactating women was 17%. Seventy six percent of the BMVA values were <1.05 µmol/l and 81% were <8 µg/g fat. The mean BMVA concentration accounted to 41% of the estimated average value for mothers in developing countries. The BMVA values from HPLC and iCheck were correlated (r = 0.59, p = < 0.001), but it was not strong.

The result indicates the low vitamin A status of the lactating women and their children. It further indicates that intake assessments should not use average BMVA composition. The possibility of using iCheck for monitoring interventions designed to improve vitamin A status of lactating women with low BMVA requires further investigation.