Related Experiment Videos
Significance of milk pH in newborn infants
Insights
Adding alkali to cow's milk feeds helps bottle-fed infants gain weight faster in the first week. This pH correction also promotes beneficial gut bacteria, potentially protecting against infant gastroenteritis.
Area of Science:
- Infant nutrition
- Pediatric gastroenterology
- Microbiology
Background:
- Bottle-fed infants exhibit a weight lag compared to breast-fed infants during the first week of life.
- Cow's milk is more acidic than human breast milk, potentially impacting infant gut flora.
- Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a common bacterium in infant stools, and its overgrowth can be associated with illness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if adding alkali to cow's milk feeds can correct the initial weight lag in bottle-fed infants.
- To assess the impact of alkali addition on the gut microbiota composition in infants.
- To evaluate the potential protective effect of pH-corrected milk against infant gastroenteritis.
Main Methods:
- A study involving bottle-fed infants during the first week after birth.
- Addition of alkali (sodium bicarbonate or trometamol) to cow's milk feeds.
- Analysis of infant weight gain and stool composition (bacterial flora).
Main Results:
- Alkali addition to cow's milk corrected the weight lag observed in bottle-fed infants.
- Infants receiving alkali-supplemented milk showed a stool with a predominance of lactobacilli over E. coli.
- Removal of alkali resulted in decreased infant weight and increased E. coli in stools.
- In vitro studies demonstrated a bacteriostatic effect of alkali on specific E. coli strains.
Conclusions:
- pH-corrected cow's milk is more physiological and may offer protection against early-life gastroenteritis.
- The bacteriostatic effect of alkali on E. coli is significant, especially where sterile feeding practices are challenging.
- Findings are specific to the first week of life; long-term effects of trometamol and sodium bicarbonate in high-sodium milk are unknown.
Abstract:
Bottle-fed infants do not gain weight as rapidly as breast-fed babies during the first week of life. This weight lag can be corrected by the addition of a small amount of alkali (sodium bicarbonate or trometamol) to the feeds. The alkali corrects the acidity of cow's milk which now assumes some of the properties of human breast milk. It has a bacteriostatic effect on specific Escherichia coli in vitro, and in infants it produces a stool with a preponderance of lactobacilli over E. coli organisms. When alkali is removed from the milk there is a decrease in the weight of an infant and the stools contain excessive numbers of E. coli bacteria.A pH-corrected milk appears to be more physiological than unaltered cow's milk and may provide some protection against gastroenteritis in early life. Its bacteriostatic effect on specific E. coli may be of practical significance in feed preparations where terminal sterilization and refrigeration are not available. The study was conducted during the week after birth, and no conclusions are derived for older infants. The long-term effects of trometamol are unknown. No recommendation can be given for the addition of sodium bicarbonate to milks containing a higher content of sodium.