Breast milk in Botswana: cream and vitamin C contents

Breast milk samples taken at the end of suckling from 112 Botswanan and 17 British mothers were analysed for cream and vitamin C content. Cream was estimated using the creamatocrit method. Measurements of triceps skinfold thickness and mid upper arm circumference were similar in the two groups. The mean (s.d.) vitamin D content of milk in Botswana was 84.60 mumol/l (73.81) [1.49 mg/dl (1.30)] which was less than the mean of 269.70 mumol/l (109.58) [4.75 mg/dl (1.93)] (P less than 0.0001) in Britain, especially among grand multiparae. The Botswanan mean (s.d.) creamatocrit of of 5.32% (2.48%) was lower than that of the British, 7.93% (2.81%) (P less than 0.01). Possible explanations are discussed.