The world’s first breast milk institute has opened in California – where scientists will study whether it can be used to treat a range of diseases.
The Human Milk Institute in San Diego will test human milk as a therapeutic for chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and breast cancer.
Decades of research have shown that breast milk strengthens babies’ brains, immune systems and bones, but the lab’s work will also examine its effects in adults.
Professor Lars Bode, HMI’s Director of Funding, said: “Physicians and scientists at UC San Diego and elsewhere have been doing this work for some time, but largely in isolation in their respective areas of interest.
“With the novel … Human Milk Institute … we have the opportunity to learn, coordinate and interact and speak with one voice in one central place.
“Research can inform clinical care, clinical care can inform research, and both can educate.”
The new, unique hub of its kind brings together diverse laboratories at the University of California, San Diego that have studied the nature, biology and therapeutic potential of human milk.
The Milk Bank is owned and operated by UC San Diego. It is one of only 31 non-profit milk banks in North America and only the second in California
MOMI CORE of UC San Diego was founded to research how the components of human milk can be used to treat or prevent diseases in infants and adults.
Researchers at the HMI are investigating the ability of human milk to prevent serious gastrointestinal infection, which most commonly affects preterm infants
The milk bank accepts donated breast milk that is tested, pasteurized, bottled, analyzed for macronutrients, and screened for bacterial growth prior to distribution.
The pasteurized donor milk is shipped by courier to hospitals and donor sites in California and the Southwest, or FedEx frozen on dry ice from the milk bank
WHY IS BREAST, ACCORDING TO EXPERTS, THE BEST?
Mothers are encouraged to breastfeed when possible to give their infants the maximum dose of nutrients.
Bottle feeding can be costly for many parents struggling with the financial burden of a new baby.
Formula milk also has different levels of nutrients, which are determined by the supplier.
And it is often not easy for babies to digest.
However, babies who take both breast milk and formula may not be getting enough vitamin D and still need drops or mothers who take supplements.
Many women who breastfeed incorrectly mistakenly believe it gives babies all the nutrients they need, said Dr. Carol Wagner from the Medical University of South Carolina at Charleston.
dr Christina Chambers, Professor of Pediatrics at the UC San Diego School of Medicine and Director of Mommy’s Milk Human Milk Research Biorepository, said, “From the research lab to the NICU, the HMI will bring us together in an unprecedented way to support our monument efforts to… discovering how breast milk can help people of all ages.’
Breast milk provides infants with essential nutrition, with a near-perfect mix of vitamins, protein and fat that primes babies’ immune systems to fight infection.
These bioactive components could prove to be an integral part of the development of new drugs for difficult-to-treat diseases.
Professor Bode, a pediatrician at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, said: “We will work to answer critical and life-saving questions such as: B. “Can components of breast milk be developed into natural therapies or serve as non-invasive diagnostics?”
“Our findings could also help reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes in adults,” he said.
The institute also includes outreach and education programs, as well as a milk donation bank where altruistic mothers can donate breast milk for pasteurization and analysis for possible contaminants and nutrients.
Breastfeeding rates vary by state but are high overall.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 83 percent of babies born in 2019 were breastfed for some part of their early lives.
Almost 56 percent were breastfeeding at six months, the recommended length of time for breastfeeding.
The establishment of the HMI follows years of baby food shortages that have persisted in many parts of the United States.
At the height of the shortages, as panicked mothers searched for food for their babies, many faced online attacks for not breastfeeding for free to avoid the shortages.
In reality, there are many reasons why breastfeeding is not possible for some women.
Women with insufficient glandular tissue cannot produce milk.
New mothers with medical conditions that cause extreme hormone imbalances due to thyroid dysfunction or polycystic ovary syndrome may also have problems breastfeeding.