Microbiota passed through breast milk

Gut microbiota play an important role in human development. The flourishing group of symbiotic bacteria plays a crucial role in digestion, immune health, and homeostasis (Harvard, 2020). The microbiota is crucial for child brain development through the gut-brain axis (Ihekweau M.D. et. al., 2018). A child’s microbiota development begins in utero and further develops during the birthing process (2018). The first year of life is a pivotal time period for microbiome development because this when gut microbiota diversifies, and this development will impact the person through adulthood (Ma, 2020). A mother’s gut microbiota can be passed through breast milk and can heavily influence the infant's microbiota (Fehr, 2020). Breast milk is rich in vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and good bacteria. Prebiotic human milk oligosaccharides found in breast milk supports the development of the microbiota in an infant (2020). Microbiota passed through breast milk can also have an effect on a child’s allergy and disease risk (Van Den Elsen et. al., 2019).

It is well known that breastfeeding and formula provide an infant with exposure to microbiota and equivalent nutritional benefits (Bhandari, 2018). This makes both feeding methods adequate and acceptable forms of nutrition. Formula provides an infant with a different set of bacteria that is less abundantly found in breast milk, and vice versa (2018). It is currently unclear if the mode of breastfeeding has an impact on an infant’s gut microbiota. Nursing and pumping methods have been compared to determine if the infant’s microbiota differed. One study found that pumping breast milk may reduce the amount of shared microbiota between the mother and infant (Fehr, 2020). Additionally, a common source of microbes an infant receives comes through direct skin contact with the mother (2020).

Many women have strong opinions on how a mother should feed their child. If a primary source of transferring microbes is through skin contact, the infant is likely exposed to beneficial microbes through general nurturing. With so many uncertainties surrounding how gut microbiota is passed from mother to a child, it is unfair to judge or control a woman’s choice for feeding mode, whether that is through nursing, pumping, or formula. 

References: 

Bhandari, T. (2018, December 27). Breast milk, formula nurture similarities, differences in gut microbes. Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://medicine.wustl.edu/news/infant-formula-breast-milk-nurture-similarities-differences-in-gut-microbes/. 

Fehr, K., Moossavi, S., Sbihi, H., Boutin, R. C. T., Bode, L., Robertson, B., Yonemitsu, C., Field, C. J., Becker, A. B., Mandhane, P. J., Sears, M. R., Khafipour, E., Moraes, T. J., Subbarao, P., Finlay, B. B., Turvey, S. E., & Azad, M. B. (2020, July 10). Breastmilk feeding practices are associated with the co-occurrence of bacteria in mothers' milk and the infant gut: The child cohort study. Cell Host & Microbe. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1931312820303504?via%3Dihub#bib30. 

Harvard. (2020, May 1). The microbiome. The Nutrition Source. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/microbiome/. 

Ihekweazu, F. D., & Versalovic, J. (2018, August 21). Development of the pediatric gut microbiome: Impact on health and disease. The American Journal of the Medical Sciences. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002962918303021. 

Ma, J., Li, Z., Zhang, W., Zhang, C., Zhang, Y., Mei, H., Zhuo, N., Wang, H., Wang, L., & Wu, D. (2020, September 25). Comparison of gut microbiota in exclusively breast-fed and formula-fed babies: A study of 91 term infants. Nature News. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-72635-x. 

Van Den Elsen, L. W. J., Garssen, J., Burcelin, R., & Verhasselt, V. (2019, February 27). Shaping the gut microbiota by breastfeeding: The gateway to allergy prevention?Frontiers in Pediatrics. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fped.2019.00047/full.