Article: Breast Milk Should Be Drunk At The Same Time Of Day That It Is Expressed

[HotI]

This is an older article, but it just came up in my FB and i found it interesting.

Breast Milk Should Be Drunk At The Same Time Of Day That It Is Expressed

Breast Milk Should Be Drunk At The Same Time Of Day That It Is Expressed

ScienceDaily (Oct. 2, 2009) — The levels of the components in breast milk change every 24 hours in response to the needs of the baby. A new study published in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience shows, for example, how this milk could help newborn babies to sleep.

Breast milk contains various ingredients, such as nucleotides, which perform a very important role in regulating babies' sleep. The new study confirms that the composition of breast milk changes quite markedly throughout the day.

The scientists looked for three nucleotides in breast milk (adenosine, guanosine and uridine), which excite or relax the central nervous system, promoting restfulness and sleep, and observed how these varied throughout a 24-hour period.

The milk, collected from 30 women living in Extremadura, was expressed over a 24-hour period, with six to eight daily samples. The highest nucleotide concentrations were found in the night-time samples (8pm to 8am).

"This made us realise that milk induces sleep in babies", Cristina L. Sánchez, lead author of the article and a researcher at the Chrononutrition Laboratory at the University of Extremadura, tells SINC.

"You wouldn't give anyone a coffee at night, and the same is true of milk – it has day-specific ingredients that stimulate activity in the infant, and other night-time components that help the baby to rest", explains Sánchez.

In order to ensure correct nutrition, the baby should be given milk at the same time of day that it was expressed from the mother's breast. "It is a mistake for the mother to express the milk at a certain time and then store it and feed it to the baby at a different time", points out the researcher. .

The benefits of breast milk

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says breast milk is the best food for the newborn, and should not be substituted, since it meets all the child's physiological requirements during the first six months of life. It not only protects the baby against many illnesses such as colds, diarrhoea and sudden infant death syndrome, but can also help prevent future diseases such as asthma, allergies and obesity, and promotes intellectual development.

The benefits of breastfeeding also extend to the mother. Women who breastfeed lose the weight gained during pregnancy more quickly, and it also helps prevent against anaemia, high blood pressure and postnatal depression. Osteoporosis and breast cancer are also less common among women who breastfeed their children.

[~ Zarava Flutterby ~]

Wow, I would never have thought if that.


Sent from my iPhone, more than likely while I should be doing something else!

[Charlotte91]

Me either. Could be why when DD was in hospital that when she was given 'morning milk' it would take her ages to fall asleep because I was a massive coffee addict while she was in hospital.

[HotI]

I prefer breastfeeding (rather than feeding ebm) when possible, and one of the reasons is that the milk that i make today is influenced by the conditions that i (and my DD) face today, and the bugs that i come in to contact with today. So, DD will be getting the most 'accurate' immune factors etc for the conditions that she faces right now.

Charlotte, you made me giggle with your bub being wakeful after her coffee spiked 'morning milk'.

[Barb Glare]

Hi,

it is an oldie - but it always makes me scratch my head and make me wonder 'what is the point" Your expressed breastmilk is a completely superior product to anything else you could offer your baby (other than breastmilk straight from the source) But doesn't this just make it sound all too hard? I say - interesting, but little practical application. If you express your milk don't worry about it- just feed it to your baby and be confident it's just perfect!

[surprised]

I'm with Barb - if you're expressing full-time then you're doing an amazing job, and to try to give it at the right time would send you nutty! But interesting article!

[SunnyRain]

I agree, it's far superior to the alternative. But I have wondered about expressing and storing for months because I've read breast milk composition changes as the baby gets older and her dietary needs change. Is 3-month old milk worth anything?

I just feed my baby, but I have accumulated about 2 full feeds of milk for an emergency or if we ever get a chance to go out, but I won't use it right away.

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Jude 07/10/2008 | Lilac 16/06/2011

[~ Zarava Flutterby ~]

Personally i think any EBM is better than no EBM IYKWIM but for people who possibly to do express and have issues with their child being sleepy at the wrong time etc it may be worth jotting down the time expressed on the bottle when you write the date and see if it makes a difference.
It might not take any more effort than writing the date on the bottle and you could just store them based on the date/time in the freezer or fridge.

[LionsandBears]

My Dad printed this article out for me when I was pregnant with DS1. This just reminded me. I thought it was sweet that he had.

[belle75]

It's an interesting point, but like Barb said - breastmilk is still superior to any other substitute. If you express, let bub have it! I think the point of the article was just to make people aware of the beauty of nature and how it cleverly changes breastmilk in a 24hr period. I don't think the aim was to promote women to discard EBM. just my 2c worth

[MantaRay]

Is 3-month old milk worth anything?

Yep!! A lot actually. It is true that milk adjusts to the baby's age, but all breast milk contains all the building blocks for growth, brain development, immunity etc, including stem cells. Any breast milk is wonderful for your baby hun.