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Determinants of milk volume consumed at a single morning feed by healthy, rural Polish infants
Author(s) -
Klein Laura Danielle,
Galbarczyk Andrzej,
Klimek Magdalena,
Nenko Ilona,
Jasienska Grazyna,
Hinde Katherine
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.849.12
Subject(s) - morning , lactation , population , breast milk , breast feeding , demography , breastfeeding , milk production , parity (physics) , zoology , medicine , environmental health , geography , biology , pregnancy , pediatrics , biochemistry , genetics , particle physics , sociology , physics
Here we present a preliminary report of milk production from an agriculturalist population at the Mogielica Human Ecology Study Site in rural Poland. While a modern population in many respects, the local mountain geography prohibits the use of modern farm equipment and most households utilize physically demanding traditional methods. As women engage fully in harvesting, this site allows for investigating lactation among women with highly variable seasonal energy expenditure. Non‐contracepting women (n=24, 19–44 years old) with infants up to one year old provided a morning, mid‐feed milk sample. Infants were weighed before and after the feeding bout to obtain milk volume. The only significant predictor of milk consumption was delivery mode. Infants delivered via cesarean section (n=4) consumed less milk than infants born vaginally (37.4±5.5g vs. 57.1±6.5g, t=−2.312, p=0.03). Maternal parity, breast‐feeding exclusivity, and maternal mass did not predict milk sample volume. Although derived from a small sample, these results motivate further investigation into lactation among diverse human populations. This research was supported by a Harvard University Human Evolutionary Biology Summer Research Grant.